Catholicos of India
Catholicos of India ܡܦܪܝܢܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ | |
|---|---|
| Syriac Orthodox Church | |
Coat of arms | |
| Incumbent: Baselios Joseph (Since 25 March 2025) | |
| Style | Aboon Mor His Beatitude |
| Location | |
| Country | India |
| Territory | Catholicate See |
| Residence | Patriarchal Centre, Puthencruz |
| Headquarters | Patriarch Ignatius Zaka I Iwas Centre, Kerala, India |
| Information | |
| First holder | St. Marutha of Tagrit Augen I(in India) |
| Denomination | Oriental Orthodox |
| Rite | Antiochian Rite |
| Established | AD 559 |
| Cathedral | Mar Athanasius Cathedral, Puthencruz |
| Patron father | Saint Thomas the Apostle |
| Parent church | Syriac Orthodox Church |
| Website | |
| www | |
The Catholicos of India, also referred to as the Catholicos of the East or the Maphrian is the head of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church. He is ordained by the Patriarch of Antioch and functions within the Syriac Orthodox Church at an ecclesiastical-rank second to him. He presides over the Holy Synod of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church. The current Catholicos of India is Baselios Joseph, who was elevated on March 25, 2025.
The Catholicate is considered the continuation of the historical Maphrianate of the East which was established in the 7th century, to oversee the affairs of the Syriac Orthodox Church in Persia under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Antioch. It was abolished in 1860 by the Holy Synod of the Syriac Orthodox Church, and reestablished in Kerala in 1964 with the title "Catholicos" with jurisdiction over India. The Catholicos is seated at Mar Athanasius Cathedral, Puthencruz, Kerala.