St. Francis Xavier Seminary
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St. Francis Xavier Seminary is a Roman Catholic major seminary in Yuhannabad, near
Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
,
Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
. It is an institute of philosophical studies serving the whole country. It offers a two-year program in
Christian philosophy Christian philosophy includes all philosophy carried out by Christians, or in relation to the religion of Christianity. Christian philosophy emerged with the aim of reconciling science and faith, starting from natural rational explanations wit ...
. It is affiliated to the
Pontifical Urban University The Pontifical Urban University, also called the ''Urbaniana'' after its names in both Latin and Italian, is a pontifical university that was under the authority of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. The university's mission is to ...
of Rome. The seminary is on of land next to the Christian housing estate of Youhanabad, east of Lahore.


History

The
Catholic Bishops' Conference of Pakistan The Pakistan Catholic Bishops' Conference (PCBC) serves as the assembly of catholic bishops in Pakistan. Its primary objectives are to facilitate coordinated discussions on issues affecting the Church and to formulate common policies and actions ...
decided on 18 April 1990 to build this new seminary for philosophical studies in the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lahore The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Lahore is a Latin Metropolitan Archdiocese in Punjab province, Pakistan. Its episcopal seat is the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Lahore. History In 1594 the Mughal emperor Akbar invited some Catho ...
. The first group of seminarians joined on 1 September 1994. On December 2, 1994, the new building was opened by Cardinal
Jozef Tomko Jozef Tomko (11 March 1924 – 8 August 2022) was a Slovak prelate of the Catholic Church who held positions in the Roman Curia from 1962 until he retired in 2007. He was prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples from 1985 t ...
, special envoy of the Vatican to Pakistan.Catholic Herald, UK, 19 June 2009


Physical facilities

The physical structure consists of three blocks. One block houses the administration, staff residence, lecture rooms and library. Another block is the residence of the seminarians comprising dormitories, a common room, a small store, bathroom facilities and a room for the moderator of the group. The third block houses the chapel, the dining room, the kitchen, the pantry, the kitchen store, the main store and a multipurpose hall used as a recreation hall by the seminarians. It is also used as a theatre for film shows and drama, not only for the seminarians but also for the people of the area. It is also used as an assembly hall. The building is surrounded by a fairly large piece of land, which is being developed as a wheat and rice field also a vegetable garden; a small recreational spot, which includes a football ground, a basketball court and a Marian shrine.


Current events

The first two years are spent in St Francis Xavier Seminary for the study of Philosophy. The Seminary teaches philosophy subjects like Greek, Ancient, Medieval, Modern, Western, Eastern and Islamic Philosophy in four semesters. English is the medium of instruction. Students who satisfy the study criteria are awarded the Diploma in Philosophy. The seminary is also host to the St Francis Xavier School, built inside the seminary compound for the children of the poor, where the seminarians also teach catechism and English. On 23 April 1999, the Seminary was officially affiliated with the Faculty of Philosophy of the
Pontifical Urban University The Pontifical Urban University, also called the ''Urbaniana'' after its names in both Latin and Italian, is a pontifical university that was under the authority of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. The university's mission is to ...
of Rome, which enabled it to award the degree of Baccalaureate in Philosophy. In 2008, 16 students wrote the B Ph examination of the Pontifical Urbaniana University and were awarded degrees. In 2005 there were 25 seminarians. In June 2011 the seminary had to increase its annual budget for its 52 seminarians from 250,000 rupees to 400,000 rupees because of expected price rises after a disappointing national budget. In May 2020 the seminary received financial assistance from the charity ''
Aid to the Church in Need Aid to the Church in Need (, , ) is an international Catholic pastoral aid organization, which yearly offers financial support to more than 5,000 projects worldwide. Aid to the Church in Need's General Secretariat and Project Headquarters is in ...
'' to cope with problems created by
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
.


Rectors

* Father Bernard Mangion MSSP, 1994-1997 * Father Ranjit SJ, 1998-2005 * Fr. Khalid Yusaf, 2005-2012 * Fr. Asif John, 2012-2018 * Fr. Almas Daniel Archangelus, 2018 -''Agenzia Fides'' 17 October 2019
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See also

*
List of Jesuit sites This list includes past and present buildings, facilities and institutions associated with the Society of Jesus. In each country, sites are listed in chronological order of start of Jesuit association. Nearly all these sites have be ...


References

¬ {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Francis Xavier Seminary Catholic seminaries in Pakistan Educational institutions established in 1994 1994 establishments in Pakistan Education in Lahore