Episcopal Visit to the Mar Thoma Congregation, Switzerland

North America- Europe, Diocesan Bishop of the Mar Thoma Syrian Church, Rt. Rev Dr.  Geevarghese Mar Theodosius, after taking the charge of the diocese, made his first Episcopal visit to the Mar Thoma Congregation in Switzerland on 28 February 2010 and celebrated Holy Qurbana service at St.Maria Kirche, 2501 Biel, Switzerland. Believers from different denominations also attended the Qurbana Service there.

Thirumeni gave the devotional talk. “The circumstances surrounding this miracle are interesting. The history of it is compressed into a short paragraph, yet it is ripe with valuable insights and ideas. The people, by their concerted effort, have created a stage, for Jesus to heal the paralytic. It should be our desire to bring the needy to Christ as well as to create an appropriate condition and a stage to work Jesus to bring them back in their original blessedness, in this contemporary situation… It is important that the church should do this ministry. ” The sermon on Sunday was based on St. Mark 2: 1-12. Theodosius Thirumeni, has launched a website ( www.marthoma.ch) for the congregation at the meeting followed by the Holy Qurbana Service on the same day.

Thirumeni met with Bishop. Dr. Harald Rein, the Bishop of the Old Catholic Church in Switzerland, in a fellowship Lunch arranged at Old Catholic Bishop‘s House at Bern, to honour the Diocesan Bishop of the Mar Thoma Church on Monday March 1, 2010.

"It is very important that both the Mar Thoma Church and the Old Catholic Church stay engaged in ecumenical relations,” Mar Theodosius told, during his discussion with Bishop Harlad Rein on Monday. "I look forward to ... Mar Thoma Church’s participation in our shared vision of ecumenical mission" he added.

During his visit, Mar Theodosius, held separate meetings with Prof. Dr. Urs Von Arx, Department of Theology at the University of Bern, and Prof. Dr. Angela Berlis,  at the University of Bern on 1st and 2nd March 2010 respectively.

In their separate meetings, Thirumeni said that he hopes the Old Catholic Church and the Department of Theology at the University of Bern would engage in a more fruitful theological and ecumenical relations with the Mar Thoma Church, which started in recent years.

Thirumeni also thanked both Professors for providing all academic and spiritual support to Rev. Joseph Daniel, a Doctoral Student at the University of Bern. 

Rev. Joseph Daniel

Vicar