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When the TOR missionaries came to the Bhagalpur area in 1938
they were greatly enthused with the response they got from
the people. Day by day the demand of missionary presence in
the different areas of the mission urged the pioneer fathers
to increase the number of missionary personnel. The first
bath of TOR friars from the Sacred Heart Province, Loretto,
Pa consisted of Fr. William Schreder, Fr. Gabriel Stephens,
Fr. Aquinas Lieb and Bro. Ivan Manganello with one lay
assistant, Anthony Lopetti. Fr. Provincial Eugene T. George
came with them and stayed in India for nine months to
initiate the friars in their new way of life and ministry.
The second group of TOR missionaries arrived at Bhagalpur in
February 1940 consisting of Fr. Mark Santucci and seven
clerics, Bros. Patrick Boland, William Frank, Maurice
Buckley, Robert Herzer, Martin Brodhead, Hugh Shelief and
Urban McGarry. The group of missionaries who arrived in 1944
consisted of Fr. Boniface Bonk and two clerics, Bros.
Thadeus Mudry and Cosmas Workman. The year 1946 saw the
arrival of Fr. Peter Busch and Bro. John Burbon in
Bhagalpur. In the following year, Fr. Alex Bombera and Bro.
Anthony Donlon joined the ranks of the missionaries. In 1948
Fr. Simon Engler and Bro. Adam Herres landed in the country.
Thus, within a span of ten years after its inception, the
TOR mission in India was blessed with about 20 sons of St.
Francis.
With the increase of the number of friars working in the
mission and with communicating between India and the U.S.A.
getting difficult, Fr. Boccella Minister General found it
necessary to establish a commissariat (Region) for the
better co-ordination and management of the activities of the
missionaries. Fr. Patrick Boland (+1997) was appointed the
first Commissary Provincial (Regional Superior) in 1945. He
was assisted by 2 Councellors. Gokhla was named the
Headquarters of the Commissariat dependent on the Sacred
Heart Province (U.S.A.). Fr. Urban McGarry became the second
Commissary Provincial. In 1953 and held this office till
1956. Fr. Patrick Boland succeeded Fr. Urban in 1956. In
1959 Fr. Boniface Bonk was nominated Commissary Provincial
and served in this capacity till 1966. Fr. Anthony Ramanattu
(+1989) was the first Indian Friar to become Commissary
Provincial from 1969-1971. The Indian Commissariat raised to
the status of a province in November 11, 1971 and Fr.
Ramanattu was asked to be the Interim Provincial till the
elections to be held later on.
In October 1972, Fr. Ramanattu was elected Provincial of the
Province of St. Thomas and was installed in office by Fr.
Roland Faley, Vicar General of the Order. During the
administration of Fr. Conrad Kunnappally (+2000) as Minister
Provincial (1976-80) consolidation activities of the
Province was given importance than expansion. The period of
service of Fr. Aloysius Kattady as Minister Provincial
(1980-84) saw the pastoral ministry of the friars extended
to other dioceses. Fr. Anthony Ramanattu was elected
Minister Provincial a second time (1984-88). Fr. Theodore
Baa began his term of service as Minister Provincial
(1988-92) with the solemn blessing of Assisi Bhavan in
Bangalore. Fr. Thoman Panickeruparampil who was Minister
Provincial from 1992-96 commenced his term with the
celebration of the Golden Jubilee of the priestly ordination
of three pioneers: Bishop Urban, Fr. Robert and Fr. Martin
Brodhead who made the shortest speech on record saying “Jisu
Maran” to all. The ministry of Fr. Mathew Puthenparanpil as
Provincial (1996-2000) began with the beautiful celebration
of the Silver Jubilee of the erection of the Province of St.
Thomas presided over by the Most Rev. Bonaventure Midli (TOR)
Minister General. Fr. John Kochuchira took over as Minister
Provincial on December 3, 2000. In November 2004, Fr.
Kochuchira was re-elected as Minister Provincial as was
installed by the Most Rev. Ilija Zivkovic, Minister General
on December 3, 2004. Fr. John has the distinction of being
the first TOR friar to serve the church on the national
board. In his capacity as President of the Regional
Conference of the Religious of India for Bihar, Jharkhand
and Andamans (Bijhan) he is on the national executive of CRI.
He represented the CRI in the Catholic Council of India and
was a special invitee of the meeting of the CBCI held in
Bangalore in February 2006.
It is to be noted that the mission in Bangladesh became a
Delegation in 1997. St. Louis Commissariat, Bangladesh was
inaugurated in May 1997, and St. Francis Commissariat,
Ranchi which was established in March 1997, became a Vice
Province on October 4, 1999, and a Province on March 20,
2006. Fr. A. Kattady is the Provincial.
Today the Province of St. Thomas the Apostle enjoys a
membership of 112 of whom 67 are priests, 10 are Brothers
and 35 student friars. Besides carrying out ministries in 16
Dioceses in India as well as abroad, the friars are engaged
in educational apostolate. In 7 High Schools, 9 Primary
Schools and Middle Schools and works of Mercy such as Home
for the aged and Valliyadu (Kerala) and T.B. Rehabilitation
Centre at Gokhla. (Extracts from “The Third Order Regular
Franciscans in India by Fr. Aloysius Kattady, TOR (2006)”
In entrusting a part of Patna to the TOR it was the
intention of the Holy See as well as that of the Bishop of
Patna that the said territory would, in the long run,
develop into an independent ecclesiastical unit. Since the
progress of the mission was steady with substantial growth
in the number of mission stations, institutions and
catholics, (about
10,000) effective steps were made by ecclesiastical
authorities to elevate it into a separate administrative
unit. Accordingly, Most Rev. Martin Lucas SVD Apostolic
Delegate, visited the TOR Mission territory in 1951. Seeing
the excellent work done by the friars and their
accomplishments in fifteen years, he was quite impressed.
Upon his return to Delhi, he recommended to the Holy See the
separation of the area entrusted to the Franciscans, and its
establishment into a Prefecture Apostolic.
Thus on August 7, 1956 Bhagalpur was cut off from the
diocese of Patna and the Prefecture Apostolic was
established. Rt. Rev. Mgr. Urban McGarry TOR, Commissary
Provincial, was appointed the Prefect Apostolic. The new
Prefecture was formed out of the South Eastern portion of
the Patna diocese comprising the districts of Bhagalpur,
sub-division of Godda, Deoghar and Sarawan thanas in Deoghar
sub-division in the district of Santal Parganas.
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