Media Release
Mangaluru, Oct 28: Fr Dr John Baptist Saldanha, parish priest, St Francis Xavier Church, Bejai, has been appointed as public relations officer (PRO) of the diocese of Mangalore, with effect from November 22 for a period of three years.
So far, Fr Vijay Victor Lobo, procurator, diocese of Mangalore was holding this office. Fr Vijay Lobo has recently completed his term as PRO.
Among his responsibilities of the office of PRO, Fr J B Saldanha is expected to establish contacts with media persons, various officials, spiritual and political leaders. He will be the spokesperson of Mangalore diocese and he will be monitoring and responding to media reports on issues affecting Mangalore diocese and it’s faithful.
In addition Fr J B Saldanha he has been also appointed as the diocesan spiritual director of Catholic Sabha with effect from November 15. With the demise of Fr Mathew Vas, this office was lying vacant.
As spiritual director of Catholic Sabha Fr J B Saldanha is expected to motivate and guide the Catholic Sabha as per its motto ‘Service, Sacrifice and Unity.’ Daijiworld is confident that Fr J B Saldanha will be able to fill Catholic Sabha with new vigor as he has the expertise of dealing with Catholic Sabha as its spiritual director of Mangalore south deanery when he was serving at St Sebastian Church, Permannur.
Currently, Fr J B Saldanha serves as the parish priest of Bejai and Manager of the prestigious Lourdes Central School. In the past, he has served Mangalore diocese in various capacities.
Fr J B Saldanha was a full time professor at St Joseph’s Seminary from 2001 to 2013 and even now continues to be the visiting professor of Jeppu Seminary. He also teaches in several other institutions of Religious education. He is the trustee of Sauhardha Charitable Foundation, Mangaluru and also a member of the managing committee of Fr Muller Hospital Kankanady.
Fr J B Saldanha has served as professor and head of chair in Christianity of Mangalore University from 2011 to 2018. He continues to be member of the Mangalore Christian Council which promotes ecumenical collaboration among various churches. His active involvement in ecumenical and inter-religious dialogues will be beneficial in establishing rapport with religious and political leaders.
Fr J B Saldanha holds a PhD from Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium and MA in Sociology (Osmania University), MA in Applied Ethics (Leuven University, Belgium), MA in Religious Studies (Leuven University, Belgium), diploma in Depth Counseling and Diploma in Developmental Journalism. He has several books and religious articles to his credit.
Meanwhile, Ronald Castelino is already the layman PRO since November 2020. Fr Saldanha, the priest PRO and Castelino will be functioning together.