Father Jerome Peedikaparambil has been elected superior general of the Order of Imitation of Christ (OIC).
Father Peedikaparambil succeeds Father Louis Moolaveetil, who was shot dead by unidentified people in the central Indian town of Nagpur, about 600 kilometers east of Bombay, a few months ago.
He was elected Feb. 19 by the congregation´s general chapter at its headquarters in Kottayam, about 2,600 kilometers south of New Delhi.
The new superior general now works as chaplain for the Syro-Malankara Catholics in the Chicago archdiocese, United States.
He studied pastoral counseling in Rome and sociology at Chicago University.
OIC, the Order of Bethany Fathers, was founded in 1919 by Archbishop Mar Ivanios, who was then a priest of the Orthodox Syrian Church of Malabar.
The congregation initially worked for the spiritual and liturgical renovation of the Orthodox Church and evangelization of India.
The congregation was the main force behind the orthodox reunion with the Catholic Church in 1930.
In 1955 the Holy See´s Congregation for the Oriental Churches approved its constitution and in 1966 OIC was elevated to pontifical status.
OIC members wear saffron robes — traditional Indian color for ascetics.
It now has 118 members and houses in all three Malankara dioceses. It manages some 25 schools, nature-cure centers and other institutions.
Source: UCA News
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