Jerome M. Fernandez

Last updated

Jerome Maria Fernandez
Bishop Emeritus of Quilon
First indian bishop of The Roman Catholic Diocese of Quilon Rt. Rev. Dr. Jerome M Fernandez.jpg
First indian bishop of The Roman Catholic Diocese of Quilon
Church Catholic Church
Diocese Quilon
Appointed25 September 1937
Installed12 December 1937
Retired30 January 1978
PredecessorVincent Victor Dereere, O.C.D.
Successor Joseph Gabriel Fernandez
Orders
Ordination24 March 1928
by  Bishop Aloysius Maria Benziger
Consecration12 December 1937
by  Archbishop Joseph Attipetty
Personal details
Born
Jerome Maria Fernandez

8 September 1901
Koivila, Quilon, India
Died27 Feb 1992
Kerala, India
Buried Infant Jesus Cathedral
8.8844° N, 76.5660° E
NationalityIndian
Denomination Roman Catholic
Alma mater St. Aloysius English High School
St. Teresa's Major Seminary
Sainthood
Venerated in Catholic Church
Title as Saint Servant of God
Styles of
Jerome Maria Fernandez
Mitre plain 2.png
Reference style
Spoken style Your Excellency
Religious style Bishop
Posthumous style Servant of God

Jerome Maria Fernandez was the first Indian bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Quilon, India. [1] He is the founder of the Missionary Sisters of St.Therese of Infant Jesus (MSST). [2] He was declared Servant of God on February 24, 2019 by Kollam Bishop Paul Antony Mullassery at Infant Jesus Cathedral, Thangassery. [3] [4]

Contents

Early life

Jerome M. Fernandez was born on 8 September 1901 in Koivila, Kollam, Kerala. [1] He studied from St. Aloysius School, St. Raphael's Minor Seminary and St. Teresa's Major Seminary. [4]

Priesthood

On 24 March 1928, Fernandez was ordained a catholic priest for the Roman Catholic diocese of Quilon. [1] [4]

Episcopate

Fernandez was appointed bishop of the Roman catholic diocese of Quilon on 25 September 1937 by Pope Pius XI and consecrated on 12 December 1937 by Archbishop Joseph Attipetty. He took retirement from pastoral services on 30 January 1978. [1] [4] He was succeeded by Joseph Gabriel Fernandez as the 12th Bishop of Quilon.

Death

Fernandez died on 26 February 1992 in Kerala, India. [1] [4]

Sainthood

The proceedings for the canonization was started on 24 February 2019 in Infant Jesus Cathedral, Kollam, Kerala and Bishop Jerome M. Fernandez was declared Servant of God. [4]

Legacy

Bishop Jerome Institute has been set up in Kerala, India in his memory. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Syro-Malankara Catholic Church</span> Eastern Catholic church

The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, also known as the Malankara Syrian Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic sui iuris particular church in full communion with the worldwide Catholic Church possessing self-governance under the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. It is one of the major archiepiscopal churches of the Catholic Church. It is headed by Major Archbishop Baselios Cardinal Cleemis Catholicos of the Major Archdiocese of Trivandrum based in Kerala, India. With more than 1096 parishes, its one of India's biggest church evangelical establishments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kollam</span> City in Kerala, India

Kollam, is an ancient seaport and the fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake and is 71 kilometers northwest of the state capital, Thiruvanathapuram (Trivandrum). Kollam is one of India's oldest continuously inhabited cities, with evidence of habitation stretching back to the megalithic; the city has also been a maritime entrepôt millennia, the earliest attestation of which dates back to the Phoenicians and Romans. It is the southern gateway to the Backwaters of Kerala, and is known for its cashew processing, coir manufacturing, and tourism industries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Syro-Malabar Catholic Archeparchy of Changanacherry</span> Eastern Catholic archeparchy in Kerala, India

The Archeparchy of Changanacherry is a Syro-Malabar Catholic archeparchy with an area of 24,595 km2 comprising the districts of Kottayam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta, Kollam, and Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, and also Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the largest Catholic dioceses in India in terms of area. Joseph Perumthottam is the current Metropolitan Archbishop, serving since 2007. Thomas Tharayil has been the auxiliary bishop since 2017. Suffragan eparchies of the Changanassery archeparchy includes Palai, Kanjirappally-Nilackal, and Thuckalay-Thiruvithancode.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Quilon</span> Diocese in Kerala, India

The Diocese of Quilon is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church based in the southern Indian city of Kollam. It is a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Trivandrum. The Diocese of Quilon covers an area of 1,950 km2 that contains a population of some 4.8 million. At least 4.8% of the people in the area are Catholic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Verapoly</span> Roman Catholic archdiocese in Kerala, India

