Dominic Vendargon
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Dominic Vendargon | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur | |
 Vendargon as Archbishop, c.1960s | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| Archdiocese | Kuala Lumpur |
| Installed | 18 December 1972 |
| Term ended | 2 July 1983 |
| Successor | Anthony Soter Fernandez |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 8 December 1934 |
| Consecration | 21 August 1955 by Michel Olçomendy, Louis-August Chorin and Charles Joseph van Melckebeke |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 29 August 1909 Naranthanai, Ceylon |
| Died | 3 August 2005 (aged 95) Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| Buried | St. John's Cathedral, Kuala Lumpur |
| Alma mater | St Francis Xavier Seminary College General |
The Most Reverend Tan Sri Dominic Aloysius Vendargon (29 August 1909 – 3 August 2005) was a Ceylon Tamil priest and Roman Catholic Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur.
Early life and family[edit]
Vendargon was born on 29 August 1909 in Naranthanai in northern Ceylon.[1][2] Vendargon and his mother moved to Malaya, where his father worked as a surveyor, in 1910.[1] Following the outbreak of World War I Vendargon, his siblings and mother returned to Ceylon.[1] After the war the family rejoined Vendargon's father in Seremban in 1919.[1] The family moved to Malacca in 1923.[1]
Vendargon was educated at St Patrick's College, Jaffna, St Paul's, Seremban, and St Francis' Institution, Malacca.[1]
Despite his father wanting Vendargon to be a doctor, Vendargon entered the St Francis Xavier Seminary in Singapore in 1925 before transferring to the College General in Penang in 1927.[1]
Career[edit]
Vendargon was ordained as a priest on 8 December 1934.[1][2] As vicar for Indians in Negri Sembilan he was responsible for the pastoral care of Roman Catholics working in the rubber plantations.[1][3] He was transferred to Sungai Petani in Kedah in 1941.[1][3] After the Japanese invasion of Malaya, all of Vendargon's books and records were destroyed by Japanese troops.[1] He spent the Japanese occupation years ministering to families in Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan and Trengganu.[1][3]
After the war Vendargon started teaching at the College General in 1948 before becoming vicar for Indians in Johor Bahru and the Singapore Naval Base in 1949.[1][3] He was transferred to Teluk Anson in 1950 before becoming vicar of St. Anthony's Church, Kuala Lumpur in 1951, a post he held until 1955.[1][3]
Vendargon was appointed Bishop of Kuala Lumpur on 25 February 1955.[1][2] He was ordained as a bishop on 21 August 1955.[2] He became the first Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur on 18 December 1972.[1][2] He retired on 2 July 1983.[2][3]
Vendargon was a member of the Association for the Promotion of Higher Education Malaysia, the Guild of Catholic Assisted Schools Malaysia and Malaysian Inter-Religious Association.[1] He was also the first president of the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Sikhism.[1][3] He was made a Panglima Setia Mahkota in June 1968.[3][4]
Vendargon died on 3 August 2005 at an old peoples home in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur run by the Little Sisters of the Poor.[3][4] He was buried in the nave of St. John's Cathedral, Kuala Lumpur.[3] The Tan Sri Dominic Vendargon Foundation was named after Vendargon.[5]
Honour[edit]
Honour of Malaysia[edit]
Malaysia : 
Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia (P.S.M.) — Tan Sri (1968)[6]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "Archbishop emeritus of Kuala Lumpur 60 years a priest. 39 a bishop". UCA News. Bangkok, Thailand. 21 December 1994. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f "Archbishop Dominic Aloysius Vendargon". Catholic Hierarchy. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "The First Bishop of Kuala Lumpur: Dominic Aloysius Vendargon 1955 - 1983". The Herald. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 6 October 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ a b "Former archbishop of KL Vendargon dies". The Sun. Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. 4 August 2005. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ "Vendargon foundation to educate the poor". The Star. Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. 16 November 2003. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ "Semakan Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat".
