Duraisamy Simon Lourdusamy (born February 5, 1924) is an Indian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the Prefect emeritus of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches in the Roman Curia, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1985.

Note that his forename is Lourdusamy; Simon is his father's forename; and Duraisamy is his surname or, more exactly, his "house" name.

Biography

Lourdusamy was born in the Kalleri village, Tamil Nadu, India. After studying at Loyola College in Madras, he was ordained to the priesthood on December 21, 1951 by Archbishop Auguste-Siméon Colas, MEP, of Pondicherry and Cuddalore.

He did pastoral work in the Archdiocese of Pondicherry until 1962, and received a doctorate in canon law in 1956 from the Pontifical Urbaniana University in Rome.

Bishop

Lourdusamy served as Archdiocesan Chancellor and private secretary to Archbishop Ambrose Rayappan before being appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Bangalore and Titular Bishop of Sozusa in Libya on July 2, 1962. He received his episcopal consecration on the following August 22 from Archbishop Rayappan, with Bishops Rajarethinam Sundaram and Daniel Arulswamy serving as co-consecrators. Lourdusamy later attended the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). On November 9, 1964, he was made the Coadjutor Archbishop of Bangalore, and then succeeded Thomas Pothacamury as Archbishop on January 11, 1968. He left India to serve in the Curial Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in March 1971, and resigned as Archbishop of Bangalore on April 30. Lourdusamy was appointed Secretary of the Evangelization of Peoples and Vice Chancellor of the Urbaniana University on February 26, 1973.

Cardinal

Pope John Paul II created Lourdusamy Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria delle Grazie alle Fornaci fuori Porta Cavalleggeri in the consistory of May 25, 1985; he is the first Tamil to be raised to the rank of cardinal. Lourdusamy was named Prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches on the following October 30, and later resigned the post on May 24, 1991. He became Cardinal Protodeacon (the senior Cardinal Deacon) on April 5, 1993, and served as a special papal legate to the funeral of Mother Teresa on September 13, 1997. On April 5, 1993 was appointed protodeacon. He chose to become a Cardinal Priest on January 29, 1996.

Trivia

• He is a brother of the priest and theologian Durasaimy Simon Amalorpavadass.

External links

• Biography
• Cardinal Lourdusamy on Cardinal rating
• Cardinal Lourdusamy on Catholic Hierarchy