New Delhi | Archbishop Raphael Thattil, who was recently elected as the Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Church, visited Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday and exchanged pleasantries.
Modi, in a post on social media platform X, said he had a very good meeting and posted pictures with the archbishop.
Thattil was recently elected by the Synod of Bishops after Pope Francis, the head of Catholic Churches, accepted the resignation of Cardinal George Alencherry from that post. Alenchery had resigned on December 7, last year.
Talking to the media after meeting the Prime Minister, Thattil said it was a "cordial visit".
"This was a meeting without any agenda. We have concerns over many issues related to the church but this was not a meeting to discuss all those," Thattil said.
The Archbishop expressed happiness in meeting the Prime Minister and said it was the responsibility of each citizen to cooperate with the government.
When asked whether the various issues faced by the church, including the violence at Manipur, were discussed, Thattil reiterated that it was not a meeting to discuss such matters.
"I came to Delhi after the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI) meeting at Bengaluru. We had discussed in detail the issues faced by the church and have held various discussions in which bishops have aired their concerns. But this meeting with the PM was not to discuss any such matter," Thattil said.
This was a cordial visit after I was elected to this position, he said.
The Archbishop added that the CBCI will meet government officials at a later stage and discuss the issues faced by the church.
