Right Reverend Joseph Ponniah (born 12 October 1952) is a Sri Lanka Tamil priest and the current

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Bishop of Batticaloa The Diocese of Batticaloa ( la, Dioecesis Batticaloaensis, ta, மட்டக்களப்பு மறைமாவட்டம்) is a Roman Catholic diocese for south-eastern Sri Lanka. The current bishop is Joseph Ponniah. History The Di ...

Early life

Ponniah was born on 12 October 1952 in Thannamunai in eastern

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. He was educated at St. Joseph's Minor Seminary and St. Joseph's College, Trincomalee. He has

Bachelor of Philosophy Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; la, Baccalaureus Philosophiae or ) is the title of an academic degree that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's d ...

degree from St. Paul Seminary, Thiruchirapally and a

Bachelor of Theology The Bachelor of Theology degree (BTh, ThB, or BTheol) is a three- to five-year undergraduate degree in theological disciplines and is typically pursued by those seeking ordination for ministry in a church, denomination, or parachurch organization. ...

from the National Seminary,

Poonah Pune (; ; also known as Poona, ( the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million As of 2021, Pune Metropolitan Region is the largest i ...

. Ponniah also has a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree from the

University of Peradeniya The University of Peradeniya ( si, පේරාදෙණිය විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ta, பேராதனைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம்) is a public university in Sri Lanka, funded by the University ...

, a Licentiate in Biblical Theology degree from the

Pontifical Urbaniana University The Pontifical Urban University, also called the ''Urbaniana'' after its names in both Latin and Italian,; it, Pontificia Università Urbaniana. is a pontifical university under the authority of the Congregation for the Evangelization of People ...

(1993) and a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

Christian civilization Christianity has been intricately intertwined with the history and formation of Western society. Throughout its long history, the Church has been a major source of social services like schooling and medical care; an inspiration for art, cult ...

from the

University of Jaffna The University of Jaffna ( ta, யாழ்ப்பாணப் பல்கலைக்கழகம், translit=Yāḻppāṇap Palkalaikkaḻakam; si, යාපනය විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ''Yāpanaya Viśvavidyālaya''; ...

Career

Ponniah was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

as a priest in April 1980. He was parish priest at St. Mary's Co-Cathedral, Batticaloa (1980–82),

Vaharai Vakarai or Vaharai ( si, වාකරේ, ta, வாகரை), The Sinhala name වාකර is pronounced 'vākara'.It is a town in the Batticaloa District of Sri Lanka, located about 65 km Northwest of Batticaloa. The Anglicization vāk ...

, Veechchu Kalmunai and Ayhiyamalai. He was rector at the Minor Seminar, Batticaloa (1993–96) before teaching

Pauline theology Pauline Christianity or Pauline theology (also Paulism or Paulanity), otherwise referred to as Gentile Christianity, is the theology and form of Christianity which developed from the beliefs and doctrines espoused by the Hellenistic-Jewish ...

as professor of

holy scriptures Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual pra ...

at the National Seminary, Ampitiya (1996-01). He was then parish priest in Thandavanveli (2001–06) and vicar general for the Diocese of Trincomalee-Batticaloa (2006–08). He has also lectured at the

Eastern University, Sri Lanka The Eastern University Sri Lanka (abbreviated as EUSL) is a public university in Vantharumoolai, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. It was established on 1 October 1986. The university was preceded by the Batticaloa University College established ...

. In February 2008 he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Trincomalee-Batticaloa and was ordained as a bishop in May 2008. He was appointed Bishop of Batticaloa in July 2012.

References

External links

* 1952 births Alumni of St. Joseph's College, Trincomalee Alumni of the University of Jaffna Alumni of the University of Peradeniya Living people People from Eastern Province, Sri Lanka Pontifical Urban University alumni Roman Catholic bishops of Batticaloa Sri Lankan Tamil priests Sri Lankan Roman Catholic bishops {{SriLanka-bio-stub