Indian church leaders support cardinal's call for more local power

Published: 2003-11-19

COCHIN, India (CNS) -- An Indian cardinal's call for greater power for bishops' conferences and a decentralization of papal authority drew support from Indian church leaders. Cardinal Varkey Vithayathil of Ernakulam-Angamaly told an Indian archdiocesan biweekly Nov. 10 that the Indian church has been forced "to depend on the Roman Curia for too many matters," reported UCA News, an Asian church news agency based in Thailand. In the interview, Cardinal Vithayathil said the greatest weakness of the Catholic Church is the way papal authority is exercised without the participation of those concerned, which he said was in contrast to the teachings of the Second Vatican Council. "Greater collegiality and consultations among bishops and priests regarding church matters" are needed, he said. Archbishop Cyril Malancharuvil of Trivandrum, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India, said he agreed that bishops' conferences should be given more power to strengthen the local church. He said decentralization does not mean division, but a more united, participatory church.

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