Gallela Prasad (born 7 April 1962) 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 served as the Bishop of the Cuddapah,

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

, from 2008 to 2018. He is well versed in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

as well as

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

and English.

Biography

Prasad was born the fourth and youngest child in a family of teachers in

Adoni Adoni is a city in the Kurnool district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the headquarters of Adoni mandal, administered under the Adoni Revenue Division. In the 2011 census of India, Adoni had a population of 166, ...

in Andhra Pradesh. Smt. Mariamma and Sri Jojappa were his parents. He went to school in his hometown and later attended St. Pius Minor Seminary in Kurnool.Kurnool Vani, Newsletter of the Kurnool Diocese, Volume XXI, Number 3, March 2008Vatican Radio, The voice of the Pope and the Church in dialogue with the world, 31 January 200

/ref> He studied philosophy at St. John's Regional Seminary (Philosophate), St. John's Regional Seminary, Kondadaba, Visakhapatnam, and then theology at the

St. John's Regional Seminary St. John's Regional Seminary is the theologate of the Catholic Church of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. It is a major seminary training students to become priests. St. John's Regional Seminary is situated in Ramanthapur in Hyderabad. Affiliat ...

Ramanthapur Ramanthapur lies in the eastern part of the city of Hyderabad, located in the Indian state of Telangana. It lies between Uppal and Amberpet, on the road from Uppal to Kachiguda. The area has been drastically developed when compared to the early ...

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...

. On 1 March 1989, Prasad was ordained a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Kurnool by Bishop Matthew Cheriankunnel. After his ordination, Prasad served as a Youth Services Director of the diocese of Kurnool from 1989 to 1993 as well as a warden for St. Mary's Junior College, Kurnool from 1989 to 1990. From 1990 to 1995, he was a parish priest in Koilakunta.Amruthavani Communications Centre, Hyderabad, Brief History of the Diocese of Kurnoo

/ref> He also served as Spiritual Director of the

Legion of Mary The Legion of Mary ( la, Legio Mariae, postnominal abbreviation L.O.M.) is an international association of members of the Catholic Church who serve it on a voluntary basis. It was founded in Dublin, as a Marian movement by the layman and civi ...

from 1993 to 1995. From 1995 to 1999 Prasad studied in Rome at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas ''Angelicum'' where he earned a

Doctorate of Sacred Theology The Doctor of Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Doctor, abbreviated STD), also sometimes known as Professor of Sacred Theology (, abbreviated STP), is the final theological degree in the pontifical university system of the Roman Catholic ...

degree. His thesis was entitled ''Christian Charity as Witnessed by Mother Teresa of Calcutta''. On returning to India in 1999, he was Pastor in St. John's Church, Uppaladadiya till 2000. From 2000 to 2004 he served as a pastor in the

Diocese of San Angelo The Diocese of San Angelo ( la, Dioecesis Angeliana, es, Diócesis de San Angelo) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church covering 29 counties throughout Central and West Texas. It was founded on October 16, ...

, Texas, U.S. In 2004, he was made Spiritual Director and Professor of Christian Doctrine in the

St. John's Regional Seminary (Philosophate) St. John's Regional Seminary (Philosophate) founded in 1987 is a propaedeutics, propaedeutic seminary equipping students with philosophical training. It is located in the rural town of Kothavalasa in the Vizianagaram District in Andhra Pradesh, ...

Kothavalasa Kothavalasa is a Suburb in Visakhapatnam city but present in Vizianagaram district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located in Kothavalasa mandal of Vizianagaram revenue division. It is located 30 km from the city of Visakhap ...

, Visakhapatnam.

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 Prasad Bishop of Cuddapah on 31 January 2008. He was consecrated on 1 March 2008 at the St. Mary's Old Cathedral Grounds, Mariapuram, Cuddapah, by

Marampudi Joji Marampudi Joji (7 October 1942 – 27 August 2010) was the third Archbishop of Hyderabad. He was born in Bhimavaram and died at the Bishop's House, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. He knew Latin, Telugu, and English. Early years & education Joji ...

, Archbishop of Hyderabad, with Kagithapu Mariadas, Archbishop of Visakhapatnam and the D. M. Prakasam, Bishop of Nellore as co-consecrators. Almost all the Catholic Bishops of the Andhra region took part in the consecration. Among the

ecumenical Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...

invitees was K. B. Yesuvaraprasad, the

Church of South India The Church of South India (CSI) is a united Protestant Church in India. It is the result of union of a number of mainline Protestant denominations in South India after independence. The Church of South India is the successor of a number of Pr ...

's Bishop of Rayalaseema. He chose as his episcopal motto or "I am the good shepherd". In June 2018, two lay Catholics initiated a lawsuit against Gallela, charging that he misappropriated church funds to support his wife and 20-year-old son. Gallela denied the charges and the woman was his brother's widow, misidentified as his wife in certain deeds.

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. ...

accepted his resignation as bishop on 10 December 2018.

References

External links

Catholic Hierarchy, Bishop Prasad
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prasad, Gallela 1962 births Living people Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni 20th-century Indian Roman Catholic theologians 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in India 21st-century Indian Roman Catholic theologians Indian Christians