Archeparchy of Changanacherry
Archeparchy of Changanacherry ܐܪܟܝܕܝܘܩܝܐ ܕܫܢܓܢܫܪܝ ചങ്ങനാശ്ശേരി അതിരൂപത | |
|---|---|
St Mary’s Metropolitan Cathedral Changanacherry | |
Coat of arms | |
| Location | |
| Country | India |
| Territory | Districts of Kottayam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta, Kollam, and Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, and Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu |
| Coordinates | 9°26′38.49″N 76°32′10.77″E / 9.4440250°N 76.5363250°E |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 24,595 km2 (9,496 sq mi) |
Population
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| Information | |
| Denomination | Catholic Church |
| Sui iuris church | Syro-Malabar Church |
| Rite | Syro-Malabar Rite |
| Cathedral | St Mary's Metropolitan Cathedral in Changanassery |
| Patron saint | Saint Joseph |
| Secular priests | 566 |
| Current leadership | |
| Pope | Mar Leo XIV |
| Major Archbishop | Mar Raphael Thattil |
| Metropolitan Archbishop | Mar Thomas Tharayil |
| Bishops emeritus | Mar Joseph Perumthottam |
| Website | |
| www | |
The Archeparchy of Changanacherry (Syriac: ܐܦܪܟܝܐ ܪܒܬܐ ܕܫܢܓܢܐܣܐܪܐ, romanized: Afarkaya Rabbta d-Shanganasara; Malayalam: ചങ്ങനാശ്ശേരി അതിരൂപത, romanized: Changanassery Atirūpata) is a Syro-Malabar Church archeparchy of the Catholic Church with an area of 24,595 km2 comprising the districts of Kottayam(excluding Vaikom), Alappuzha(excluding Cherthala), Pathanamthitta, Kollam, and Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, and also Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the largest Catholic dioceses in India in terms of area. Mar Thomas Tharayil is the current Metropolitan Archbishop, serving from 2024. Suffragan eparchies of the Changanassery archeparchy includes Palai, Kanjirappally-Nilackal, and Thuckalay-Thiruvithancode (Tamil Nadu).
The Changanacherry (originally named Kottayam) jurisdiction was one of the first two Syro-Malabar vicariates, along with Syro-Malabar Catholic Archeparchy of Thrissur, when Pope Leo XIII in 1887 re-organized Syro-Malabar Catholics as a separate church from the Latin Church's jurisdiction ever since the Synod of Diamper in 1599.