Kunnothu Seminary

Good Shepherd Major Seminary, Kunnothu

കുന്നോത്ത് സെമിനാരി, തലശ്ശേരി

Kunnoth Seminary

About Kunnothu Seminary

Good Shepherd Major Seminary is the third major seminary of the Syro-Malabar Church. It was canonically erected at Kunnoth, Iritty, North Kerala, India, by the Synod of the Church on 1st September 2000 (Synodal Decree no. 2336/2000). The seminary was inaugurated on 16th June 2001. Even though India, particularly Kerala, had been the land of the Syro-Malabar Church, the Muslim invasion of the 18th century and certain actions of the Portuguese missionaries had reduced the area of the church to the southern part of Kerala.

In the 1940s, however, many Christians migrated from the Christian south of the state to the northern part of Kerala in search of a better life. This was followed by the erection of the Diocese of Tellicherry in 1953 for the immigrants of the region; many churches and church-schools were eventually established, and Christian institutions began to play an important role in the social life of the region. The presence of a live and active church immediately led the region to a phenomenal growth in all aspects of its life. Several dioceses were also eventually erected.

By this time several young people of the region, both men and women, were called by God to lead a consecrated life. It is noteworthy that in the last few decades, in the dioceses in Malabar, the Catholic Church could find more young people looking for consecrated life than any other part of the country or even in any other part of the world. The erection of the new major seminary in this region is in fact an ecclesiastical recognition to the region for the role it has been playing in the life of the universal church.

Kunnoth Seminary, New Block

History of the Seminary

This seminary is one of the four major seminaries owned by the Synod of Bishops of the Syro-Malabar Major Archiepiscopal Church. It was canonically erected at Kunnoth on the 1st day of September 2000 by the Major Archbishop His Beatitude Mar Varkey Vithayathil, through his Decree No. 2336/2000. The seminary is governed and subject to the authority and control of the Major Archbishop and the Synod of Bishops of the Syro-Malabar Church, whose power is exercised by a Synodal Commission constituted for the same.

The seminary, formally inaugurated on 16th June 2001, is situated 6 kilometers away from the town of Iritty, in the civil District of Kannur in North Kerala, in the plot of land donated by the Archeparchy of Tellicherry, a beautiful landscape on the high banks of the Iritty river.

When the seminary was erected, the Synod of Bishops of the Syro-Malabar Church had a plan that visualized a steady growth of the seminary that would complete its full structure in seven years. Accordingly, the foundation stone for the new seminary building was laid on 3rd August 2002. The completed philosophy block was blessed on 18th June 2003 by His Beatitude Varkey Cardinal Vithayathil. The foundation stone for the theology block was blessed by His Beatitude Ignace Cardinal Moussa I Daoud, Prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches Rome, on 10th January 2004, on the occasion of his visit to the seminary.The construction of the beautiful chapel of the seminary was completed, and was consecrated on 26th July 2007. For the consecration ceremony, His Beatitude Mar Varkey Cardinal Vithayathil and several other bishops were present.

Seven years after the inauguration, the seminary grew her motherhood when 14 of her first batch students got ordained priests for different eparchies in the year 2008-09. In the academic year 2014-2015 the seminary was affiliated to Paurastya Vidyapitham, enabling her to confer Bachelor’s Degree in Theology. The official declaration of the affiliation was solemnly done on 31 October 2014 by His Beatitude George Cardinal Alencherry, the Major Archbishop of Syro Malabar Church.

Contact:

Good Shepherd Major Seminary

Kunnoth, Kiliyanthara P.O., PIN-670 706

KANNUR, KERALA, S. INDIA

Phone:0091-(0)490-2493850; Mobile: 0091-9447547866

e-mail:mj_emmanual@rediffmail.com