KHRIST JYOTHI PROVINCE, RAIPUR

The Church on earth is by its very nature missionary” (Ad Gentes). Inspired by the Mother Church and guided by the Charism of the Congregation, The Little Flower Congregation (CST Fathers) commenced its missionary apostolate in different dioceses of North India. The CST Mission ventured into the diocese of Jalandhar in 1973. Initially, the fathers worked in the area adjacent to Pathankot, Jalandhar, and Nakodar. Later on, the southern part of the diocese consisting of the districts of Faridkot and parts of Ferozepur was entrusted with the congregation, and with great enthusiasm and vigor our pioneers, Frs. Dominic Kokkat (now Bishop Emeritus of Gorakhpur), Bruno Pazhuparambil, Joseph Chathanattu, and John Kudilil started apostolic activities at Muktsar on 1st January 1974. In appreciation of the good work done by the missionaries, Rt. Rev. Dr. Symphorian Keeprath, the then Bishop of Jalandhar, was pleased to entrust the civil districts of Ferozepur, Faridkot, Muktsar, and Moga in Punjab Covering 11, 699 Sq. Km. to the Little Flower Congregation on 1st October 1986 with the understanding that it will be erected a new ecclesiastical unit when the minimum requirements are completed. Punjab, the cradle of Sikhism, the land of five rivers, is rather affluent compared to the people elsewhere in India. The people are sympathetic and tolerant of Christian Missionaries. Just as the land of Punjab is fertile, so is the mind of the people to accept Jesus. The providence of God is always at work. Rt. Rev. Dr. Ignatius Menezes, Bishop of the Diocese of Ajmer-Jaipur, invited the Little Flower Congregation to work in Rajasthan in the area adjoining Punjab. He graciously entrusted to the Congregation seven districts covering 1,16,751Sq. Km. of his Diocese which forms the major portion of the Thar Desert for evangelization and pastoral work. The year 1992 stands out as a milestone in the history of the mission in Punjab and Rajasthan as the mission area was raised to the status of a Mission Region in the Congregation on 15th February 1992. The steady progress and growth culminated in the mission region being erected as a full-fledged and independent Province of the Little Flower Congregation in 2003 and named after Divine Master, Khrist Jyoti Province. Forty years of dedication and commitment are bearing fruits in multiple ways and today the Fathers of the Khrist Jyoti Province are engaged in ardent pastoral, social, and missionary apostolate in a vast area of over 1,67,871 sq. Km. in three different dioceses, namely Jalandhar in Punjab, and Ajmer and Jaipur in Rajasthan. At present Khrist Jyoti Province comprises 26 mission parishes and a number of sub-stations in the Punjab-Rajasthan mission area entrusted to her. With the aim of imparting contextual formation to our future Priests, the CST Mission started its own Minor Seminary in Punjab in 1986. The long-awaited dream of having a novitiate in the mission was realized in 2010 at Abohar.