Servant of God Mar Mathew Makil

Mathew Makil was born on 27th march 1851 at Manjoor in Kottayam District. He was appointed Vicar General for the Southists in the Vicariate of Kottayam in 1889. When the Vicariate Apostolic of Kottayam and Trichur were re-organized into Trichur, Ernakulam and Changanassery in 1896, hewas nominated Titular Bishop of Trallus and appointed Vicar Apostolic of Changanassery. In 1911, a new Vicariate Apostolic of Kottayam was constituted exclusively for the Knanaya Catholics and Mar Mathew Makil was transferred to Kottayam as Vicar Apostolic. He died at Kottayam on 26th jan 1914 and on 26 Jan 2009 Declared as Servant of God.

The charism of the Order of the Imitation of Christ is “to follow Jesus Christ in his life of prayer and action, which can be realized in and through Oriental monastic traditions and Indian sanyasa and aims at the evangelization of India through the spiritual renewal of the Malankara Church.”

The term ‘Bethany’ represents in the gospel as the village and the family where Jesus Christ visited frequently. 'Ashram' is a term from Sanskrit which means the residence of Monks. And the family of Bethany in the gospel are Lazarus, Martha and Mary and symbolise Resurrection, Active life and Prayer life respectively. The patron saints of our Congregation are the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, St. Thomas, the Apostle of India, St. John, the Evangelist, the Saints of Bethany, St. Basil and St. Therese of the Infant Jesus. More over, the Bethany Ashram harmoniously blends Eastern Christian Monastic traditions and Indian Spirituality. The members of this Congregation follow Christ in his life of prayer and action.

This is a glance in to the life and deeds of a simple and sincere human being who rose to divinity with his sacrifice, sufferings and dedication: His strength was his utter trust in God. “Not my will, but Yours be done” (Lk.22:42) was his motto. And he accepted everything that came in life-good or bad with equanimity. He is Bishop Mar Mathew Makil, the first Vicar apostolic of Changanacherry and Kottayam, the good shepherd of the syrian christians, the founder of the Visitation Congregation, and the spiritual inspirator of the Knanaya Community.

Servant of God Poothathil Thommiachan

With immense joy, we extend our profound gratitude to the Almighty God for having elevated Rev. Fr. Thomas Poothathil, an eparchial priest of the Archeparchy of Kottayam, Kerala, India, as the Servant of God on January 26, 2009. Turning the pages of history, we recall the selfless service of Rev. Fr Thomas as the founder of the first asylum in the history of the Kerala Church and also as the founder of St. Joseph’s Congregation. The commitment and conviction in the person of Jesus made his vision creative and constructive. The source of his energy and vigor always rested upon the compassionate heart of Jesus. Contemplating on the Divine presence in and around the realities, he motivated himself to work hard for the downtrodden and the marginalized. Whoever had the great opportunity to meet Rev. Fr. Thomas would unanimously affirm the statement that he is a person adorned with integrity, sincerity and maturity..

The charism of the Order of the Imitation of Christ is “to follow Jesus Christ in his life of prayer and action, which can be realized in and through Oriental monastic traditions and Indian sanyasa and aims at the evangelization of India through the spiritual renewal of the Malankara Church.”

The term ‘Bethany’ represents in the gospel as the village and the family where Jesus Christ visited frequently. 'Ashram' is a term from Sanskrit which means the residence of Monks. And the family of Bethany in the gospel are Lazarus, Martha and Mary and symbolise Resurrection, Active life and Prayer life respectively. The patron saints of our Congregation are the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, St. Thomas, the Apostle of India, St. John, the Evangelist, the Saints of Bethany, St. Basil and St. Therese of the Infant Jesus. More over, the Bethany Ashram harmoniously blends Eastern Christian Monastic traditions and Indian Spirituality. The members of this Congregation follow Christ in his life of prayer and action.

This is a glance in to the life and deeds of a simple and sincere human being who rose to divinity with his sacrifice, sufferings and dedication: His strength was his utter trust in God. “Not my will, but Yours be done” (Lk.22:42) was his motto. And he accepted everything that came in life-good or bad with equanimity. He is Bishop Mar Mathew Makil, the first Vicar apostolic of Changanacherry and Kottayam, the good shepherd of the syrian christians, the founder of the Visitation Congregation, and the spiritual inspirator of the Knanaya Community.