Claretian Father James Patteril, a son of the soil, was consecrated the second bishop of the Belthangady, one of the three Syro-Malabar dioceses in the southern India’s Karnataka state. The Episcopal consecration and the installation ceremony of the first Indian Claretian was held on November 5 at St. Lawrence Cathedral in Belthangady, some 60 km northeast of Mangaluru.
Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil, the head of the Syro-Malabar Church, consecrated the new bishop in the presence of the Archbishop Joseph Pamplany of Tellicherry and Bishop Emeritus Lawrence Mukkuzhy of Belthangady. Also present were around 40 bishops from various parts of India and hundreds of priests, nuns and a large gathering of laity. The program also included a public meeting to welcome the new bishop and pay tribute to Bishop Mukkuzhy.
The major archbishop on August 28 announced Father Patteril as the second bishop of Belthangady. Archbishop Pamplany said the region is multicultural and multilingual and the new bishop can manage all languages spoken in the region, like his predecessor. “A good shepherd must know its sheep and accompany them in both good and bad times,” he added.
Bishop Patteril was born on July 27, 1962, near Belthangady to Late Abraham Patteril and Rosamma. He joined the Claretian seminary in 1978 and was ordained a priest on April 26, 1990, by Archbishop George Valiamattom of Tellicherry. He served three parishes in Belthangady, before going to Germany to study masters in Pastoral Theology. He was in Germany from 1994 until his appointment as a bishop.
The Belthangady diocese was carved out of Tellicherry archdiocese and established on August 4, 1999, with its episcopal vicar Lawrence Mukkuzhy as its first bishop. The first Syro Malabar diocese in Karnataka comprises South Canara, Udupi and Coorg districts. Currently, the diocese has 55 parishes with more than 30,000 Catholics in 4,750 families and thousands of students from Kerala. They are served by 57 diocesan and 27 religious priests along with 198 women religious.
