SATURDAY, JULY 27, 2024
Team Herald
MARGAO: Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas SFX has been appointed as the Bishop of Daltonganj, Jharkhand.
It is to be noted that Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas is the brother of Most Rev Sebastiäo Mascarenhas, the Bishop of Baroda. This latest development has been hailed in his home village and across the State.
The news about Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas appointment was announced by the Archbishop of Ranchi Felix Toppo, SJ in a statement issued by the Ranchi Catholic Archdiocese.
“With gratitude to God, following the communication of his Excellency, Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli, Apostolic Nuncio to India, I announced that the Holy Father Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas SFX, presently, the Auxiliary Bishop of Ranchi and Apostolic Administrator of Daltonganj as the new Bishop of Daltonganj. The See of Daltonganj has been vacant. Bishop Theodore will be the fourth Bishop of this Diocese established on June 5, 1971,” said Archbishop Felix.
“This announcement was made in Rome today, 30th November, the Feast of St Andrew the Apostle at 1212 noon Rome Time and contemporarily in Ranchi during a meeting of Bishops, Religious and priests of Jharkhand,” he added.
Thanking the Lord for this gift, the Archbishop added, “We entrust them to the protective care of our Heavenly Mother our Lady Queen of Apostles.”
Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas was born on November 9, 1960, in Camorlim, Salcete. He was ordained priest on April 24, 1988. After his ordination, he served in Punjab till 1993. From 1994 to 2001, he was in Rome to secure the licentiate and doctorate at the Pontifical Biblical Institute. He was the coordinator of the works of the Society of Pilar in Rome from 1998 to 2004. In 2005, he was made the superior delegate for the Society of the Missionaries of St. Francis Xavier in Europe and in 2006, an official of the Pontifical Council for Culture. On December 8, 2021, Bishop Mascarenhas was appointed Apostolic Administrator of Daltonganj.
