St. Pius X Minor Seminary is the preparatory seminary in the

Archdiocese of Karachi The Archdiocese of Karachi is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in India. It was erected on 20 May 1948 under as a then-suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese ...

. It is located in North Nazimabad, Sindh, Pakistan. It had 21 seminarians in April 2008. Father Benjamin Shehzad was the seminary's

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

from 2005 to 2012. In 2012 he was appointed Rector of Christ for the King major seminary. The seminary is one of four minor seminaries educating 92 seminarians in Faisalabad, Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi. Major seminary studies are split between St. Francis Xavier Seminary in Lahore, where 41 seminarians are studying philosophy, and

Christ the King Seminary The Christ the King Seminary is a Roman Catholic seminary in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Town, Karachi, Pakistan; located in adjacent to the Portiuncula Friary. In its early years most of the faculty were provided by the Franciscans. It has been described ...

in Karachi, where 23 seminarians who have finished their study of philosophy are studying theology.

Expansion

Due to congestion and other issues, a larger seminary building was constructed on ground adjacent to St. Jude's Church in Karachi. Archbishop

Evarist Pinto Evarist Pinto (born 31 December 1933 in Goa, Portuguese India) is the former archbishop of Karachi, Pakistan. Education He was educated at St. Thomas High School, Goa, India. In 1960 he started studying for priesthood at the St. Pius X Minor ...

performed the groundbreaking on the . Construction of the seminary began in October 2008, with completion targeted for October 2009. In May 2011, Archbishop Evarist Pinto cut the ribbon and opened the much-needed newly constructed seminary. The archdiocese faced a vocation crisis for three decades as many applicants had to be turned away due to lack of space. The 12 minor seminarians have to move into the new block very soon. Spanning 6,070 square meters, the facility can accommodate more than 50 candidates and has a chapel, library and computer room. In 2010 the seminary received financial assistance for the construction of its new facilities from the Curé of Ars Parish in

Leawood, Kansas Leawood is a city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States, and is part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 33,902. History 19th century After the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, the area ...

, USA. In 2011, 88 minor and 94 major seminarians filled the four minor and two major seminaries in the country. In June 2019 ten young men joined the Seminary taking the total number of students to 30.

History

St. Pius X Minor Seminary opened in 1958 in Quetta (later becoming the

Apostolic Prefecture of Quetta The Apostolic Vicariate of Quetta ( la, Vicariatus Apostolicus Quettensis), originally the Apostolic Prefecture of Quetta, is a Latin Church missionary territory or apostolic vicariate of the Catholic Church in Pakistan. It comprises the civil pr ...

) in Baluchistan Province. It was shifted to Catholic Colony in Karachi in 1973. In August 2011 St Pius became the first seminary in the country to provide internet access to its students.

Rectors

*Fr.

Joseph Cordeiro Joseph Marie Anthony Cordeiro (19 January 1918 – 11 February 1994) was the first Pakistani cardinal. Early life Cordeiro was born to a Goan family. He was educated at St Patrick's High School, Karachi, the University of Bombay and Oxford ...

– 1952 - 1958 *Fr. Francis de Souza – 1958 – 1965Christian Voice, Karachi, August 31, 2008 *Fr. Luperc Mascarenhas – 1965 - 1990 *Fr.

James deSouza James "Jimmy" deSouza (11 December 1925 – 28 January 2016) was a Catholic priest, teacher, school principal and humanitarian. Biography DeSouza was born in Karachi, Pakistan. He was educated at St Patrick's High School, Karachi. He received his ...

– 1990 – 1994 *Fr. Joseph D'Mello – 1994 - 2001 *Fr.

Augustine Soares Augustine Soares was a Roman Catholic priest in Karachi, Pakistan. He was born in Karachi and received his religious training at the Christ the King seminary. He was ordained a priest of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Karachi in 1969. Biog ...

– 2001 - 2005 *Fr. Benjamin Shahzad – 2005 - 2012 *Fr.

Benny Travas Benny Mario Travas is a Pakistani prelate of the Catholic Church and Archbishop of Karachi, Pakistan. He served as Bishop of Multan from 2015-2021. Biography Travas was born in Karachi, Pakistan, on 21 November 1966. He received his early educa ...

- 2012 - 2014 *Fr. Ryan Joseph - 2014 -2021 *Fr. Shahzad Arshad - 2021 -

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Pius X Minor Seminary Catholic seminaries in Pakistan Catholic minor seminaries 1958 establishments in Pakistan Educational institutions established in 1958