About Boston Syro-Malankara Mission [Syro-Malankara] · Waltham, Massachusetts
The Boston Syro-Malankara Mission is a small Eastern Catholic mission established in 2014 to serve the Syro-Malankara Catholic faithful of the greater Boston area in Massachusetts. It belongs to the St. Mary, Queen of Peace Syro-Malankara Catholic Eparchy in USA and Canada and currently meets at Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted Parish on Trapelo Road in Waltham, MA. The community gathers once a month on a Saturday to celebrate the Holy Qurbono (the Syro-Malankara Eucharistic liturgy) in Malayalam, while remaining in dialogue with neighboring Latin-rite parishes that graciously share their worship space.
- Established
- 2014
- Rector
- Rev. Fr. Michael Edathil
- Diocese
- St. Mary, Queen of Peace Syro-Malankara Catholic Eparchy in USA and Canada
Why belong here
The Boston Syro-Malankara Mission offers Syro-Malankara Catholic families in New England a rare opportunity to worship in their own Syriac-Malankara liturgical tradition — celebrated in Malayalam with the historic Holy Qurbono — without having to travel far from the Boston area. As a smaller monthly mission it is an intimate, close-knit community where one is known personally, and it is shepherded by Fr. Michael Edathil, who also directs the Eparchy's Family Apostolate focused on marriage preparation and family life.
Mass times at Boston Syro-Malankara Mission [Syro-Malankara]
Weekly Mass schedule
Overview: Boston Syro-Malankara Mission in Waltham
The Boston Syro-Malankara Mission is the New England pastoral outreach of the St. Mary, Queen of Peace Syro-Malankara Catholic Eparchy in USA and Canada. Established in 2014 and based at Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted Parish on Trapelo Road in Waltham, Massachusetts, it gathers the area's Syro-Malankara faithful for the celebration of the Holy Qurbono in the Syriac-Malankara liturgical tradition.
- Year established: 2014
- Host location: Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted Parish, 920 Trapelo Rd, Waltham, MA 02452
- Eparchy: St. Mary, Queen of Peace Syro-Malankara Catholic Eparchy
- Vicar / Pastor: Rev. Fr. Michael Edathil
Liturgy and Schedule
As a small mission rather than a full parish, the Boston community celebrates the Holy Qurbono — the Eucharistic liturgy of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church — on a once-monthly Saturday schedule, most often at 11:30 am. The faithful are directed to contact the local coordinator to confirm the precise date of any given month's liturgy.
- Holy Qurbono: Saturday, 11:30 am (once a month)
- Liturgical language: Malayalam (Syro-Malankara tradition)
- Local coordinator: Prasanth Varghese, (781) 799-7535
Worship Location: Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted Parish, Waltham
The mission does not yet have its own church building and is hosted by Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted Parish of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston on Trapelo Road in Waltham. Sharing space with a Latin-rite host parish is a common arrangement for newer Syro-Malankara mission communities in North America and helps the small flock access a worship space while it grows.
- Host parish: Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted
- Street address: 920 Trapelo Rd, Waltham, MA 02452
Clergy: Rev. Fr. Michael Edathil
The Boston Mission is shepherded by Rev. Fr. Michael Edathil, who also serves as Director of the Family Apostolate for the entire St. Mary, Queen of Peace Eparchy. Fr. Michael was ordained in 2013 as the first incardinated priest of what was then the Syro-Malankara Catholic Exarchate in the United States, ordained by the first bishop, His Excellency Thomas Mar Eusebius.
- Role: Vicar / Pastor, Boston Mission
- Second role: Director of Family Apostolate, St. Mary, Queen of Peace Eparchy
- Year of ordination: 2013
- Eparchy email: [email protected]
Eparchial Context
The Boston Mission is part of the St. Mary, Queen of Peace Syro-Malankara Catholic Eparchy in USA and Canada — the canonical home of Syro-Malankara Catholics across the United States and Canada. The Exarchate was originally erected on June 2, 2013 with Most Rev. Thomas Mar Eusebius as its first bishop; on December 18, 2015, Pope Francis elevated it to the status of an Eparchy, and Most Rev. Philipos Mar Stephanos was installed as its second bishop on October 28, 2017. The Eparchy today oversees some 16 parishes and several mission stations, with around 11,500 members in its care.
- Eparchy established as Exarchate: June 2, 2013
- Eparchy elevated by Pope Francis: December 18, 2015
- First bishop: Most Rev. Thomas Mar Eusebius
- Second bishop: Most Rev. Philipos Mar Stephanos
- Cathedral: St. Vincent de Paul Syro-Malankara Catholic Cathedral, Elmont, NY
Malankara Catholic Heritage
The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church is a sui iuris Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with Rome, sharing the West Syriac liturgical family with its sister Church, the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, but with its own distinct history, hierarchy, and spiritual patrimony. Its tradition traces back to the evangelization of the Indian subcontinent by St. Thomas the Apostle, and today most of its faithful live in the Indian state of Kerala. Eastern Catholic missions like the one in Waltham exist to serve Malayalam-speaking faithful who have settled in the Greater Boston area.
- Rite: West Syriac (Syro-Malankara / Malankara Rite)
- Language of heritage: Malayalam
- Major Archbishop-Catholicos: His Beatitude Moran Mor Baselios Cardinal Cleemis (at the time of the Eparchy's inauguration)
Getting in Touch
Because this is a small monthly mission rather than a parish with full-time office staff, the principal point of contact for sacramental needs, schedule questions, and visits is the local coordinator. The serving priest, Fr. Michael Edathil, can be reached through the St. Mary, Queen of Peace Eparchy office.
- Local coordinator: Prasanth Varghese, (781) 799-7535
- Eparchy website: https://mccna.org/
- Mission page: https://mccna.org/content/malankara-catholic-mission-boston
- Mailing address: c/o Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted Parish, 920 Trapelo Rd, Waltham, MA 02452