Karel Choennie

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Karel Choennie
Karel Choennie 2018 (cropped).png
Choennie (2018)
Church Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral
Archdiocese Port of Spain
Diocese Paramaribo
Appointed11 November 2015
Predecessor Wilhelmus de Bekker  [ nl ]
Orders
Ordination3 August 1985
Consecration24 January 2016
by Wilhelmus de Bekker
Personal details
Born
Karel Martinus Choennie

(1958-12-20) 20 December 1958 (age 64)
Surinam
NationalitySuriname
Denomination Roman Catholic
MottoDiliges dominum et proximum
Coat of arms Coat of arms of Karel Choennie.svg

Karel Martinus Choennie (born 20 December 1958) is a Surinamese Roman Catholic bishop. As of 2016, he is the current Bishop of Paramaribo. He is the first bishop in Suriname of Indian descent. [1]

Contents

Biography

Choennie was born on 20 December 1958. In 1976, he left for the Netherlands to study pedagogy at Radboud University Nijmegen, and obtained his bachelor's degree in 1978. [2] Next, he went to the monastery of Mount Saint Benedict in Trinidad and Tobago, [3] and graduated in theology at the University of the West Indies in 1984. On 3 August 1985, he was ordained priest. [2] [4] In 1996, he studied pastoral theology at KU Leuven, and graduated in 1998. [2]

On 11 November 2015, Choennie was appointed Bishop of Paramaribo, [5] and consecrated on 24 January 2016 by Wilhelmus de Bekker  [ nl ]. [6]

Positions

During the military dictatorship, Choennie was a vocal critic of the human rights violations which had occurred. When he criticized the amnesty for December Murders, he was labelled enemy of the people by President Desi Bouterse. [3]

In 2019, Choennie was one of the bishops who voted for the inclusion of married and female priests during the Amazon synod. [7] [8] Pope Francis later rejected the conclusions of the synod. [9]

Choennie has expressed his concerns about climate change, and called for a radical change in the production and consumption culture. [10]

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References

  1. ↑ "Bisschop van Paramaribo luidt 1e Kerstdag Suriname in". Waterkant (in Dutch). Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 "Curriculum Vitae Mgr. Karel Choennie". Bisdom Paramaribo (in Dutch). Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Surinamer wordt tiende RK bisschop van Paramaribo". Waterkant (in Dutch). Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  4. ↑ "Kerk en Wereld". Amigoe (in Dutch). 30 August 1985.
  5. ↑ "Rinunce e nomine, 11.11.2015". Press Office of the Holy See (in Italian). 11 November 2015. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  6. ↑ "Bishop of Paramaribo, Suriname, Antilles". Catholic Hierarchy. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  7. ↑ "Ik denk dat de priesterwijding van vrouwen onontkoombaar is". Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  8. ↑ "Amazonas-Synode stimmt für verheiratete Priester in Ausnahmefällen". Katholisch.de (in German). Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  9. ↑ "POST-SYNODAL APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION QUERIDA AMAZONIA". Press Office of the Holy See. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  10. ↑ "Opwarming aarde rode draad in nieuwjaarsboodschappen". Star Nieuws. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Bishop of Paramaribo
24 January 2016		Succeeded by
incumbent
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