Kottayam 

All Catholics believe the same truths, profess same faith, receive the same sacraments, have the same Lord, pray to the same heavenly Father and are in communion with the Pope. Yet, because God wishes all to be saved, there is room within the Church for diversity of rites, traditions, races, cultures, customs, languages and so forth. The second Vatican Council not only acknowledges but also encourages this: 
"The variety within the Church in no way harms her unity, but rather manifest it. For it is the mind of the Catholic Church that each individual or particular church of rite retain its traditions while adjusting its way of life to various needs of time and place ... 
Therefore, attention should be given to the preservation and growth of each individual church. For this purpose parishes and special hierarchy should be established for each, where spiritual good of the faithful so demands. The Ordinaries of various individual churches can have jurisdiction in the same territory" (O.E. 2, 4) 

This is manifested and verified in a unique way in the existence of the Diocese of Kottayam. 

A Short Description (Source: Rev. Dr. Jose Tharayil )

From the 17th century, Malabarians were ruled by Latin rite bishops, though they longed to have bishops of thir own rite. To separate the Oriental and Latin rites, Rome established in 1987 two apostolic Vicariates, Kottayam and Trichur. The Pope Leo XIII appointed Bishop Charles Lavingne, S.J. as the first Apostolic Vicar of Kottayam. Most of the Knanaya Christians thus came under the Vicariate of Kottayam, and Bishop Lavingne appointed Msgr. Mathew Makil the Vicar General of Knanaya Catholics in 1889. 

Later in 1896, Kottayam became the part of the Appostolic Vicariate of Changanachery, headed by Bishop Mathew Makil, a member of Knanaya Community. Bishop Makil appointed two Vicar General, one for the Northists and one for the Southists. Bishop Makil had suffered considerably at the hands of the Northists who did not like a Southist to be their bishop. This was added to the pains of Knanaya Catholic community. So Bishop Makil, a man of vision and wisdom, went to Rome and requested Pope Pius X to create a separate Diocese for southist people. Pope Pius X with the Decree, "In Universi Christiani" established the Diocese of Kottayam exclusively for the Kananaya Catholics on 29th of August 1911. Bishop Makil became the first Bishop of Kottayam, who exercises personal jurisdiction over the Southists spread out in the area of various eparchies. Thus the creation of the Diocese of Kottayam was the greatest and most glorious event in the history of Knanaya Catholics. 

Bishop Makil was succeeded by Bishop Alexander Choolaparambil(1914-51), and Bishop Thomas Tharayil (1952-74). His successor Bishop Kuriakose Kunnacherry presently heads the Diocese of Kottayam. 

The Knanaya Catholic community has grown now, numbering more than 130,000 faithful living all across the world. It is also sending missionaries to the Catholic church all over India and abroad. Bishop Abraham Viruthikulangara of Khandwa Diocese is a member of Kottayam Diocese. 

Our predecessor of Glorious Memory, Pope Leo the 13, by a decree of July 26, 1896 created three Vicariates - Trichur, Ernakulam and Changanacherry - in Malabar for the Syrian Christians and appointed their own Bishop for each Vicariate for its administration. 

After a careful and serious consultation with the honorable Cardinals who are the heads of the oriental congregation and the congregation for promulgation of faith, and after consulting with the above three apostolic vicars, convincing that, according to the application submitted to us on the 1 st of March, this Year, in order to pacify the disputes the disputes among certain people and for the betterment of the spirituality of those faithful, it is necessary to establish a new Vicariate, We accept their application and as a sign of our satisfaction with those people, We permit to establish a New Vicariate in the town ordinarily known as Kottayam. 

According to the report We received from the Apostolic Vicars of Ernakulam and Changanacherry, using Our Supreme authority, as we separate all the Suddist parishes and include them in the Vicariate of Kottayam, We include the parishes and chapels of Kottayam and Kaduthurithy divisions of Changanacherry Vicariate and all parishes and chapels belonging to the Suddists in Ernakulam Vicariates in the New Vicariate. 

We desire and decide that this decree shall be effective, valid, and definitive for all the time; and this decree shall put into effect; and this decree, in its details, shall be obeyed and followed, now and in future, by all those to whosoever it shall be effective. Anything, Knowingly or Unknowingly, brought against this decree by any authority shall be invalid.