Cardinal Cleemis: Christ alone is Redeemer; tradition is living legacy, not museum piece; Pope Leo XIV chosen by Holy Spirit in spiritual conclave.
Newsroom (11/12/2025 Gaudium Press ) In an exclusive interview with The Catholic Herald on the sidelines of the inauguration of the new Apostolic Visitation for the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church in Europe and the United Kingdom, His Beatitude Baselios Cardinal Cleemis, Major Archbishop-Catholicos, spoke candidly about migration, the recent conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV, the Marian title “Co-redemptrix”, liturgical tradition, and the living meaning of Catholic tradition.
The historic inauguration ceremony, held in Coventry on 5 December, marked the formal installation of Bishop Kiriakose Osthathios as Apostolic Visitor for Syro-Malankara Catholics across Europe and the United Kingdom – the first resident bishop entrusted with the pastoral care of this growing diaspora. The event drew Syro-Malankara bishops from India, British MPs including Sojan Joseph (Ashford), the Deputy Lord Mayors of Coventry, and numerous interfaith leaders.
In a wide-ranging conversation before the ceremony, Cardinal Cleemis described the appointment as “a deeply joyful occasion” and a “meaningful step from the Holy See” that recognises the rapid growth of Syro-Malankara communities, many formed by young professionals and families migrating from Kerala.
Addressing the sensitive British debate on immigration, the Cardinal insisted that Christian welcome and national sovereignty are not opposites. “There must be openness, fraternity, and fellowship with the entire human family,” he said, while adding that “it is the responsibility of every country to ensure that safety and safeguarding measures remain intact. These two principles do not contradict each other – not when love survives everything.”
He suggested Indian Catholic migrants – Syro-Malabar, Syro-Malankara, and Latin – bring particular gifts that can “revitalise parish life and strengthen family and community structures” in Britain, with the Syro-Malankara vocation centred on building communion and inter-Christian and interfaith dialogue.
Speaking as one of the cardinal electors in the conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV, Cardinal Cleemis described the process as “a spiritual movement” guided by the Holy Spirit rather than political lobbying. “Nobody asked me to vote for any particular person,” he disclosed, countering media narratives of factionalism or “kingmakers”. The experience, his second conclave after the 2013 election of Pope Francis, left him with “a profound sense of fulfilment” and confidence that the cardinals, assisted by the Holy Spirit, chose “the best available to lead the Church in this present moment”.
On the recent doctrinal note from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith discouraging the title “Co-redemptrix” for the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Cardinal – head of an Eastern Church with intense Marian devotion – welcomed the clarification. “In our West Syrian tradition we have never called her ‘co-redeemer’, because there is only one Redeemer: the Son of God, Jesus Christ,” he explained, while stressing continued veneration of Mary as Yoldath Aloho (Mother of God) and the perfect human model of obedience.
Asked about restrictions on the 1962 Missal, Cardinal Cleemis declined to comment directly on the Latin-rite situation but offered an Eastern perspective on liturgical tradition: “When you delete or omit the symbolic expressions of devotion to the Almighty, you reduce the mystery to mere principles and theories.” The Eastern approach, he said, is to celebrate the Eucharist “with joy” as the entire sweep of salvation history.
His strongest message was reserved for the meaning of tradition itself. “Tradition is not to be kept in the museum,” he insisted. “You are a continuation of many, many generations… Being faithful to what has been given to you, you add something close to that legacy, and then it is handed on.” Authentic tradition, he concluded, necessarily leads to respect for life and responsibility for one’s neighbour – the heart of a genuine “culture of life”.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Catholic Herald
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