The annual festival at St. Paul's and St. Peter's Church that houses the tomb of St. Gregorios— the first canonised Indian saint—will begin with a Kodiyettu ceremony on Tuesday.
The famous Christian pilgrim centre of Parumala, on the banks of River Pampa, is all set to receive thousands of pilgrims from different parts of the country during the week-long annual festival
The Kodiyettu ceremony, marking the beginning of the annual church fete, will be held at 2 p.m. on Tuesday. The Catholicos-designate, Paulose Mar Milithios and Geevarghese Mar Osthatheos, senior-most metropolitan of the Malankara Orthodox Church, will jointly hoist the ceremonial flag.
The Catholicos-designate will inaugurate the pilgrim week celebrations at a public function to be held at the Parumala Seminary premises at 5 p.m. Youhanon Mar Chrysostomos, Metropolitan of the Niranom diocese, will preside over the function. Alexander Jacob, IPS, K.M. Mani, MLA, A.K. Thomas, Alexander Karackal, former Malankara Association secretaries and Fr. John Abraham Konatt, clergy trustee, will also address the meeting.
A 144-hour long, day-and-night prayer, as part of the festival, will also begin under the auspices of Malankara Orthodox Christian Youth Movement on the church premises at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, said Parumala Seminary manager Fr. M.D. Youhanon Ramban. Youhanon Mar Polycarpus Metropolitan will inaugurate the week-long prayer service.
Zacharias Mar Aprem Metropolitan will inaugurate the Holy Tri-mass to be held at 7.30 a.m. on Navathy fete on October 27 and Abraham Mar Serafim Metropolitan will be the chief celebrant of the Tri-mass on October 28 morning.
Free medical camp
Ipe Paul, Registrar of Kerala Medical University, will inaugurate a free medical camp in connection with the festival on the Parumala seminary premises at 9 a.m. Mar Serafim will preside over the inaugural function. Fr. Alexander Koodarathil, chief executive officer of St. Gregorios Mission Hospital at Parumala, and Alex Paul will also address the function.
The Catholicos-designate will lead the Tri-mass at 7.30 a.m. on October 29 and Abraham Mar Epiphaneus Metropolitan will be the chief celebrant of the Tri-mass on October 30.
Navathy fete
Panakkad Syed Hyderali Shihab Thangal will inaugurate a felicitation meet in connection with the Navathy celebrations of the Catholicos of the East, Moran Mor Baselius Mar Thoma Didymus-I, on October 29. Geevarghese Mar Osthatheos will deliver the keynote address and George Joseph, Malankara Association secretary, will also address the meet.
The Holy Trimass, to be held at 7.30 a.m. on October 31 and November 1, will be led by Youhanon Mar Chrysostomos Metropolitan and Gabriel Mar Gregorios Metropolitan respectively.
Pilgrimage processions coming from different parts of the State will be accorded a rousing reception on the seminary premises on October 31.
Feast of St. Gregorios
The 108th feast of St. Gregorios will be celebrated on October 31. P.K. Narayana Panicker, general secretary of Nair Service Society, will inaugurate a cultural meet to be held in connection with the Saint's feast at 11 a.m. on October 31. Mar Chrysostomos will preside.
Swami Sandeep Anandagiri, chairman of the School of Bhagavad Gita at Tirumala, Thomas Mar Athanasius Metropolitan, George Joseph, Malankara Association secretary, Benjamin Koshy, former Chief Justice of Patna High Court, Anto Antony, MP, Mathew T. Thomas, Joseph M. Puthusserry, MLAs and T.A. Thaha, Imam of Mannar Juma Masjid, will also address the meet.
Mar Osthatheos will inaugurate the Malankara Orthodox Christian Youth Movement meet to be held at 2 p.m. Kuruvila M. George, joint commissioner of income tax, will deliver the keynote address. Gabriel Mar Gregorios will lead the Holy Tri-mass at 7.30 a.m. on November 1 and Kuriakose Mar Cleemis will lead the Tri-mass on November 2.
The Holy Tri-mass to be held at 8.30 p.m. on November 2 will be jointly celebrated by the Catholicos and the Catholicos-designate. Geevarghese Mar Coorilos Metropolitan will inaugurate the Mar Gregorios Orthodox Christian Students Movement at 11.30 a.m. The annual church festival will come to a close with the customary holy raasa to be held in the afternoon.
