Patriarch of Antioch and the supreme head of the Universal Syriac Orthodox Church Mor Ignatius Aphrem II has called for reconciliation between the Jacobite and the Orthodox factions of the Malankara Church to bring an end to the century-old dispute between the two Christian sects.
The Patriarch, who wrapped up his three-week-long visit to the country in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday, lamented that the scenario has worsened since his last Apostolic visit to Kerala in 2015.
Referring to the 2017 verdict of the Supreme Court that ruled in favour of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church by upholding its Constitution of 1934, the Patriarch said unpleasant and painful incidents have happened ever since, throwing a spanner in the reconciliation efforts.
