Theological Studies for Adults

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 Our Background

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We cannot love God and live a holy life without sound doctrine because we need to know who God is and how He works. To a person we need to know well the person we love. This is true of loving our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and His Church. Therefore, more than just having Jesus is needed; we need to know who He is, what He means to us, what He expects from us, and what the scripture means.

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Our History

Diploma in Theology Course

Recognizing the Church's responsibility and individuals' responsibility to arrange opportunities to learn scriptures and strengthen our faith, Rev. Fr. Thomas Kadukapillil and Rev. Dr. George Danavelil discussed the possibilities of establishing a systematic theology study program for adults. After making all arrangements with the president of Paurastya Vidyapitham, Pontifical Oriental Institute of Religious Studies, and Rev. Dr. Andrews Mekkattukunnel, we announced the first theology course for our diocesan community. Our first program was a Two-Year Diploma Course in Theology. The program covered 24 courses. The professors of Pontifical Oriental Institute, Vadavathoor, Kottayam, India, supplied the study material. The Cathedral Parish in Bellwood, Illinois. Arranged a special classroom in 5010 St. Charles Road, Bellwood, Illinois Building. The first session started on July 14, 2019.

After conducting six subjects in the classroom, the pandemic forced us to move to an online platform. We continued our classes on a Web-Ex platform, and the professors from Vadavathoor were coming online to introduce the classes they were teaching. Forty-Six students completed the program, and the diploma was conferred in a graduation ceremony on February 5, 2022, at the cathedral. 

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Diploma in Gospel Studies

The second batch course introduced was "One-Year Gospel Study." One-Year Gospel Study program started on May 15, 2022 and completed on May 25, 2023. One hundred plus students registered for this online program and 68 participants satisfactorily completed the program.