The meeting, held at the Blessed Zeffirino Namuncurà Community a theologate affiliated with the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS), offered an historical, pedagogical and theological overview of the contribution of Don Bosco's Salesians to the growth of the Church and the formation of the clergy in India. The reflection highlighted the role of Archbishop Mathias as the promoter of a model of priestly formation that combined spiritual depth, intellectual rigour and cultural openness, anticipating the perspectives of the Second Vatican Council.
The Sacred Heart Seminary in Poonamallee, founded by Archbishop Mathias in 1936, is still today a point of reference for priestly formation in India. Since its opening until 2019, it has formed 1,710 priests and 21 bishops, many of whom now serve as missionaries in different regions of India and the world. Under the energetic leadership of Archbishop Mathias and thanks to the commitment of the teaching staff, the Seminary quickly became one of the most respected ecclesiastical institutes in the country, contributing to the formation of a strong Indian clergy, prepared and fully integrated in the life of the local Church.
The event was moderated by Prof. Paolo Vaschetto SDB (UPS, Rome) and saw the participation of scholars from different academic backgrounds, offering a debate rich in perspectives.
The first talk, by Prof. Michal Vojtáš, SDB, Director of the Don Bosco Study Centre (UPS, Rome), addressed the theme Salesian pedagogy and the intellectual formation of the Salesians (1920-1965). The speaker showed how the formative guidelines from Giulio Barberis, Philip Rinaldi, Peter Ricaldone and Bartolomeo Fascie shaped the Salesian education of the period, outlining an educational model that combined spiritual paternity, preventive method and academic seriousness. Drawing on missionary documents and statistics, Prof. Vojtáš emphasised how the first Salesians in India, as presented by the author in Chapters IV and VI, following the intuition of Archbishop Mathias, were able to transform cultural and linguistic difficulties into opportunities for growth for the Church, promoting the formation of local personnel and laying the foundations for an authentic inculturation of the charism.
The second speaker, Prof. Louis Kumpiluvelil, SDB, Professor Emeritus of the Sacred Heart Seminary in Poonamallee, presented The Salesian Congregation and the Archdiocese of Madras-Mylapore (1928-1965), a study illustrating the main contents of Fr Hendry's work. Through careful research conducted in over 30 archives and 15 libraries in India and abroad, the author reconstructs the historical and pastoral links between the Salesians of Don Bosco and the dioceses of Madras and Mylapore. The study highlights the pioneering role of Archbishop Mathias in founding the Poonamallee Seminary and promoting the local clergy, placing the Salesian experience in the broader context of the ecclesial transformation of Tamil Nadu, from colonial dualism to pastoral unity.
The third talk, by Prof. Filippo Lovison, (Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome) explored the theme The Dimensions of Optatam Totius in Priestly Formation in India (1935-1965). The speaker highlighted how Archbishop Mathias' approach anticipated the fundamental principles of the conciliar decree on priestly formation: a holistic, contextualised and ongoing education, capable of integrating faith and culture. Prof. Lovison insisted on the importance of maintaining a balance between tradition and innovation, stressing that genuine formation is built in the harmony between memory, adaptability and ecclesial communion - elements strongly present in Mathias' Salesian vision and pedagogy.
In his concluding remarks, the author thanked the speakers and all those present, pointing out how the fruits of Archbishop Mathias' vision had transcended the confines of the seminary itself. ‘Today,’ he recalled, ‘many priests trained at Poonamallee serve communities in Europe and the Americas, a concrete sign of the missionary transformation of the Church and the process of Indianisation that has accompanied the maturation of the priestly vocation in the subcontinent.’
The meeting was attended by Fr José Aníbal Milhais Pinto Mendonça, superior of the Our Lady of Wisdom Vice-Province, numerous theology students, teachers and guests from various Salesian communities in Rome. The atmosphere of the event combined academic rigour and fraternal spirit, in an atmosphere of shared reflection on the vitality of the Salesian charism and its capacity to generate new ways of formation and mission.
At the opening of the meeting, Fr Gianni Rolandi SDB, Rector of the Salesian Theologate, gave the welcome address, recalling with gratitude his experience of an Extraordinary Visitation to the Salesian Province of Chennai (INM), where the Sacred Heart Seminary - entrusted to the Archdiocese of Madras-Mylapore in 1998 - continues to be a living and dynamic reality. Following this, Fr Thomas Anchukandam SDB, director of the Salesian Historical Institute, expressed the satisfaction of ISS for the publication of the volume, praising in particular the methodological seriousness and theological depth of Fr Selvaraj's work, the result of a long course of study and a constant passion for the Salesian mission in India.
The presentation of the volume represented not only a moment of historical insight, but also an invitation to rediscover the relevance of Don Bosco's educational vision, translated and lived in different cultural contexts. The work of Prof. Hendry Selvaraj Dominic SDB contributes to enhancing intercultural dialogue and the educational commitment of the Salesians in the world, emphasising the spirit of service, educational competence and the universal vision of the ecclesial mission.
Through the example of Archbishop Mathias and the history of the Poonamallee Seminary, a lesson emerges that is forever relevant: the formation of clergy and laity, when it is rooted in hope and open to dialogue with cultures, becomes a powerful tool for evangelical and social renewal. In this perspective, the evening promoted by the Salesian Historical Institute was not only a celebration of the past, but also a call to the future: an invitation to continue ‘forming the formators’ with the same missionary ardour that animated the pioneers of the Salesian presence in India. The initiative confirms, once again, the centrality of the Sacred Heart Seminary in the ecclesial history of India and the relevance of historical-pedagogical research to understand how the Salesians of Don Bosco were able to interpret the local needs, contributing to the formation of a prepared clergy, capable of combining faith, culture and pastoral service.
