ASIA/INDIA - Rector of Saint Peter Apostle Pontifical Interdiocesan Seminary in the Archdiocese of Bangalore appointed

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – Cardinal Ivan Dias, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, on April 3, 2009, appointed Fr. Thomas Joseph Kochupurayil, of the Diocese of Ootacamund (India), Rector of Saint Peter Apostle Pontifical Interdiocesan Seminary in the Archdiocese of Bangalore.
The new Rector was born on May 13, 1951 in Ettumanoor (Diocese of Kottayam, Kerala) and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Ootacamund on May 14, 1980. He was a member of the staff of St. Peter's Pontifical Seminary and Institute in 1988 and President since 2007, after his studies at the University of Madurai, Madras, and Mysore, he earned a licentiate (1989/1991) and doctorate (1991/1994) in Theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He has published two books on ecclesiology and ecumenism. He has served until now as follows: professor at St. Peter's Pontifical Institute in Bangalore, visiting professor at Dharmaram Vidhya Kshetram and the Insititute of Theology, both in Bangalore. (SL) (Agenzia Fides 8/9/2009)