Our Vicar
Statement of Faith
- The Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church, believed to have been founded by Saint Thomas, one of the Apostles of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world and known by the name of the Apostle, is part of the ONE HOLY CATHOLIC and APOSTOLIC CHURCH.
- This Church, in conformity with the faith of the Christian Church in all ages, believes in Jesus Christ, God incarnate for the redemption of mankind, and in the TRIUNE God revealed by Him, who is himself one in that Trinity.
- The Holy Bible consisting of the sixty-six books comprised in the Old and New Testaments, accepted by the Mar Thoma Syrian Church as the basis of all matters of doctrine and faith, and the Nicene Creed, formulated in accordance with the Holy Scriptures, shall, not be altered in any manner by any one and likewise, the Ministry of Deacon, Priest and Episcopa, the rites of Church viz., Church Dedication, Church Consecration, Holy Baptism, Holy Communion, Holy Matrimony, Unction of the Sick, Funeral (Burial) Service and observance of Sunday, Lents and Dominical Feasts, shall not be abolished, at any times.
- This Church accepts as its goal and function to be the repository of the divine doctrines revealed by Jesus Christ and proclaimed by His Apostles; to maintain these doctrines in their purity; to promote the spiritual life of its members through the administration of sacraments and by the ministry of the WORD; to make disciples of all nations by the proclamation of the Gospel to all the world, and through the administration of Holy Baptism in the name of the Triune God.
- The ministry of the Church is the gift of the risen Christ. The responsibility to fulfil this ministry, in history, is entrusted with the Church. The Church affirms that the people of God are sent all over the world and that they partake in the salvation work of God, to unite everything in Jesus Christ, through the ministry of reconciliation, begun in Jesus Christ. The Church receives the power of the Holy Spirit, which enables the church to fulfil the redemptive work of God, who directs and controls the events in history. The Holy Spirit guides the offices of the Ministry, originated through divine plan and ordains the people of God to build the Church which is the body of Christ, in order that they may attain maturity, akin to the fullness of Christ, through faith and knowledge in the Son of God and the Unity of the Holy Spirit. This Church believes and proclaims the above basic principles of the Ministry of the Church.
5A. The Church is the Body of Christ and the believers are the members thereof. All persons sealed by Baptism in the name of the Fathers, the Son and the Holy Spirit and who acknowledge the authority of the Supreme Head of this Church, observe the regulations and practices of the Church, and who do not lead an immoral life, or become members of any others Church denominations, and not converted to a non-Christian faith, and are not, for any reasons, excommunicated or put out of membership of this Church, and all members of their families, in their protection, and living in their faith, are members of this church.