The new project, 'Job Mar Philoxenos Healthcare Foundation', was announced today at the enthronement ceremony of Youhanon Mar Demetrios as the third metropolitan of the Delhi diocese.
"There are large number of our elders in our society where their children do not stay with them. Many of them are lonely. It is the duty of our Church to care for them and this will not be exclusive to the members of the Orthodox community," said Baselios Mar Thoma Baselios II, the supreme head of the 2,000-year-old Church.
This is the latest project of Delhi diocese of the Kerala -headquartered Church has in its 60 years of existence in North India. Earlier, it has set up many health-care delivery centres including those in Aya Nagar in the outskirts of Delhi, Shantigram in the Mandavar village of Haryana as well as in Kanpur.
59-year-old Demetrios, the third Metropolitan of the Church, succeeds Bishop Paulose Mar Gregorios (1975-1996) and Bishop Job Mar Philoxenos (1996-2011) of the diocese, which is spread over Delhi NCR, the UAE and some parts of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab.
The Kottayam-headquartered church dates back to 52 AD when St Thomas, one of the direct disciples of Jesus Christ, came to India. With 2 million followers all over the world in 30 dioceses, it is also this year celebrating the centenary of the Catholicate in India.
Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman P J Kurien and other dignitaries attended the public function that followed today's spiritual ceremony to felicitate the new bishop.