Family Conference 2011

The 2011 Mar Thoma Family Conference of the Diocese of North America & Europe, hosted by The Trinity Mar Thoma church, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada was held at the Radisson Hotel from June 30 – July 3, 2011. The theme of the conference was “Discipleship” based on John 8:31: “If you hold to my teachings, you are my disciples”.

The inaugural session of the conference began at 6:00 pm, with a worship service led by
the host parish, the Trinity MTC, Edmonton. The public meeting followed immediately
with the introduction and seating of the panel.

This was followed by the presentation of the flags of the Diocese, Canada, India, the
United States and Europe, and the national anthems of Canada and India. The President,
Rev. Reji John, welcomed the guests, leaders, clergy members, and all delegates. The
conference choir blessed the occasion with songs that highlighted the theme of the
conference.

Mar Theodosius, the Diocesan Bishop and Patron, delivered the Patron’s address and
introduced the theme of the conference. The Keynote Speaker Rt. Rev. Joseph Mar
Barnabas delivered the inaugural speech. The distinguished guests and main leaders
offered their felicitations for the conference. A souvenir commemorating the 2011 Family
Conference was released. The inaugural program concluded with the vote of thanks by
the conference Secretary and an introduction of participating parishes by the Registration
Convener.
The evening activities continued with an entertaining cultural program presented by the
Trinity Mar Thoma Church, Edmonton.

The day’s program ended with prayer by Rev. V.T. John and the benediction by Rt. Rev.
Dr. Geevarghese Mar Theodosius, Episcopa.
The second day began with a worship service led by Rev. K.J. Mathew and the St.
Thomas MTC, Calgary. As July 1st is Canada Day, the conference celebrated the
occasion by hoisting the Canadian flag and singing ‘O Canada’, Canada’s National
Anthem, which was led by the Conference Choir. The Choir then led the congregation in
a sing-along session. The sessions were led by Mar Theodosius, Mar Barnabas, Rev. Dr.
Martin Alphonse, Rev. M. M. John, Rev. Dr. Joe Joseph Kuruvilla and Rev. V. T. John.

The evening worship service was led by Rev. Binu Varghese and the Seattle MTC. The
day’s events concluded with a display of talents by almost all participating parishes, with
songs, dances, poetry, a Bible fashion show and a magic show. The evening program
ended with prayer and benediction by Rev. Oommen V. Varkey.

The third day began with a worship service led by Rev. Varghese K. Abraham and the St.
Mathews MTC, Toronto after which youth and children broke for their own separate
tracks. There were organisational meetings of Edavaka Mission, Sunday School and
Young Families were jointly conducted by the Diocesan Bishop. Dr. T.K. Idicula gave a
medical session about Type II Diabetes and Dr. Sanjay Sharma joined us to lead a
discussion on ‘Heart Disease among South Asians’. The Family Conference Business
Meeting that followed was presided by the Diocesan Bishop. The youth and children met
in separate sessions with their leaders. A Praise and Worship team led the singing
sessions in the youth meetings.
The evening programs began with a worship service led by Rev. Jacob Verghese and the
St. Johns MTC, New York followed by the Diocesan program. The Diocesan Secretary,
Rev. K.E. Geevarghese, made a presentation about the various activities of the Diocese
followed by presentations for the Mission Board, Planning Board, Mar Thoma
Messenger, and the Mar Thoma Literature Society. An award presentation followed where various awards like the Valedictorian award and Best Parish award were presented
to individuals and parishes. Soon afterwards, Rev. A.T. Thomas of the Immanuel MTC,
Houston led the dedication and witnessing service. The youth had their dedication and
witnessing service led by Rev. Biju P. Simon and Rev. Jaisen A. Thomas.
The Sunday program commenced with celebration of the Holy Communion led by Rt.
Rev. Joseph Mar Barnabas Episcopa. Rt. Rev. Dr. Geevarghese Mar Theodosius
Episcopa delivered the sermon.

The closing ceremony started with a prayer by Rev. K.E. Geevarghese followed by Rt.
Rev. Joseph Mar Barnabas delivering his closing thoughts about the theme. Then Rev.
Reji John of the Trinity MTC, Edmonton passed on the conference torch to Rev. K. E.
Geevarghese, the Diocesan Secretary, as the 2012 Family Conference will be hosted by
the Diocese.

An introduction of the Edmonton Conference Committee members was followed by the
formal vote of thanks by the Conference Secretary. The Diocesan Bishop, Rt. Rev. Dr.
Geevarghese Mar Theodosius, thanked the delegates, leaders, organizers of the
conference and the host parish and invited all delegates to attend the 2012 Family
Conference. The 2011 Family Conference ended with a closing prayer and benediction
by Rt. Rev. Joseph Mar Barnabas Episcopa.
Mr. Thomas Varughese,
Secretary, Family Conference Committee
July 2011