text: 1LittleBear:
  All of the Christians in Middle East war zones deserve our support, including accepting them as suitable refugees.  Although there are a few Protestants, most belong to Eastern Catholic, Orthodox, or Oriental churches.
  
  India is a separate topic:  When I toured India, I encountered stories about how Portuguese and other Western missionaries did not recognize the validity of the indigenous Christian faith in the Kerala region, said to have been initiated by St. Thomas the Apostle.  Apparently, those St. Thomas Christians were, and still are, linked with Syriac Christians.  
  
  Western missionaries introduced rival churches such as the Catholic rites you have cited.   We visited a Mar Thoma church which is now in communion with the Anglican church.   
  
  The meddlesome fragmentation of St. Thomas Christianity is a pity!