Francis Kallarackal was the
Metropolitan Archbishop
Metropolitan may refer to:
* Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories
* Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England
* Metropolitan county, a typ ...
of the
Roman Catholic (Latin Rite) Archdiocese of Verapoly in India. He was appointed by
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 ...
on 20 February 2010.
Born to Kallarackal Ouso and Brigitte of Kottapuram on 10 October 1941.
He had his high school education from St. Albert's High School, Ernakulam and he joined the St. Joseph's Minor Seminary in 1956. After completing pre-degree course fro
St. Albert's College Ernakulam,
he joined St. Joseph's Pontifical Seminary, Carmelgiri, Alwaye, for pursuing studies in Philosophy. He completed his Masters in Theology from Propaganda College, Rome and was ordained as priest on 29 June 1968. He holds a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from Pontifical Urbaniana University, Rome and Post Graduation from Fairfiled University, USA.
When he returned from abroad in 1970, he was appointed secretary to the then Archbishop Joseph Kelanthara.
From 1978 to 1986 he served as the social action director of the Archdiocese. He was then appointed the administrator of St. John's Medical College, Bangalore, which is established and managed by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India.
In 1987, as the Diocese of Kottapuram was created through the bifurcation of the Archdiocese of Verapoly, he became the first bishop of Kottapuram by the Apostolic Letter "Romani et Pontificis" dated 3 July 1987. With his episcopal consecration on the feast day of St. Francis Assisi, the Diocese of Kottapuram was inaugurated on 4 October 1987.
As the Bishop of Kottapuram, he called for a Diocesan Synod, conducted in 2007-2008.
Archbishop Francis Kallarakkal is the Vice President of the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council and Kerala Regional Latin Catholic Council and Archbishop of Verapoly. He serves as vice-chairman of the Media Commission of the Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council, Chairman of the Carmelgiri Pontifical Seminary Episcopal Commission and KRLCC publication "Jeevanadam".
As the Metropolitan Archbishop of Verapoly the Kallarakal called a Diocesan Synod in Verpaoly, and a diocesan synod at Kottapuram while he was serving as the Bishop of Kottapuram. The Diocesan Synod in Verapoly proposed major reformas in the Archdiocese of Verapoly, giving the laity more participation in the Church.
See also
*
Catholic Church hierarchy
The hierarchy of the Catholic Church consists of its bishops, priests, and deacons. In the ecclesiological sense of the term, "hierarchy" strictly means the "holy ordering" of the Church, the Body of Christ, so to respect the diversity of gif ...
*
Catholic Bishops' Conference of India
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI) is the permanent association of the Catholic bishops of India. It was established in September 1944, in Chennai. The CBCI Secretariat was located in Bangalore until 1962, when it was shifted to t ...
*
Christianity in India
Christianity is India's third-largest religion with about 27.8 million adherents, making up 2.3 percent of the population as of the 2011 census. The written records of the Saint Thomas Christians state that Christianity was introduced to th ...
*
Roman Catholicism in India
The Catholic Church in India is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the leadership of the Pope (''Romanus Pontifex''). There are over 20 million Catholics in India,
*
List of Roman Catholic dioceses in India
With the establishment of Syro Malabar eparchies of Shamshabad and Hosur in October 2017, the Catholic Church in India includes 174 dioceses, of which 132 are Roman, 31 are Syro-Malabar, and 11 are Syro-Malankara. These are organised into 29 ecc ...
*
List of Roman Catholic dioceses (structured_view)-Episcopal Conference of India
References
External links
www.kcbcsite.com – Bishop Francis Kallarakal Appointed as Metrapolitan Archbishop of Verapoly
official website
News Site of the Catholic Bishop's Conference
* www.ucanews.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kallarakal, Francis
1941 births
Living people
21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in India
People from Thrissur district