The original chapel in KandyThe altar of the Papal Seminary Chapel in Pune
History
Founding
Pope Leo XIII established the Papal Seminary for India, Burma and Ceylon in 1890. The task of finding a suitable place for it was entrusted to Msgr. Ladislaus Zaleski. After travelling within India and Ceylon (now called Sri Lanka), he chose to locate the seminary in Ampitiya, a settlement close to Kandy. He subsequently became the Apostolic Delegate to India, Burma and Ceylon and took up residence in Kandy. Zaleski insisted that the seminary be entrusted to the Jesuit Missionaries of the Belgian province (at work in the Bengal Mission).[3]
The students were selected from the dioceses of India and Sri Lanka, and were to be trained as leaders of the Churches in their own countries. This was one of the first major seminaries to be supported by the Pontifical Society of St. Peter the Apostle.[citation needed]
In 1926 the seminary was empowered by the Vatican to confer Ecclesiastical degrees in Philosophy and Theology.[5][6]
During its 62 years of existence in Kandy, over 700 students were ordained to the priesthood; 51 of these became bishops and three became cardinals.[citation needed]
1955: Transfer to Pune, India
The seminary moved to Pune in 1955.[7][8] The transfer of the seminary to India was driven by financial and traveling difficulties; the independence of India in 1947 and the consequent political separation of India and Sri Lanka made it difficult for Indian seminarians to travel to Kandy.[citation needed]
The new buildings for the seminary were designed by architect Silvio Galizia.
The seminary has 16 staff members who are all either Jesuit or Diocesan priests. It has three spiritual directors who oversee the spiritual dimension of the seminarians' lives. The house doctor, Manoj Durairaj, received the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice.[11]
In 2015 the seminary celebrated 60 years in Pune.[12][13]
^Mervyn Coelho, Glimpses of the Final Steps "Ablaze ad Infinitum: 60 Years in Pune and Moving Ahead," S. Jayard, F. Gonsalves & VR George (eds), Papal Seminary, Pune, 2016m o, 14-16
^Carlos de Melo, The Papal Seminary of Kandy-Pune: A Hundred Years of History, Pune: 1993