KOCHI: The quaint town of Aluva in Ernakulam, Kerala, holds a special place in the heart of newly elected Pope Leo XIV . Nearly 20 years after his visit to the state, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost - elected Pope on Thursday - fondly recalled waking up to the view of Periyar river from the Augustinian house in Mariyapuram, Aluva, during a conversation with Fr Wilson Injarapu, regional vicar of the Augustinian Order in India in Feb this year.
Prevost visited Kerala twice, in 2004 and 2006, while serving as prior general of Order of St Augustine (OSA). Wilson was a student when he met Prevost. "After meeting him in Kochi in 2006, nearly two decades passed before I saw him again in Feb. Yet he clearly remembered his visit and asked me about our community in Kerala. On both occasions he stayed at the house in Aluva for nearly a week," he said.
For Prevost, Kerala is synonymous with greenery and natural beauty, Wilson said. "He told us he remembered enjoying the greenery and river view as soon as he woke up," he said, adding that Prevost led a simple life and relished the local cuisine with his fellow brothers at the house.
During his first visit in 2004, Prevost attended an ordination ceremony at St Francis Xavier Church in Kaloor and visited two religious houses in Aluva and Edakochi. In 2006, he made a brief visit to Shenbagam School in Pollachi and an Augustinian community in Thalapuzha, Wayanad.
The priest recalled experiencing Prevost's humility during their Feb meeting in Rome. "Though he was a cardinal, he stayed with me at the Augustinian house there. We prayed together, dined together and celebrated Mass. He served me lunch and even took away my plate to be washed," he said.
Meanwhile, a group of six Augustinian priests are overjoyed at the papal election as Prevost, then their prior general, had attended their ordination in Kochi on April 22, 2004. Fr John Bosco Kuttuthara said he could not contain his excitement and a photograph of Prevost blessing him during the ceremony was now among his most cherished possessions.
Prevost visited Kerala twice, in 2004 and 2006, while serving as prior general of Order of St Augustine (OSA). Wilson was a student when he met Prevost. "After meeting him in Kochi in 2006, nearly two decades passed before I saw him again in Feb. Yet he clearly remembered his visit and asked me about our community in Kerala. On both occasions he stayed at the house in Aluva for nearly a week," he said.
For Prevost, Kerala is synonymous with greenery and natural beauty, Wilson said. "He told us he remembered enjoying the greenery and river view as soon as he woke up," he said, adding that Prevost led a simple life and relished the local cuisine with his fellow brothers at the house.
During his first visit in 2004, Prevost attended an ordination ceremony at St Francis Xavier Church in Kaloor and visited two religious houses in Aluva and Edakochi. In 2006, he made a brief visit to Shenbagam School in Pollachi and an Augustinian community in Thalapuzha, Wayanad.
The priest recalled experiencing Prevost's humility during their Feb meeting in Rome. "Though he was a cardinal, he stayed with me at the Augustinian house there. We prayed together, dined together and celebrated Mass. He served me lunch and even took away my plate to be washed," he said.
Meanwhile, a group of six Augustinian priests are overjoyed at the papal election as Prevost, then their prior general, had attended their ordination in Kochi on April 22, 2004. Fr John Bosco Kuttuthara said he could not contain his excitement and a photograph of Prevost blessing him during the ceremony was now among his most cherished possessions.
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