Geevarghese Ivanios


Ivanios Geevarghese Panikkervettil

Metropolitan Archbishop
ChurchSyro-Malankara Catholic Church
SeeSyro-Malankara Catholic Major Archeparchy of Trivandrum
Installed11 June 1932
Term ended15 July 1953
SuccessorAboun Mor Benedict Gregorios Thangalathil OIC
Previous post(s)Metropolitan Archbishop of Bethany Ashram of Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church
Orders
Ordination15 September 1908
by Dionysius of Vattasseril
Consecration1 May 1925
by Baselios Geevarghese I
Personal details
Born
P. T Geevarghese

(1882-09-21)21 September 1882
Mavelikkara, Kerala
Died15 July 1953(1953-07-15) (aged 70)
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
BuriedSt. Mary's Malankara Syrian Catholic Cathedral
Nationality India

Panikkervettil Thomas Panicker Geevarghese (21 September 1882 15 July 1953), known formally as Geevarghese Mar Ivanios, was a prominent Indian bishop and the first metropolitan archbishop of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church.[1] He was a key figure in the Malankara Reunion Movement, which sought to reunite the Malankara Church with the Catholic Church, culminating in his joining the Roman Catholic Church in 1930 along with a small group of followers.

Mar Ivanios was instrumental in founding the Bethany Ashram and played a vital role in the establishment of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Hierarchy, becoming the first bishop of the Archdiocese of Trivandrum in 1932. He was the first M.A. degree holder in the Kerala or Malankara Church. He also served as the principal of the Kottayam M.D Seminary High School and as a professor at Serampore College. Geevarghese established about 50 schools, including one 'A' grade college named Mar Ivanios College.

He is a candidate for sainthood in the Catholic Church, having been declared a Servant of God by Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Thottungal in 2007 and Venerable by Pope Francis in 2024.

  1. ^ "The reunion movement among the St Thomas Christians 19th and 20th centuries". Mahatma Gandhi University. 2008.