Venkaiah opens birthday fete of Mar Chrysostum

Vice President M.Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the 101st birthday celebrations of Metropolitan Emeritus Philipose Mar Chrysostum at Thiruvalla on Monday afternoon.

Lauding the services of Mar Chrysostum, Mr. Naidu quoted a prayer in the Atharva Veda, “Let us live for a hundred years and beyond, with good health, intelligence, and ever-widening thoughts”.

“Mar Chrysostum, possibly one of the longest living bishops in the world and a devout idealist, believes that the way to the creator is through the creations of God. Helping the poor and the needy has always been his sole mission,” Mr. Naidu said. Mr. Naidu also inaugurated the diamond jubilee of the episcopal ordination of Mar Thoma Metropolitan Joseph Mar Thoma. He said Joseph Mar Thoma was a champion of environmental protection.

Service to humanity

“We are deeply indebted to the visionary leaders who had an underlying belief that service to humanity leads one towards divinity,” Mr. Naidu said, quoting from the Vedas, Upanishads, and speeches of Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi.

He said political leaders should take inspiration from our noble heritage to provide a clean polity.

“God has given every good thing to me through others,” Mar Chrysostum said. addressing the function.

Presiding over the meet, Joseph Mar Thoma said Mar Chrysostum was his guide and guru.