The Seminary of SS Peter and Paul is a Roman Catholic Seminary in

Dili Dili ( Portuguese/ Tetum: ''Díli'') is the capital, largest city of East Timor and the second largest city in Timor islands after Kupang (Indonesia). It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed i ...

, East Timor. It is the country’s only Major Seminary named after the Saints Peter and Paul. It is located in Fatumeta. The seminary was jointly established in 2000 by Bishop

Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo SDB, commonly known as Carlos Belo or Ximenes Belo (born 3 February 1948) is an East Timorese prelate of the Catholic Church. He became a bishop in 1988 and served as the apostolic administrator of the Diocese of ...

and Bishop

Basílio do Nascimento Basílio do Nascimento Martins (14 June 1950 – 30 October 2021) was the East Timorese Roman Catholic Bishop of Baucau. He was born in Suai, then Portuguese Timor. He later moved to Portugal, where he was ordained as a priest in Évora, in 19 ...

. The first group of 17 seminarians was ordained in 2006. In 2007 there were 15 ordinations and 4 in 2008.Mission Today Issue 15 2010
/ref> All Church properties are seen as sanctuaries in East Timor. In 2006 camps for Internally Displaced People occupied by thousands of East Timorese families who fled their homes in the civil strife which broke out in April–May, were located in or around Dili, including the Seminary. However, the Church is not immune to violence. On June 27, 2006, during the East Timorese crisis, anti- Alkatiri demonstrators threw rocks at the seminary, destroying toilets set up by the UN for refugees sheltering in the seminary. Now Carmelite students in East Timor who are preparing for the priesthood no longer need to travel to Indonesia, but can study at the Diocesan seminary at Fatumeta. They now study the Portuguese language and take their seminary classes in Portuguese and Tetum. The seminary has grown to the extent that the first year students, the largest group, have to use the dining hall and recreation room for their studies. In 2010 there were 85 seminarians. In 2020 this had grown to 150 students which was expected to increase to 190 students in 2021. In 2018, Father Martinho Gusmao was rector of the Seminary. In 2019 he had been replaced by Father Eduardo de Almeida.

Prominent Rectors

Fr.

Alberto Ricardo da Silva Alberto Ricardo da Silva (4 April 1943 – 2 April 2015) was the Roman Catholic bishop of Dili, East Timor. Early life He was born in Aileu, in East Timor when it was still a Portuguese colony. He studied in the minor seminary of Dili and was ...

rector of the major seminary was named bishop of Dili in 2004. Fr.

Norberto do Amaral Norberto do Amaral (born 17 February 1956) is the Bishop of Diocese of Maliana, East Timor. After attending the elementary Catholic school in Ainaro, he entered the Seminary of Our Lady of Fatima in Dare. He completed his philosophical studies fr ...

who was Professor of Dogmatic Theology and Prefect of Studies at the Major Seminary from 2007-2008 was appointed as the first Bishop of Maliana.Agenzia Fides 30/1/2010

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seminary of SS Peter and Paul Catholic seminaries Catholic Church in East Timor Dili