Bishop Peter M Chenaparambil, 84, former bishop of Latin Catholic Church Alappuzha diocese, passed away at Lourdes Hospital, Kochi, following cardiac arrest in the wee hours of Thursday. The body was brought to the Mount Carmel Cathedral in Alappuzha at 6 pm on Thursday.
The funeral will be held at Mount Carmel Cathedral here at 3 pm on Friday. Alappuzha diocesean Bishop Stephan Athipozhyil will lead the funeral services. Cardinal Mar George Alenchery, Thiruvananthapuram Archbishop Soosa Pakiyam and other bishops will participate in the funeral function.
Peter Chenaparambil was born on December 8, 1929, as the son of Michael and Josephine of Chenaparambil house here. His mother died when he was two years old. After completing high school, he joined a seminary under the Kochi Diocese. Later, the rectors sent him to the Papal seminaries at Kandy in Sri Lanka and Pune for higher studies.
After completing his studies, he was ordained a priest in 1956. After completing BA and BEd, he worked as a teacher, church vicar, social worker, corporate manager, and vicar-general in various institutions under the Church. Pope John Paul II ordained Fr Peter as the bishop of Alappuzha diocese on November 19, 1982, as the successor to Michael Aarattukulam, the first bishop of the diocese.
Bishop Chenaparambil retired from service on December 7, 2001, following which Stephan Athipozhyil was appointed the bishop of Alappuzha.