Oscar Sevrin
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Oscar Sevrin, 22 November 1884 in Neuville-Wanne (Belgium) – 30 April 1975 in Kunkuri, (India), was a Belgian Jesuit priest, missionary in India and successively bishop of Ranchi (Jharkhand) and Raigarh-Ambikapur (Chhattisgarh).
Born in Neuville-Wanne, in the Ardennes (Belgium) on 22 November 1884, Sevrin joined the Society of Jesus in 1903 and did his novitiate in Arlon (Belgium) After doing his philosophical studies at the Jesuit Philosophate of Louvain (1906–08) he left for India with a group of other young Jesuit missionaries. At that time, the Bengal state (covering the entire Eastern part of British India) was a mission area entrusted to the Belgian Jesuits. While teaching in the schools of Rengarih and Ranchi (1911–16), both important centres in the (now) Jharkhand state (India), Sevrin had his first contacts with the aboriginal population of the Chota Nagpur Plateau. He then completed his Jesuit formation by doing theological studies in Kurseong (Darjeeling district)[1] where he was ordained priest on 1 July 1919.
Bishop of Ranchi (Jharkhand)
Sevrin embarked on an educational career, first as a teacher in the St. John's High School in Ranchi (1921–31) and later as inspector of the Catholic missions schools in the whole area (1923–24) when, to everybody's surprise, he was appointed bishop of Ranchi (9 April 1934). The diocese had been created in 1927 and Sevrin was its second bishop. Education remained a priority and he did much to develop an educational network for the Mundas, Oraons and Kharias in the vast area covered by the diocese. He promoted also the local press by creating the Hindi language magazine called Nishkalanka and composed a little catechism and other booklets (among them the Bible ka Itihas) in order to build up a faith culture among the many new Christians of his diocese.