Joseph Kallarangatt
| His Excellency Mar Joseph Kallarangatt | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Palai | |
 | |
| Diocese | Syro-Malabar Catholic Diocese of Palai |
| See | Syro-Malabar Catholic Church |
| Predecessor | Mar Joseph Pallikaparampil |
| Successor | Incumbent |
| Other posts | Chairman of the Doctrinal Commission CBCI,chairman of the Syro-Malabar Synodal Commission for doctrine,head of the Theology Commission of KCBC, Former President & Vice Chancellor, Paurastya Vidyapitham |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 2 January 1982 |
| Consecration | 2 May 2004 |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
27 January 1956 Kayyoor, Kottayam District, Kerala, India |
| Nationality | India |
| Denomination | Syro-Malabar Catholic Church |
| Residence | Bishop's House, Palai |
Joseph Kallarangatt (born 27 January 1956 at Kayyoor, Kottayam district, Kerala) is an East Syrian Catholic Bishop and Theologian. He currently serves as the Bishop of the Syro-Malabar Eparchy of Palai (also known as Pala), which has the largest concentration of Syro-Malabar Catholics.
Early life
After his school studies, Joseph Kallarangatt joined Good Shepherd Minor Seminary, Palai. Later he went on to the Saint Thomas Apostolic Seminary Kottayam, where he studied philosophy and theology. He was ordained priest by Bishop Mar Joseph Pallikaparampil on 2 January 1982, at Christuraja Church Kayyoor.
Ecclesiastical and academic career
After a short period of fruitful apostolate at Aruvithura and Ramapuram, Fr. Kallarangatt was sent to Rome for higher studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University. In 1989, he secured a doctorate in systematic theology (The title of the thesis: The Holy Spirit, bond of communion of the churches: a comparative study of the ecclesiology of Yves Congar and Nikos Nissiotis). On his return to India, he was appointed professor of Dogmatic Theology at St. Thomas Apostolic Seminary and at Paurastya Vidyapitham (Pontifical Oriental Institut of Religious Studies), Kottayam On 18 March 2004, while serving as the president of Paurastya Vidyapitham, Fr. Kallarangatt was named as the third Bishop of Palai. On 2 May 2004, he received his episcopal consecration from Archbishop Mar Joseph Powathil and the same day he was enthroned as Bishop of Palai by the Syro-Malabar Major-Archbishop Mar Varkey Cardinal Vithayathil.
Bishop Kallarangatt was a participant in the XIII Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, (Rome, 2012). In 2014, the Bishop lead his diocese to host the 31st plenary assembly of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India.
A Theologian Bishop: Chairman of Doctrinal Commission
Bishop Kallarangatt is considered to be an authority in Ecclesiology and Oriental Theology; he has authored 30 books and a good number of articles related to Ecclesiology and Eastern theological studies. Currently, he is the Chairman of the Doctrinal Commission of The Catholic Bishops' Conference of India and the Chairman of the Syro-Malabar Synodal Commission for Doctrine as well as member of the Syro-Malabar Synodal Commission for Liturgy. Bishop Kallarangatt serves also as a member of the Biblical Commission of Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council.
Well known Scholar
Besides Malayalam and English, Bishop Kallarangatt speaks German and Italian languages. He is scholarly competent in ancient East Syriac language. He has in his credit more than 30 books on Theology and Oriental Liturgy and has written a large number of Systematic Theological articles. He has published extensively on secular topics as well.
Works in English
1. The Holy Spirit: Bond of Communion of Churches, Roma, Pontificia universitas Gregorianum, 1989.
2. Pneumatocentric Eccesiology in Nikos Nissiotis, Kottayam, OIRSI, 1999.
3. Reflections on theology and Church (ed), Kottayam, OIRSI,2001.
4. " The Ecumenical Theology of Nikos A. Nissiotis", in Christian Orient 11, Dec. 1990, p. 173-86.
5. " THe First Sunday of the Period of Qayt ( The Feast of Apostles)", in Journal of Eastern Christian Studies, Vol. 56, Issues 164, 2004, p. 303-317.