Telesphore Toppo
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Church positions | |
|---|---|
| See | Ranchi |
| Title | Cardinal Archbishop of Ranchi |
| Period in office | August 7, 1985 —present |
| Successor | Incumbent |
| Previous post | Archbishop of Ranchi, India |
| Created cardinal | October 21, 2003 |
| Personal | |
| Date of birth | October 15, 1939 |
| Place of birth | Chainpur |
| Styles of Telesphore Placidus Cardinal Toppo |
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| Reference style | His Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
| See | Ranchi |
Telesphore Placidus Cardinal Toppo (born 15 October 1939, Chainpur, Jharkhand, India) is a Cardinal Priest and Archbishop of Ranchi in the Roman Catholic Church. He is the first Adivasi (tribal) Indian to be created a Cardinal.
Born the 8th of 10 children, Toppo studied at St. Xavier's College, Ranchi and Theology at the Urbanianum, Rome. He was ordained priest on 3 May 1969. After a stint at Torpa, (Jharkhand) as Headmaster of St Joseph's School and Director of the Lievens Vocational Center, Toppo was ordained bishop for the diocese of Dumka (7 October 1978) and soon transferred to Ranchi (Capital city of the Jharkhand state) as Archbishop (1985). A polyglot, Toppo speaks Oraon, Hindi, Sadri, English, and Italian.
Toppo was made Cardinal by Pope John Paul II on 21 October 2003. He was elector at the 2005 papal conclave that elected Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger as Pope Benedict XVI.
Toppo is current president of CBCI (Catholic Bishops' Conference of India).
