History of ALCP Indian Province

By the time the ALCP/OSS was founded, other communities in the Opus Spiritus Sacnti, particularly the Sisters Community (Apostolic Life Community of Sisters) was present both in Tanzania and India. In the early 70s when Fr. Bendel expressed the desire to found ALCP/OSS in India to the representatives of the Mission in Aachen, he was told to start a new community in Hyderabad. To this effect, our Founder made necessary contacts with the Archbishop of Hyderabad, Most Rev. Samineni Aurlappa.  The Archbishop heartily welcomed the young congregation to establish our houses and extend missionary activities in the Archdiocese.

Fr. Bendel along with Fr. Winfried visited India in 1976 with the intention to beginning the ALCP in India, the newly established and the youngest communities in the Opus family. Archbishop of Hyderabad, Most Rev. Samineni Aurlappa who showed interest in the Opus invited them to begin the ALCP in the Archdiocese.

The first candidates of the newly established community met in Thiruvalla where the Holy Spirit Sisters community has their house. Fr. Joy Sebastain and Abraham were the first one to join the ALCP in India. Having had no formation houses of our own, these new candidates were brought to Hyderabad and they had their initial formation in the minor seminary, Gunfoundary. There were under guidance of Fr. Ignatius and Fr. Chinnappa. On completion of their initial formation they were received into the community in 1978. The reception ceremony was held in the Archbishop’s house. Thus the foundation stone for the ALCP in India was laid.

After the reception the seminarians were sent for further studies. Abraham was sent to Bangalore for his Philosophical studies and had his residence at MSFS seminary and after one year Fr. Joy Sebastian to Pune having residence at Fransalian seminary. In the following year Fr. John, Fr. Chinnaiah and Fr. Prasad joined the community. In 1980 Fr. Gregory Chirayarukil who by then completed a few years of theological studies joined the Community at the direction of the Archbishop and the he continued his further studies at St. John’s Regional Seminary and was ordained a priest on 22nd May (day of Pentecost) 1983 at Holy Spirit Sisters Chapel at Thiruvalla. He was ordained by Most Rev. Joseph Fernadez, the Bishop of Quilon which was the diocese to origin of Fr. Gregory.

As mentioned above, though the candidates were received into the community no properties or other infrastructures were procured till 1979. All through these years they were accommodated at Vianney house in the Archbishop’s house compound and during the vacation times they hired a house in Musheerabad. That was where the ALCP in India was making its settlement. The search for a house or our own, accompanied by constant prayer was realized in 1979 when a doctor wished to dispose his TB sanitarium at Ramanthapur then in the outskirts of Hyderabad city.

The TB sanitarium run by Dr. Kakade was the place that the Holy Spirit was leading our pioneers in India, that it became the cradle and centre for ALCP in India. The property with small cottages built for the TB patients was not very far from the St. John’s Regional Seminary. The deal was completed and the infant community now has a place to live their life and spread out. Some modifications were done that the cottages were made living rooms. There were many persons who were instrumental in realizing this plan. Mother Patrina and Fr. Raymond Ambroise are remembered fondly at this juncture who played precious role in acquiring this property for us. Fr. Winfried Traudes remembers of these events in the following words as narrated to Rev. Fr. K. Arul Samy, the property at Ramanthapur where formation house and the Provincal house are located was bought with the help of Sr. Petrina and Fr. Raymond Ambroise. Sr. Petrina knew Dr. Kakade who owned the property and who was running a hospital for TB patients. The owner of the property wanted to sell to only some religious and charitable society. Sadly, the Founder himself could not see the property as he had to rush back from Kerala to Germany and to USA. Although the deal for the land was done through a mutual handshake between Fr. Winfried Traudes and Dr. Kakade, money for the same was paid only later through installment.

It was a misfortune that our Founder could not see the initial development of the ALCP in India. Suffering from a gall bladder attack in 1977, he was finding it difficult to make his annual trips to all over the places where Opus was established or getting established. It would have been a great desire for our Founder to see the corner stone of ALCP laid and the community is getting established in India. But God willed other way. The saintly founder was called for his eternal reward on 19th January 1980 leaving the young seminarians and the infantile ALCP to shoulder its responsibilities themselves.

The property was bought with the financial help from Missio Aachen. After necessary modifications, the house was ready. Then came the decisive day in the history of the ALCP in India: the first Holy Eucharistic Celebration was conducted on 28th October 1979 on the Feast of Apostles Sts. Simon and Jude in the new house and the ALCP in India made a great leap.

