Should the titular Head of MOC be called Patriarch?

As the celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the consecration of Catholicose in MOC,certain Church leaders have come up with an absurd suggestion that the Catholicose designation itself should be jettisoned and the designation Patriarch should be conferred on H.H.Basaliose Marthoma Paulose II.Anybody with elementary knowledge of Church history and Church hierarchy would have laughed at this foolhardy idea mooted by some immature souls.But the working  committee which is enriched with many a member who are innocent of such elementary knowledge, had many takers.Probably they must have thought that they are playing their part in adding glory to the Holy Father and that is the best way to be in the good books of H.H.Finally the matter was left to the Episcopal Synod for consideration.Although there were few voices smiler to the sycophants in the working committee ,better sense prevailed over most,especially the senior members.At the moment the matter is put to sleep.But the sycophants cannot be expected to sit quiet.It appears that a conspiracy to bring up the matter in the public meeting on 25th November at Ernakulam in the form of a resolution or an announcement.In the general mood  of excitement,such a resolution or announcement will be greeted by thunderous applause and that could force the Synod to reconsider the position taken on the issue,so goes the thought process.

From a peripheral thinking,some of the simple souls may find nothing wrong in this move.There are some who think that the designation of Patriarch is sounding better than Catholicose.Since there are two other prelates in Kerala itself,claiming to be Catholicose,why not take the designation Patriarch and be unique?

These thoughts occur when one confuses the title of Ecclesiastic hierarchy with that of the designations of  secular institutions like Government or Corporates.Titles of Church hierarchy has to be related to the traditions of the Church,Eclesiology and its historical progression.Catholicose is a title originated in the Persian Church which was founded by St Thomas and with which MOC had fraternal relationship for 16 centuries.In fact prior to the Portuguese occupying the MOC,the spiritual head of MOC was the Catholicose of Persian Church,irrespective of the fact that they have never seen a Catholicose in flesh and blood.That was the reason why MOC in its quest for Auto-sephaly established the same Catholicate,although it would have been much simpler to have established a differently named ecclesiastical head like many Churches like Georgia,Bulgaria,Ethiopia and so on.

There are legal and other administrative complications ,if such a quixotic move is to fructify.But more important is the issues relating to the legacy and eclisiology.Just because there are some with a lower than average intelectual level persons in critical positions,the Church cannot afford to make itself the laughing stock in front of the world