Archbishop Samineni Arulappa (28 August 1924 – 13 February 2005), also known as S Arulappa, was an Indian Catholic clergyman who served as the Archbishop of Hyderabad from December 1971 through January 2000. The youngest priest to be consecrated to such a high office, he was also the longest-serving Catholic archbishop in India.^[1] He was also the first archbishop who had the honour of being consecrated by Pope Paul VI in Rome.^{[2]: 42–51}

"Love and Serve" was his motto.^{[3]: 40–41}

Early years

Arulappa was born on 28 August 1924 to Rajamma and Chinnaiah in Kilacheri in present day Tamil Nadu, then British India. He was the last born in a family of four sisters, two of whom are nuns, and two brothers.^[4]: 5–6 He was brought up in an atmosphere of strict discipline by his mother, who wanted to see her only son become a priest. The Archbishop reminisces that her mother looked forward to the day when she could see him as a priest, but both his parents died before he was ordained a priest. He was since supported by his brother Samineni Anthaiah.^{[4]: 37–40}

Divinity and pastorship

Archbishopric

• Archdiocese of Hyderabad

Relations with the government

Archbishop Arulappa did maintain good relations with the government. But when it came to laxity on the part of the government, he used to take them to task through the media.

Secunderabad hosts the Presidents of India annually. Rashtrapati Nilayam in Secunderabad is home to the Presidents during summers. The Archbishop used to call on them during the President's sojourn to Secunderabad. In 1982, President Giani Zail Singh visited St. Mary's Church in Secunderabad on invitation by the Archbishop.^[2]

On secularism

The Archbishop was known for his secular outlook. He remarked that one should have respect for other religions^[4] and used to maintain cordial relations with leaders of other religious affiliations and was even invited to various fora. He spoke at spiritual conferences organised by Swami Ranganathananda of the Ramakrishna Mission and Swami Chidananda Saraswati of the Divine Life Society. He organised a number of inter-religious dialogues with various faiths, according to his grand nephew P.L. Arulraj, state youth wing general secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Andhra Pradesh.

On ecumenism and unity of the Church

In 1973,^[9] Arulappa took part in the inauguration of the new campus of the Andhra Christian Theological College, formed in 1964, which consisted of the Anglican, Baptist, Congregational, Lutheran, Methodist and Wesleyan Societies and involved the seminarians from St. John's Regional Seminary to take part in the inaugural cultural programme.^[9]

In 1977, he shared a dais with the global evangelist Rev. Dr. Billy Graham and his associate Rev. Dr. Akbar Abdul Haqq during their conventions in Secunderabad.^[4] At another convention, he proposed common Eucharist among the Catholic and Protestant churches.^[4] The Archbishop never turned down any invitation extended by the different church societies belonging to either Catholic, Orthodox or Protestant backgrounds. He considered himself as a father to all.

The yearly United Christmas Celebrations organised by laymen of Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant backgrounds was the brainchild of the lay Methodists of Hyderabad.^[10] Together, they approached the three bishops resident in Hyderabad, namely, Archbishop S. Arulappa, Bishop Victor Premasagar (CSI Bishop-in-Medak), and Bishop Elia Peter (Methodist Bishop of Hyderabad Regional Conference) who gave their nod, and thus was born the United Christmas Celebrations, a yearly event to which either the Governor or Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh are invited with participation by all the churches of Hyderabad.^[10]

Membership

ex-officio

• Catholic Bishop's Conference of India
• Andhra Pradesh Bishop's Council
• Chairman of the CBCI Commission of Education

Honours

Retirement

On 29 January 2000, Arulappa retired from his position as the Archbishop on reaching 75 years of age^[3] but continued to live in the Archbishop's House at Secunderabad and was Archbishop Emeritus.

On his retirement, the Archdiocese of Hyderabad released a book Love and Serve, a brief memoir authored by Archbishop Arulappa himself.

Appraisal

• Dr. J. A. Oliver of the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Council of Churches:^[8]

  ...Fr. Arulappa was known for his uprightness and never minced words in distinguishing religion from culture.

• Sri L. K. Advani, Deputy Prime Minister of India:^[8]

...admired for his patriotism and bold espousal of cultural nationalism.

• Dr. Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy,^[8] Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh:

...He was a man of the masses and people not only of the Catholic community but those from all religions loved and respected him immensely.

• Sri K. R. Suresh Reddy, Speaker of the Legislature of Andhra Pradesh:^[11]

...a man of great image who dwelt on the hearts of multitude of people on the dint of his unforgettable social service.

• Martin Michael and James Sylvester of the Catholic Association of Hyderabad^[8]

...During his three-decade-long tenure, he had seen the growth of the Archdiocese of Hyderabad from a mere 10 parishes to 72 in the districts of Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Medak and Nizamabad.

Writings

• Want to be a Hero - Anecdotes with a message, 1999, Amruthavani Publications, Secunderabad.
• The Ethics of Religious Conversions, (with Dr. David Frawley), Pragna Bharathi, Hyderabad.^[12]
• Quoted in B. K. Kiran's Education in Human Values for the Twenty-first Century, a NCERT publication^[13]

  ...Perhaps the most fundamental and insidious challenge, is “lack of political will”. Archbishop of Hyderabad, the Rev. Samineni Arulappa (1999) perceives a reason behind this frequently lamented phenomenon: “Apparently there seems to be no political will to solve the problems of education. Many political leaders often seems to be not really interested to change the system. They are happy to keep the masses ignorant and illiterate. There are people who say that the Indian politicians and bureaucrats have never sincerely tried to educate the masses. Once education becomes compulsory and universal, people will be conscious of their rights and will not allow themselves to be exploited. They can elect their leaders on the basis of character, intellectual and moral excellence rather than region and religion.” Where will political will come from? Or, perhaps more pressingly, can anything be done about the increasing void of “character, intellectual and moral excellence” among the populace in the meantime?

Ordination of women

The eminent Catholic scholar and theologian Father John Wijngaards, MHM, L.S.S. (Rome), D. Th. (Rome) served as a lecturer in St. John's Regional Seminary, Hyderabad from 1964-1976 during the archbishopric of Arulappa. He espoused the cause of women priests.^[14]

Although Archbishop Arulappa expressed his respect for women, he remained faithful to the stance taken by Rome regarding women's ordination. Speaking at the plenary of the Association of Theologically Trained Women of India (ATTWI), held at the Auditorium of Stanley Girls High School, Chapel Road, Hyderabad, in 1999, he said that women in the Catholic Church were given duties like Bible reading, offering communion, etc., and were also holding independent positions in religious orders and managing institutions.^[15]

Once, while addressing the Catholic Family Movement, he jocularly remarked that "God created man and rested. He created woman and neither God or man rested. That is the problem of all married people."^[2] On another occasion, he remarked that "Women are only asking for equality. I am one of those who say that women are actually superior to men!" Were the Archbishop's remarks veiled references to his upbringing in a family of four sisters and a mother?

Death

Archbishop Arulappa died in Hyderabad at the age of 80.^[16] In accordance to his wishes stated in a will, he was buried in the altar in St. Mary's Church, Secunderabad, on 14 February 2005.^[11]

References