Paulos Gregorios, born Paul Varghese or Vargīsa Pôla (9 August 1922 – 24 November 1996), was the first metropolitan of the

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church and served for over two decades.

Life

Varghese was born in

Tripunithura Thrippunithura or Tripunithura (), is a prominent historical and residential region in the City of Kochi in Kerala, India. Located about 7 km (4 mi) from the city centre, Tripunithura was the capital of the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin ...

to a traditional Christian family called ''Thadikkal''. He started his career as a

freelance journalist ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance w ...

, contributing articles and reports to various newspapers in

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

and Malabar. Later, after working with the Cochin Transport Company, he joined the Post & Telegraphs Department in 1942. He then took up a job as a teacher in Ethiopia. He came to the attention of the Emperor of Ethiopia,

Haile Selassie I Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia ('' ...

. The relationship that developed between them led Varghese to appointments as the head of various institutions in Ethiopia. He was sent to the United States for higher studies. He received his education there from

Goshen College Goshen College is a private Mennonite liberal arts college in Goshen, Indiana. It was founded in 1894 as the Elkhart Institute of Science, Industry and the Arts, and is affiliated with Mennonite Church USA. The college is accredited by the High ...

, the

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a private school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1812 under the auspices of Archibald Alexander, the General Assembly of t ...

and

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

. In 1954, he returned to India with a master's degree in theology. He worked as a director of the Fellowship house in Aluva and a visiting professor of Union Christian College Aluva. In 1955, he joined the faculty of the Orthodox Theological Seminary,

Kottayam Kottayam () is a municipal town in the Indian state of Kerala. Flanked by the Western Ghats on the east and the Vembanad Lake and paddy fields of Kuttanad on the west. It is the district headquarters of Kottayam district, located in south- ...

. He also served as the general secretary of the Orthodox Students Christian Movement. During the Ethiopian emperor's visit to India in 1956, Varghese was persuaded to return to Ethiopia. There he served as the emperor's personal aide and advisor. In 1959, he returned to India and in 1961 he was ordained as a priest. Varghese continued to pursue theological studies. He did his doctoral studies in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and Germany and received his Doctorate in Theology from

Serampore College , founders = William Ward, William Carey, & Joshua Marshman , religious_affiliation = Baptist , rector = , location = 8, William Carey RoadSerampore – 712201West Bengal, India , established = , principal = Vansanglura V ...

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

. In 1975, Varghese was elevated as a bishop with the name of Paulos Gregorios and the title of "Mar". He took charge of the newly formed Diocese of Delhi, a position he held until his death. He established the Delhi Orthodox Centre, where he began such ambitious projects as the Neeti Shanti Kendra for promoting peace and justice, and Sarva Dharma Nilaya for inter-religious dialogue and cooperation. Concurrently, Gregorios was the principal of the Orthodox Theological Seminary at

, a teaching and training institution for the priests of the church. He raised it to a college recognized for the awarding of graduate and postgraduate degrees. He established the Sophia Centre linked to the seminary. He held various positions in the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most ju ...

(WCC). There he headed the Division of Ecumenical Action as an associate general secretary. Later, he was a member of the central committee and of the executive committee, moderator of the Commission on Church and Society (1975–83), and one of its presidents (1983–91).Dietmar W. Winkler: ''Gregorios, Paulos Mar, Bischof, malankarisch orthodoxer Metropolit von Delhi und Ökumeniker'', in: J. Ernesti / W. Thönissen, ''Personenlexikon Ökumene''. Herder , Freiburg/Breisgau 2010, 82-84. He led WCC delegations to major conferences including the UN General Assembly Special Sessions on Disarmament (1983,1988). In WCC forums and beyond, he persistently opposed apartheid and the old and new colonialism. He chaired the World Conference on Faith, Science and the Future in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

, United States (1979). He was the vice-president of the Christian Peace Conference (1970–90). A member of the senate of the Kerala and Serampore universities for a number of years, Gregorios was a visiting professor at Denver, Harvard, Wooster, and

. He was a fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study at Shimla, the vice-president of the

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

philosophical Congress, and the president of the Indian Philosophical Congress.

Selected works

* ''The Joy of Freedom: Eastern Worship and Modern Man'', London, Lutterworth P., (1967) * ''The Freedom of Man; an Inquiry Into Some Roots of the Tension Between Freedom and Authority in Our Society'', Westminster Press (1972) * ''The St. Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia of India" Editorial Board Member, Vol.2, 1973; v.1 1982; v.3 2009. Ch. Ed. George Menachery Trichur and Ollur (OCLC 73 - 905568) * ''Freedom and Authority'', Madras, Christian Literature Society, (1974) * ''The Human Presence: an Orthodox View of Nature'', Geneva, World Council of Churches, (c1978) * ''Truth Without Tradition: Special Lectures'', Tirupati, Sri Venkateswara University, (c1978) * ''Science for Sane Societies'', Paragon House, (c1987) * ''Cosmic Man : the Divine Presence : the Theology of St. Gregory of Nyssa'', Paragon House, (1988) * ''The Meaning and Nature of Diakonia'', WCC Publications, (c1988) * ''Enlightenment, East & West: Pointers in the Quest for India’s Secular Identity'', Indian Institute of Advance Study in association with B.R. Pub. Corp. (1989) * 'A light too Bright - An Assessment of the values of European Enlightenment' * ''A Human God'', Kottayam, MGF Publications (1992) * ''Love's Freedom: The Grand Mystery'', Kottayam, MGF Publications, (1997) * ''Science, technology, and the future of humanity'', Kottayam, MGF Publications, (2007)

Awards

''Certificate of Merit for Distinguished Service and Inspired Leadership of the World Church'', Cambridge (UK); '' Order of St.Vladimir'' (USSR); ''Order of St.Sergius'', First Rank (USSR); ''Order of St.Mary Magdalene'' (Poland); "Doctor of Theology" - '' Leningrad Theological Academy'' (USSR); "Doctor of Theology" - ''Lutheran Theological Academy'' (Budapest); "Doctor of Theology"- ''

Jan Hus Jan Hus (; ; 1370 – 6 July 1415), sometimes anglicized as John Hus or John Huss, and referred to in historical texts as ''Iohannes Hus'' or ''Johannes Huss'', was a Czech theologian and philosopher who became a Church reformer and the insp ...

Faculty'' (Prague); "Doctor of Theology (h.c.)" - ''Orthodox Faculty'' (Czechoslovakia); ''The International Biographical Roll of Honour for Distinguished Service to World Unity and Understanding Among Religions'' (USA); ''Distinguished Leadership Award for Extraordinary Service, Peace and Unity'' (USA); ''Hall of Fame Award for Extraordinary Services to Peace and Unity'' (USA); ''Hidalgo de San Antonio de Bejar'' (Texas, USA); '' Otto Nuschke Prize for Peace'' (GDR); ''Soviet Land Nehru Award'' (India); "Man of the Year Award", ''Bhai Param Vir Singh International Award'' (India); ''Golden Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement'' (USA); ''Eminent Ecumenical Educator Award'' (India); ''

Acharya In Indian religions and society, an ''acharya'' (Sanskrit: आचार्य, IAST: ; Pali: ''ācariya'') is a preceptor and expert instructor in matters such as religion, or any other subject. An acharya is a highly learned person with a ...

Award'' (India); ''Distinguished Alumnus Award'',

(USA); '' Oskar Pfister Award'',

American Psychiatric Association The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the largest psychiatric organization in the world. It has more than 37,000 members are involv ...

(USA); ''Social Services Award'',

(USA).

Life

Selected works

Awards

See also