Anthony Poola (born 15 November 1961) is an Indian prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who has been Archbishop of Hyderabad since 2021. He was Bishop of Kurnool from 2008 to 2020. Before becoming a bishop, he worked as a priest of the Diocese of Cuddapah. On 27 August 2022,

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

elevated Poola to

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

at a consistory held in Vatican . He is the first of the

Dalit Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the Caste system in India, castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold Varna (Hinduism), varna syste ...

caste and the first of Telugu ethnicity to be named a cardinal.

Biography

Anthony Poola was born on 15 November 1961 in Chindukur, Durvesi Parish, in the Diocese of Kurnool. When poverty forced to leave school after the seventh grade, missionaries took an interest in him and helped him continue his schooling. After attending the Minor Seminary in

Nuzvid Nuzvid is a city in Eluru district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It serves as the administrative headquarters for Nuzvid mandal and Nuzvid revenue division. Geography Nuzvid is located at . It has an average elevation of . Demograp ...

, he studied at St. Peter's Pontifical Seminary in

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

. He was ordained a priest on 20 February 1992 and incardinated in the Diocese of Cuddapah. He held the following positions: 1992-1993: parish vicar of St. Mary's Cathedral from 1992 to 1993; parish vicar in

Amagampalli Amagampalli is a small village in Sri Avadhuth Kasinayana mandal, Kadapa district, Andhra Pradesh. References Villages in Kadapa district {{Kadapa-geo-stub ...

from 1993 to 1994; pastor in Tekurpet from 1994 to 1995; pastor in

Badvel Badvel is a Municipality in Kadapa district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Badvel Town is located in Two mandals. It is the headquarters of Badvel revenue division. Major portion of Town comes under Badvel mandal and remaining portion ...

from 1995 to 2000; pastor in Veerapalli from 2000 to 2001. He studied for a master's degree in health pastoral care and took courses in theology at

Loyola University Chicago Loyola University Chicago (Loyola or LUC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1870 by the Society of Jesus, Loyola is one of the largest Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Cathol ...

. He also worked at St. Genevieve Church in the

Archdiocese of Chicago The Archdiocese of Chicago ( la, Archidiœcesis Chicagiensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in Northeastern Illinois, in the United States. It was established as a diocese in 1843 and ...

. Returning to his home diocese of Cuddapah, he was director of the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging from 2004 to 2008. He was also Diocesan Consultor, Secretary for Education, Deputy Administrator of the Schools of the Diocese and Coordinator of the Sponsorship Program. On 8 February 2008,

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

appointed him Bishop of Kurnool. On 19 November 2020,

appointed him Archbishop of Hyderabad. He was installed there on 3 January 2021. On 27 August 2022, Pope Francis made him a

cardinal priest A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

, assigning him the title of

Santi Protomartiri a Via Aurelia Antica Santi Protomartiri a Via Aurelia Antica is a 20th-century parochial church and titular church in western Rome, dedicated to the First Martyrs of the Church of Rome (died AD 64–67). History Built in 1968, it was made a titular church to be ...

References

;Additional sources *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Poola, Anthony Living people 1961 births Dalit religious leaders People from Andhra Pradesh Christian clergy from Andhra Pradesh Telugu people 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in India Indian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Francis

Biography

See also

References

External links