In a first of its kind development in the Catholic Church in India, a serving Auxiliary Bishop is relinquishing his position so as to lead a hermit life similar to that of early hermits in ancient Egypt.
Jacob Muricken, Auxiliary Bishop of the diocese of Pala of the Syro Malabar Catholic Church has written a letter to Rome seeking permission to relinquish his position as the Bishop and lead a monastery life strictly secluded from any contacts with the outside world.
The hermit life according to Mar Muricken will be with limited food and minimal worldly comforts.
Mar Jacob Muricken confirmed to TNM that he has written a letter to Rome and personally intimated this to Syro Malabar Church Major Arch Bishop, Cardinal George Alenchery. The letter was given to Cardinal Alenchery in 2018 and the Cardinal will send it to Rome after getting the approval of the Syro Malabar Bishops Synod. Mar Muricken said that he will abdicate the position of the Auxiliary Bishop by 2023.
Mar Muricken said that his decision to abdicate the position and lead a hermit life was ingrained in his mind ever since 2017.
"The decision was communicated to the Pala Bishop Joseph Kallarangattu earlier in 2017. Initially the Bishop had not given approval for my demand. However, I persisted in my demand and he asked me to continue in the Bishop’s position and lead a monastery life. Since that is impractical I have decided to follow my mind," Mar Muricken said.
He ruled out any tensions or pressures or schism inside the diocese which compelled him to the decision.
He said that though he was generally not interested to lead a secluded life it was on “inspiration from God” that he conditioned his mind for a similar life. For leading the hermit life he had identified a place at the Marthoma Sleeha Dayara at Nallathanny in Idukki district. He has discussed with the church authorities and went on to construct a small hut inside the Nallathanno Dayara. Right now three laymen are living a secluded hermit life inside the forest at Nallathanny.
The decision of Mar Muricken to abdicate his position has stirred discomfort at the Pala diocese and the Syro Malabar Church as this will leave the diocese in a predicament. The Auxiliary Bishop is supposed to bequeath the position of the Bishop of the Pala diocese after the tenure of the incumbent Bishop. The incumbent Bishop, Joseph Kallarangattu, who is now 64, has to resign when he attains the age of 75, the retirement age of the Bishops of the Catholic Church. The diocese leadership is thinking of how to bridge the leadership vacuum arising as a result of the new development.
Mar Muricken, who belongs to a traditional family of the Pala diocese, was ordained as the Auxiliary Bishop of Pala in 2012. In 2016, he donated one of his kidneys to the needy.