Vijayawada: Pope Francis has appointed Udumala Bala, the bishop of Warangal, as the new archbishop of Visakhapatnam. The announcement made on Saturday marks a significant transition in the leadership of the archdiocese.
Born on June 18, 1954 at Ghanpur in Telangana, Bala had been ordained a priest on February 20, 1979. He holds a doctorate in Moral Theology from the Alphonsian Academy in Rome. He served as a Moral Theology professor at St. John’s Regional Seminary in Hyderabad from 1994 to 2006, where he became a rector and served from 1997 to 2006.
In 2006, Bala got appointed as deputy secretary-general of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) in Bangalore, a position he held until his appointment as the bishop of Warangal in 2013.
The Archdiocese of Visakhapatnam had been awaiting a new leadership. Bishop Udumala Bala’s elevation is expected to bring a renewed vigour to the Vizag region. As archbishop, he will oversee a significant Catholic population and numerous institutions dedicated to education, healthcare and social services.
Incidentally, Pope Francis appointed Bala as the bishop of Warangal on April 13, 2013. Consecrated as bishop on May 23, 2013, he focused on pastoral care, education, and social services within the diocese.
Bala’s appointment as archbishop reflects Pope Francis’s confidence in the former’s abilities to shepherd the archdiocese of Visakhapatnam into a new era of spiritual growth and community development.
In 2006, Bala got appointed as deputy secretary-general of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) in Bangalore, a position he held until his appointment as the bishop of Warangal in 2013.
The Archdiocese of Visakhapatnam had been awaiting a new leadership. Bishop Udumala Bala’s elevation is expected to bring a renewed vigour to the Vizag region. As archbishop, he will oversee a significant Catholic population and numerous institutions dedicated to education, healthcare and social services.
Incidentally, Pope Francis appointed Bala as the bishop of Warangal on April 13, 2013. Consecrated as bishop on May 23, 2013, he focused on pastoral care, education, and social services within the diocese.
Bala’s appointment as archbishop reflects Pope Francis’s confidence in the former’s abilities to shepherd the archdiocese of Visakhapatnam into a new era of spiritual growth and community development.