Kerala: Catholic Church approaches excise department to increase quantity of mass wine

In Kerala, various dioceses together hold 23 Abkari licences, issued by the Excise Department, which allow them to produce wine on a largescale.

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The church’s demand has been accepted and the requisite orders would be issued soon, said sources in the Excise Department.

The use of wine during Mass, a common practice in Catholic churches across the globe, had recently become a topic of debate in Kerala, after the state government’s decision to cancel the licences of all bars, except those in five-star hotels.

As the Catholic Church has been at the forefront of a campaign seeking prohibition, some had alleged that it was hypocritical for the church to participate in an agitation against alcohol while retaining its liquor licence to produce a considerable quantity of wine.

While speaking on the controversy, a senior bishop from a non-Catholic sect had gone so far as to opine that grape water should be used during Mass, instead of wine.

But Father Paul Thelakkattu, spokesman for the Catholic Church, defended the demand to increase wine production by over three times of the original amount. “We wanted an increase in production because the number of churches have increased, along with the number of Masses. Many people from across the state have migrated to Ernakulam district and Kochi city. Since the number of attendees has increased, the number of Masses held in these churches has also increased,” he said.

“The quota (for wine production), fixed since the last 23 years, needed to be increased. For one session of Mass, may be one or two ounces of wine will be used. This is a liturgical use (of the wine) and cannot be seen as related to the state’s liquor policy,’’ said Father Thelakkattu.