Bishop of Coimbatore
Bishop Thomas Aquinas Lephonse, Bishop of Coimbatore, was born on March 6, 1953, at Pillaithope, in the Kanyakumari district and in the Diocese of Kottar. He attended St. Thomas minor seminary at Santhome in Chennai and studied philosophy and theology at the Sacred Heart Seminary of Poonamallee, and he was ordained a priest on May 22, 1980, at Pillaithope. He served as assistant parish priest at Zamin Gudalore from 1980 to 1981 and at Viruduvilanginan from 1981 to 1982, and as parish priest of Viruduvilanginan from 1982 to 1986. He was rector of the minor seminary of Pathiavaram and procurator at the bishop's house in 1986, and a professor at the Sacred Heart Seminary of Poonamallee in 1987. From 1988 to 1993 he pursued higher studies at the University of Leuven in Belgium, taking a doctorate in canon law, and he then taught again at the Sacred Heart Seminary from 1993 to 1997. He was vicar general and parish priest of the cathedral of Vellore from 1997 to 1999, and manager of schools, vicar general and judicial vicar of the diocese from 1999 to 2002. On July 10, 2002, he was appointed Bishop of Coimbatore. He received episcopal ordination on August 28, 2002, with Ambrose Mathalaimuthu as principal consecrator and James Masilamony Arul Das and Malayappan Chinnappa as co-consecrators.