Pope Francis transferred Bishop Francis Kalist of Meerut in Uttar Pradesh to Pondicherry-Cuddalore archdiocese as its new archbishop in Tamil Nadu, south India.
The announcement was made public on March 19, 2022, said a press release from Father Stephen Alathara, deputy secretary general of the Conference of Catholic Bishops in India (CCBI–Latin Rite).
The Archdiocese of Pondicherry-Cuddalore became vacant on January 27, 2021, by the resignation of late Archbishop Antony Anandarayar, who died due to covid related illness on May 4, 2021.
Bishop Peter Abir Antonysamy of Sultanpet, Kerala was appointed as the Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese on January 27, 2021.
Bishop Kalist was born on November 23, 1957, in Ratapuram, in the district of Kanyakumari, Diocese of Kottar, south India.
He attended elementary school in Ratapuram and then entered the minor seminary of St. John's, Sardhana, Meerut. He continued his training at St. Albert's Major Seminary, Ranchi, for philosophy and theology studies.
He was ordained a priest on December 30, 1982, for the diocese of Meerut, the western part of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
After ordination, he held served as vicar in Sacred Heart Church, Roorkee from 1982 to 1984. Similarly, he was the vicar at St. Pius Church, Bachraon between 1984 and 1986. From 1986 to 1989, he worked as a pastor at St. James Church, Sirsanal Village.
In the years 1989 to 1995, he served as pastor of St. Paul's Church in Christnagar. As a pastor, he worked in St. Francis Church in Swar from 1995 to 1999.
He was rector at St. John's Minor Seminary and administrator, Basilica Shrine of Our Lady of Graces, Sardhana, 1999-2002, and rector of the St. Francis Xavier Regional Philosophate, Etmadpur Archdiocese of Agra, from 2002 to 2008. From 1992 to 2002 he was also diocesan director of evangelization.
Pope Benedict XVI appointed him at the age of 51 as the third Bishop of Meerut on December 3, 2008, and was ordained Bishop on February 8, 2009.
He is currently the chairman of the CCBI Commission for Women and the Episcopal Advisor of the National Charismatic Service Team.
He is the patron Bishop of the Society of Daughters of Mary Immaculate (DMI) and Missionaries of Mary Immaculate (MMI) religious congregations.
Archdiocese of Pondicherry in South India has a history of more than 400 years. The "Sui Iuris" of Karnatic Mission (Pondicherry) was established in 1776. In 1836, it became Vicariate Apostolic of Pondicherry.
It was elevated to Archdiocese of Pondicherry in 1886 and the name was changed into Archdiocese of Pondicherry-Cuddalore in 1953.
There are 3,99,461 Catholics in 105 parishes, 187 diocesan clergies, 84 religious priests, 1,035 nuns and 311 educational institutions in the archdiocese.
Dioceses of Dharmapuri, Kumbakonam, Salem and Tanjore are the suffragan dioceses of Archdiocese of Pondicherry-Cuddalore.
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
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