Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in the context of "All Souls' Day"

Sant'Anastasia is a minor basilica and titular church for cardinal-priests in Rome, Italy owned by the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church.

The Liturgy of Addai and Mari (or the Holy Qurbana of Mar Addai and Mar Mari) is the Eucharistic liturgy belonging to the East Syriac Rite and was historically used in the Church of the East of the Sasanian (Persian) Empire. This liturgy is traditionally attributed to Saint Addai (disciple of Saint Thomas the Apostle) and Saint Mari (a disciple of Saint Addai). It is currently in regular use in the Assyrian Church of the East (including its archdiocese the Chaldean Syrian Church of India), the Ancient Church of the East, the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church of India, and the Chaldean Catholic Church. The latter two are Eastern Catholic churches in full communion with the Holy See of Rome.

The Catholic Church in India is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the leadership of the Pope. There are over 23 million Catholics in India, representing around 1.57% of the total population, and the Catholic Church is the single largest Christian church in India. There are 10,701 parishes that make up 174 dioceses and eparchies, which are organised into 30 ecclesiastical provinces. Of these, 132 dioceses are of the Latin Church, 31 of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church and 11 of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. Despite the very small percentage-wise population that Indian Catholics make up in the country, India still has the second-largest Christian population in Asia, after the Catholic Church in the Philippines. All Catholic bishops, from all dioceses, come together to form the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, first convened in British India, in 1944. The ambassador representing the Vatican City, to the Government of India, is the Apostolic Nuncio to India. The diplomatic mission of the Holy See to India, similar to an embassy, was established as the Apostolic delegation to the East Indies in 1881. It was raised to an Internunciature by Pope Pius XII in 1948, and to a full Apostolic Nunciature by Pope Paul VI in 1967. Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli is the current Apostolic Nuncio, named by Pope Francis on 13 March 2021. The Apostolic Nunciature is located at 50-C, Niti Marg, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.

The majority, about 78.3%, belong to the Latin Church, the rest are Syrian Catholic Christians. The Syro-Malabar Church, one of the Eastern Catholic Churches, makes up around 19.7% of Indian Catholics, while the Syro-Malankara Church accounts for approximately 2.0%. These figures reflect the diverse liturgical traditions within Indian Catholicism, with Eastern Catholic communities primarily based in the Malabar region (present-day state of Kerala).

Clean Monday (Greek: Καθαρά Δευτέρα, Kathara Deftera), also known as Pure Monday, Green Monday or simply Monday of Lent is the first day of Great Lent throughout Eastern Christianity and is a moveable feast, falling on the sixth Monday before Palm Sunday which begins Holy Week, preceding Pascha Sunday (Easter).

The common term for this day, "Clean Monday", refers to the purification of the body in preparation to the Great Lent: first day of abstinence of non-fasting foods and, for those who are blessed and able to do so, also fasting from all kinds of food. Traditionally, as it happens in many Orthodox countries and traditions, people do a very strict fast, purifying themselves of all food until the Divine Liturgy on Wednesday, in a way that the Holy Body of Christ is the first nutrition that Christians will have during the Lent. Outside the Orthodox Church, it could be sometimes called "Ash Monday", by analogy with Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent in Western Christianity). The term is often a misnomer, as only a small subset of Eastern Catholic Churches practice the imposition of ashes. The Maronite, Chaldean and the Syro-Malabar Catholic Churches are notable amongst the Eastern rites employing the use of ashes on this day.

George Alencherry (Syriac: ܓܹܝܘܲܪܓܝܼܣ ܐܵܠܲܢܫܹ̰ܝܪܝ, romanized: Gīwargīs Ālancēri; born 19 April 1945) is the Major Archbishop Emeritus of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church after serving in the position from 2011 to 2023. He is also a cardinal of the Catholic Church.

He was elected by the Holy Synod of the Syro-Malabar Church in 2011 to succeed Varkey Vithayathil (1999–2011). He was created a cardinal on 18 February 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI. He was the first bishop of Thuckalay from 1997 to 2011 before his enthronement as the major archbishop.