The Archdiocese of Verapoly (Verapolitana) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church, composed of Latin Catholics of Malabar and headquartered at the city of Cochin, in the south Indian state of Kerala. The archdiocese has administrative control over the suffragan dioceses of Calicut, Cochin, Kannur, Kottapuram, Sultanpet and Vijayapuram. The headquarters is located in Kochi along the Malabar Coast in India. It was originally formed as the Vicariate Apostolic of Malabar in 1657 and became a metropolitan see in 1886. Verapoly is the anglicised name of Varapuzha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Tuticorin</span> Roman Catholic diocese in Tamil Nadu, India

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Tuticorin is a unit of the Catholic Church in the city of Tuticorin, part of the ecclesiastical province of Madurai in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Alleppey</span> Roman Catholic diocese in Kerala, India

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Alappuzha is a diocese centered on the city of Alleppey in the ecclesiastical province of Trivandrum in India. It lies along the Arabian Sea between the dioceses of Cochin and Quilon, covering an area of 333 square kilometers. The Diocese of Alappuzha is headed by the bishop, Bishop James Raphel Anamparambil. The Episcopal see is the Bishop's House which is located near the Alappuzha Beach. The cathedral church of Alleppey is the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral located at Convent Square, Alappuzha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Cochin</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Kerala, India

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cochin is a Roman Catholic Diocese of the Latin Rite in Cochin, Kerala, India. It was established in 1557 after the domination of the Portuguese-speaking missionaries. The diocese is a suffragan church to the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman and serves the people of Malabar. It is under the ecclesiastical province of the Metropolitan Latin Catholic Archdiocese of Verapoly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Carmel Convent Anglo-Indian Girls High School</span> School

Mount Carmel Convent Anglo-Indian Girls High School is an English-medium all-through school in Tangasseri, Kollam District in Kerala, India. Located on the shores of the Arabian Sea, it consists of a day school, and a boarding house located within the convent. The school was founded on 22 July 1885 by Mother Veronica of the Passion. It was one of the first English-medium schools in the Kollam District, and is one of its two originally Anglo-Indian schools. The school awards qualifications based on the ICSE/ISC syllabus.

Hinduism, Islam and Christianity are the prominent religions in Kollam district. As per the Census 2011, out of the total population of 2,635,375 persons, 64.42% follow Hinduism, 19.30% follow Islam and 16.00% follow Christianity. Other religions comprise 0.04%, while 0.25% did not state any religion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanley Roman</span> 21st-century Indian Catholic bishop

Stanley Roman is an Indian prelate of the Catholic Church. He was Bishop of Quilon, India, from 2001 to 2018. He also chaired the education committee of the Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council.

St Andrew's Church, Kovilthottam is a historic colonial-era Roman Catholic church that is located in the Panmana–Chavara panchayat, Karunagappalli taluk, Kollam district, Kerala, India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sakthikulangara</span> Zone & Neighbourhood in Kollam, Kerala, India

Sakthikulangara is a zone and neighbourhood situated at the coastal area of the city of Kollam in Kerala India. It is one among the 6 zonal headquarters of Kollam Municipal Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishop Jerome Institute</span> Engineering and management school in India

The Bishop Jerome Institute or BJI or BJGI is an institution situated in Kollam city of Kerala, India. It is one among the AICTE approved engineering and management colleges situated inside the city limit of Kollam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Infant Jesus Cathedral</span> Church in Kollam, India

The Infant Jesus Cathedral is a historic Roman Catholic church established by Portuguese during 1614, situated at Tangasseri in the city of Quilon (Kollam), India. It is now the cathedral i.e the Seat of the Bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Quilon, the ancient and first catholic diocese of India. The Church remains as a memento of the Portuguese rule of old Quilon city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Antony Mullassery</span> Indian bishop

Paul Antony Mullassery is the 14th Bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Quilon. His Lordship also served as Judicial Vicar since 2013 and the Vicar General of the Diocese since 2017 as well as the Judicial Vicar of the Diocese. He was ordained as the Bishop of Quilon on 3 June 2018 at Fatima Mata National College ground with many Bishops attending the function. He would be a celebrant in the mass on 24 February 2019 which would mark the start of the canonization process of Bishop Jerome. M. Fernandez.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Varghese Chakkalakal</span> Indian Catholic priest

Bishop VargheseChakkalakal is the current bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Calicut.

Our Lady of Purification Church also known as the Port Kollam Church is a historic Roman Catholic church near Kollam Port in Kollam district of Kerala. According to ecclesiastical tradition the church was established by Thomas the Apostle in 52 CE along with six other churches in Kerala and these churches together are called Ēḻarappaḷḷikaḷ. The church follows Latin Rite and is in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Quilon.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Bishop Jerome M. Fernandez [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  2. "Home | MSST congregation". msstcongregation.com. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  3. Staff Reporter (2019-02-25). "Bishop Jerome declared Servant of God as prelude to beatification". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 2021-07-04.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Bishop Jerome declared as Servant of God". Deccan Chronicle. 2019-02-26. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  5. "Bishop Jerome Institute". www.manoramahorizon.com. Retrieved 2020-11-05.