In 1926, the Holy See elevated the seminary to the status of a Pontifical College with the rights and privilege of conferring the Baccalaureate, Licentiate, Master’s programme and Doctorate in Philosophy and Theology.
In 1955, the Papal Seminary was shifted from Sri Lanka to Pune, closer to De Nobili College, the Jesuit formation House which already existed in Ramwadi, Pune and the then Jesuit Superior supervised. Then it was not only open to the students of the Society of Jesus but to other Religious Congregations as well.
In 1975, the Pontifical Athenaeum adopted the Indian name of “Jnana-Deepa Vidyapeeth” – “By the kindled light of insight”. Now it is open to all students, race and culture and nationality. Both colleges, JDV and the Papal Seminary have developed a good relationship till now. JDV enjoys the character of a “University” whereas the Papal Seminary functions as a “Formation House” for the training of Diocesan priests.
The compound is almost 100 acres surrounded with tress. It is really cooling and unpolluted environment. Whenever I am inside the compound I feel more relaxed and comfortable. Once I am out from this premise I can see the real India with poverty, congestion and pollutions.
On Friday, 23 September, 2011, our college celebrated a day of community with the theme “Sounds Synchronised to Symphony”. We began our day with a Eucharistic celebration at the Papal Seminary Chapel at 8.30 am. The Mass was celebrated with the Syro-Malabar Rite. It is the Chaldean or Eastern-Syrian liturgy and it is one of the oldest Eucharistic Liturgies of the Church (A.D.200). It has 3 main parts in the liturgy: The entrance rite, the liturgy of the word and the liturgy of the faithful (presentations of the Gifts, Eucharistic prayer and the Holy Communion).
I was able to follow the Mass order this time because the whole Mass was celebrated in English and furthermore I had a Mass book where I could focus on each word and rituals used during the celebration. The last part of the celebration was when the celebrant bid a farewell to the Altar. The prayer goes like this: “I do not know whether I shall be coming back to offer the sacrifice upon YOU.”
For me it was a very touchy phrase and very meaningful as well. I told myself that whenever I leave the Altar after the Eucharistic celebration I will make it a point to say this pray and kiss the Altar. When I go up to the Altar again I shall thank the Lord for bringing up me to the Altar and make the celebration more meaningful for the people.
In the evening we all gathered at the hall for the cultural show which was started at 6pm and ended at 8.30pm. The president of the JDV College, Fr Job Kozhamthadam officiated the cultural show and in his opening speech said that with our various cultures in India we should synchronise them in our Christian spirituality as one symphony.
The seminarians, Sisters and Fathers performed various songs, dances, sketches and comedy. They were really wonderful.
One of the songs was a Malaysian song – “Rasa Sayang eh which was sung by the Post Graduate students.
There were both traditional and modern dances. The sketches basically brought the elements of education, moral and gospel values such as light and darkness, creation, ecology, evolution and life.
The lightings and sound systems brought more impact to the scenes. It was a fantastic show filled with creativity. It was a truly wonderful experience for me and I felt as if I was in an actual theatre watching a high-class performance.
Despite the heavy schedule of assignments and studies the students really spent time to practice and decorate the hall in order to celebrate and make the JDV community day a truly memorable occasion. The JDV anthem song was played at the closing ceremony.
4 comments:
well done and beautiful. it gives a sense of satisfaction.
This is awesome fr... V miss hearing u singing rasa sayang...
this is so awesome! i alwaz think that religion covers all aspects of our life. v submit our whole self to God that includes our cultures, values, talents & even our flaws. m sure God delights in accepting our this sweet smelling sacrifice that rises up to his throne.
i m really touched by the phrase that u shared wen the priest leaves the altar:I do not know whether i shall b coming back 2ofr the sacrifice upon U... u hv the right spirit tht make the celebration more meaningful 4de ppl. how i wish evry priest shares ur thoughts & resolution... then v wont hv any nonsense, meaningless jokes, unrelevent lectures & sacarcism during mass... haiz:(
take care. God bless.
awesome!!!! looks like a great celebration....you will indeed be more spiritual and dedicated when you return, Fr. You are indeed blessed!
Be safe
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