The following years marked the steady growth of the ALCP in India. Fr. Winfried succeeding our Founder to lead the community shared the responsibility to building up the young Indian ALCP with Fr. Gregory. Fr. Gregory was an energetic and committed priest who tirelessly worked for the integral growth of the community. While administering the construction works of the formation house at Ramanthapur, he also engaged himself in forming the young seminarians. Meanwhile he also took up the responsibility of the parish church, Christ the King Church at Ramnathapur, and developed it. Later other priests of our community were pastors at the parish church and the beautiful church that exits today is the fruit of hard work of our priests. As the church developed the Archdiocese took it back from us and one of the substations at Church Colony was bifurcated and entrusted to us with parochial status.

As the community was developing in Hyderabad, the efforts were made to acquire property in Kerala.  Through the intervention of Bishop, Cyril Mar Baselious, Bishop of Bathery we acquired a property at Pulpally, Wayanad, the northern hill distirict of Kerala in 1980. It was developed under the sweat and blood of our young seminarians and priests and by 1991 a formation house was ready for the candidates there.

Beginning form 1987, with the ordination of Fr. Joy Sebastian there were regular ordinations and the community was becoming richer with young and vibrant priests. Though Fr. Gregory was the in-charge of the community in India, he was officially elected the Regional Leader on 28th May 1987. The responsibility of the regional leadership was shared with Br. Joy Sebastian as the Assistant Regional Leader and Br. John Nalin as the secretary. The community was taking root under the leadership of Fr. Gregory and in 1990 a new leadership was elected. Fr. John was the new Regional Leader. The Regional Chapter held from 5th to 8th November 1990 at Ramanthapur elected the new leader term. It was in this Chapter, the India Region is understood to be a Region with equal rights to that of African Region.

Our seminarians were given their initial formation in our own formation houses at Pulpally and Ramnathapur and their further studies were done at Vijnanaanilayam, Janampeta, Eluru with residence at St. Francis college, the Capuchin’s formation house and Jnana Deepa Vidyapeeth, Pune with residence at Papal seminary. In the course of time we established our won study houses in both the places. A study house for the students of theology in Pune was built in 1995 and study house for the students of philosophy at Janampeta in 1996. The starting of the study house at Janampet was reaching out to the Diocese of Eluru in West Godavari, Andhra Pradesh. The Bishop of Eluru, Most Rev. John Mulagada, donated a piece of land measuring two acres for the purpose of a formation house and we were also entrusted the care of two villages which were in their beginning stages of catholic faith.

In 1995 the first batch of our seminarians who began their formation in our own formation house at Ramanthapur was ordained. At this juncture we also remember the dedicated service of Fr. Laurent Assenga ALCP/OSS, a priest from the African Region. He was in India from 1990 to 1995.

In 1996 the Regional Chapter was celebrated and Fr. Joy Sebastian was elected the new Regional Superior. The beginning of the new leadership team made concrete efforts that we were able to send our priests for the mission in abroad. It was at this time two priests from the Region were sent to US for pastoral ministry. However in a few years time an extra ordinary Regional Chapter was convened at Ramanthapur from 17th to 20th November 1998. Fr. Y. Chinnaiah was elected the new Regional Moderator. It was in his term of office the construction of the provincial house at Ramanthapur was undertaken. However the inauguration of the provincial house was conducted in the term of office of the succeeding leadership. Under the able guidance of Fr. Chinnaiah the Region was making further efforts to extent missionary activities outside the jurisdiction of the Hyderabad Archdiocese. He made contacts with the Bishop of Kurnool, Most Rev. Johannes Gorantala and the mission at Chagalamarri was entrusted to the community. On completing the term another leadership team was elected in the Regional Chapter celebrated from 4th to 9th February 2002 at Ramanthapur. Fr. Roy John was elected the new Regional Moderator. He assumed the leadership of the Region for six years in view of the amendments brought in the constitutions regarding the term of office of the Regional Moderator.

• The community was making steady growth in both the Regions. The process towards the canonical erection too was getting done. In this context, a few terminological changes were introduced in the community thus the Supreme Moderator as Superior General, Regional Moderator as Provincial Superior and the Region as Province.  The community made drastic reaching out to various dioceses and to mission stations during this time. The humble beginning of a school at Church Colony in the time of Fr. Chinnaiah took a strong edifying look as the new leadership constructed the school building. Meanwhile a school was purchased at Kalyanadurgam in the diocese of Kurnool. The work of the Province was extended to other diocese too. Priests were sent on mission to the diocese of kannur in Kerala, Mysore in Karnataka, Adilabad, Cudappa in Andhra Pradesh, Auranganbad in Maharashtra. Similarly priests to pastoral mission in abroad both in US and Germany.