Geevarghese Mar Dionysius of Vattasseril

Geevarghese Dionysius Vattasseril, also Dionysius VI, Dionysius Geevarghese II or, popularly, Vattasseril Thirumeni (31 October 1858 – 23 February 1934), was a bishop of the Malankara Church and 15th Malankara Metropolitan. In 2003, Dionysius was canonized as a saint by the Malankara Orthodox Church, and his feast day is celebrated on February 23 each year. He is known as 'The Great Luminary of Malankara Church' (Malayalam: Malankara Sabha Bhasuran), a title which the Church bestowed on him in recognition of his contribution to the Church.

Early life and education Geevarghese was born in Vattasseril family, the fifth child of Joseph Vattasseril of Mallappally and Aleyamma, Kolathu Kalathil of Kurichy, on 31 October 1858.

Life in the Church He studied at the Orthodox Theological Seminary (Old Seminary or Pazhaya Seminary), Kottayam for four years. He acted as the secretary to Gregorios Geevarghese of Parumala. Geevarghese soon became a great Syriac scholar under the careful tutelage of St. Gregorios, who taught him at Parumala Seminary. He also learned Theology and Syriac language from Metropolitan Baselios Paulose I at Monastery of Saint Thomas, Vettikkal. On 16 October 1879, the sub-deacon Geevarghese was ordained as a full deacon and on 18 January 1880 he was ordained to priesthood by St. Gregorios himself. He also used his scholarship to edit and publish the order of Church worship to be used by the laity as an aid for participation in worship. He wrote and published a book titled Syriac - Chapter I for students of the language. During this period, he also authored the book Doctrines of the Church (Mathopadeshasarangal) which remains one of the most authoritative and popular works describing Orthodox dogma and ecclesiastical traditions with thorough Scriptural explanations. In 1903, he translated the Holy Service book from Syriac to the local language Malayalam and published it with the blessings of the Church authorities.

Principal of M. D. Seminary School In 1896, by the decision of Managing Committee of the Church, he was appointed as Principal of M. D. Seminary School, Kottayam. The ceremony was attended by representatives of Coptic and Greek Orthodox Churches. Dionysius was appointed as the Bishop of the Malankara Church in general and as the assistant to the Malankara Metropolitan Dionysius V The newly ordained bishop served as the Assistant Malankara Metropolitan for almost a year; he became Malankara Metropolitan in 1909.

Rift of the Malankara Syrian Church By the early 1910s, there was a rift in the Malankara Church and the two factions emerged, with the Metropolitan faction (Later as Malankara Orthodox Church) remaining in support and under the Malankara Metropolitan Dionysius of Vattasseril, while the faction supporting the Patriarch (known as Patriarch faction) elected a new Malankara Metropolitan Coorilos Paulose of Panampady under the Patriarch of the Antioch.

Legacy

He was an outstanding orator who was well aware of the importance of the vitality and Christian persuasiveness of the Bible when delivering the speeches to the faithful. Prayers and fasting were the pillars of his spiritual foundation. In addition to the liturgical hours of prayer, he spent much time in private prayers and silent meditations behind closed doors. In spite of his busy schedule, he was also able to focus on three to four lessons from the Holy Bible every day. Despite the many spiritual qualities he shared leadership qualities like domineering charisma and progressive mindedness. The Malankara Orthodox Church recognizes him as a living saint of his time on earth.

Mar Dionysius VI and his fellow clergies have played a central role in elevating the primate of Malankara Orthodox Church to the title Catholicos of the East. By establishing the Catholicate in Malabar, the visionary Metropolitan succeeded in defending the sovereignty and independence of the St. Thomas Christians of India, though the rift between the Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Church and the Malankara Orthodox Church were never resolved and has grown worse over time with regular legal arguments and some physical altercations. Mar Dionysius VI also prepared a first draft of the Church Constitution with the aid of Patriarch Ignatius Abdul Masih II and of using his profound knowledge in the Canons of the Church. This draft was used to prepare the Church Constitution of 1934. He was buried the next day in the Chapel of Old Seminary, Kottayam, near the tombs of his predecessors. And he has the same death as His Grace Dr Thomas Mar Makarios Metropolitan

In his speech that day, Baselios Geevarghese II said: On the 69th feast day of Dionysius VI (24 February 2003), he was canonized by the Episcopal Synod of Malankara Orthodox Church headed by Baselios MarThoma Mathews II, Malankara Metropolitan and Catholicos of the Malankara Church. The Catholicos Baselios Geevarghese II might have foreseen this when he instructed the sentence "The time will not dim his glory" to be engraved on the tomb of Dionysius VI. 23 February is observed as the saint's feast day.

St. Dionysius is the second Indian Saint to be canonized by the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, after Gregorios of Parumala.

Churches, monasteries and orphanages Honoring the Saint's memory, several churches and educational institutions have been established including St. Dionysius Church, Perukavu (Trivandrum), St. Dionysius Church in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, St. dionysius orthodox church Desertland, Dammam (under diocese of Thrissur), St. Dionysius Indian Orthodox Church, Auckland, New Zealand, St. Dionysius Orthodox Church, Dasarahalli, Bangalore, St. Dionysius Orthodox Chapel, Aravali (Gurugram) and Dionysius Senior Secondary School in Mallappally, Kerala, to name a few. M. G. D. Ashram (monastery) at Panayampala, Kerala was founded in 1980 with St. Dionysius as its Patron Saint. The Ashram has an orphanage (Balabhavan) in its care since 2000.