Divine Retreat Centre, Potta
Encyclopedia
The Divine Retreat Center or Potta Ashram is a "Catholic" Charismatic Renewal
(Neo-Pentecostal) ministry in Muringoor on the banks of the Chalakudy River
6 k.m. from Potta
in Kerala
, India
. Since 1950, the Vincentian Fathers have been conducting Popular Mission Retreats in parishes in Kerala, India.
, an import of a modified Pentecostalism
into the post-Vatican II Catholic Church.
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal began in 1966 at the Duquesene University in the U.S.A. and was imported into India by Minoo Engineer, a Parsee (Zoroastrian) who married a Hispanic American, Luz Maria, and "converted;" husband and wife have together spread this ideology in India ( Origins of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal).
, six kilometers away from Potta, and Fr. Jacob Athickal was tasked with preparing a new and more extensive facility. This was given the name of Divine Retreat Center, and as inaugurated in 1987. At this new site, as increasing numbers visited, retreats were begun in six other languages besides Malayalam: English
, Konkani
, Kannada, Telugu
, Tamil
and Hindi
.
DIVINE RETREAT ASHRAM-Faridabad-Delhi,
TABOR RETREAT ASHRAM-Kalyan-Mumbai,
DIVINE MERCY RETREAT CENTRE-Elavur-Chennai,
ARULALAYAM RETREAT CENTRE-Ambattur-Chennai,
KOVAI DIVINE DHIANA ILLAM-Coimbatore,
LOGOS RETREAT CENTRE-Bangalore,
JNANODAYA RETREAT CENTRE-Hubli,
SINAI DIVINE DHANASHRAM-Kurnool,
DIVINE MERCY DHAYANASHRAM-Mangalagiri,
DIVINE LOVE RETREAT CENTRE –Jalalkhali,
DIVINE RENEWAL RETREAT CENTRE –Margherita,
PARITHRANA RETREAT CENTRE-Kottayam,
JUBILEE RETREAT CENTRE-Calicut,
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DIVINE TV MINISTRY
-------------------
Divine TV first went on-air in UK, Europe and the Middle East on 24 December 2008. This was quickly followed with the launch of Divine Vision Network in USA and Canada on 25th May 2009.
There is a great demand from the rest of the world to view Divine TV, the 24-hour commercial-free television channel of Divine Vision Network (DVN) from Divine Retreat Centre – the world's largest Catholic retreat centre.
With much joy, we are pleased to announce the launch DVN Online TV on 04 October 2009! Divine TV is now available on the Internet in every country across the globe, at any time, every single day
POV
www.dvnonline.org
Catholic Charismatic Renewal
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is a movement within the Catholic Church. Worship is characterized by vibrant Masses, as well as prayer meetings featuring prophecy, healing and "praying in tongues." This movement is based on the belief that certain charismata , bestowed by the Holy Spirit, such as...
(Neo-Pentecostal) ministry in Muringoor on the banks of the Chalakudy River
Chalakudy River
Chalakudy River or Chalakudy Puzha runs through Chalakudy town which is in the Thrissur District of Kerala state, south India. It is the 4th longest river in Kerala and its basin is between 10° 05’ to 10° 35’ North latitude and 76° 15’to 76° 55’ East longitude. This area is located in Thrissur,...
6 k.m. from Potta
Potta
Potta is a village coming under Chalakudy municipality. Chalakudy is a city and a municipality in Thrissur district in the state of Kerala, India....
in Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Since 1950, the Vincentian Fathers have been conducting Popular Mission Retreats in parishes in Kerala, India.
Charismatic Renewal history
The Divine Retreat Center has its origins in the Catholic Charismatic RenewalCatholic Charismatic Renewal
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is a movement within the Catholic Church. Worship is characterized by vibrant Masses, as well as prayer meetings featuring prophecy, healing and "praying in tongues." This movement is based on the belief that certain charismata , bestowed by the Holy Spirit, such as...
, an import of a modified Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism is a diverse and complex movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, has an eschatological focus, and is an experiential religion. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, the Greek...
into the post-Vatican II Catholic Church.
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal began in 1966 at the Duquesene University in the U.S.A. and was imported into India by Minoo Engineer, a Parsee (Zoroastrian) who married a Hispanic American, Luz Maria, and "converted;" husband and wife have together spread this ideology in India ( Origins of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal).
Foundation of the Potta Ashram
The Potta Ashram was founded in 1977 as the Popular Mission Center. The directors of the Center, Frs. George Panackal and Romulus Nedumchalil, etc., used to conduct Popular Mission retreats and visitations from there and they also made it their residence and headquarters. A few years later Fr.Mathew Naickomparambil was transferred to Potta. Naickomparambil was involved with propagating the Charismatic Renewal. Fr. George Panackal became impressed by Naickomparambil's sermons which were the result of his involvement in the Charismatic Renewal. Naickomparambil's propagation of the Charismatic Renewal drew in thousands of people. After a few years a three storey building was put up to conduct the retreats, primarily intended for the people coming to the Ashram for further consultations from places where the Vincentians' Popular Mission Retreats were being conducted. But as Naickomparambil's Charismatic Renewal retreats grew in popularity, the Potta Ashram itself became a center for numerous retreats.Facility at Muringoor
As the Potta Ashram was inadequate for the increased numbers, under Fr. George Vempilly, the new director, a sprawling new site was acquired at Muringoor, on the banks of the Chalakudy RiverChalakudy River
Chalakudy River or Chalakudy Puzha runs through Chalakudy town which is in the Thrissur District of Kerala state, south India. It is the 4th longest river in Kerala and its basin is between 10° 05’ to 10° 35’ North latitude and 76° 15’to 76° 55’ East longitude. This area is located in Thrissur,...
, six kilometers away from Potta, and Fr. Jacob Athickal was tasked with preparing a new and more extensive facility. This was given the name of Divine Retreat Center, and as inaugurated in 1987. At this new site, as increasing numbers visited, retreats were begun in six other languages besides Malayalam: English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Konkani
Konkani language
KonkaniKonkani is a name given to a group of several cognate dialects spoken along the narrow strip of land called Konkan, on the west coast of India. This is, however, somewhat an over-generalisation. Geographically, Konkan is defined roughly as the area between the river Damanganga to the north...
, Kannada, Telugu
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
, Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
and Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
.
Expansion
The Potta Ashram quickly set up branches in other cities and regions of India, including one in the Chembur suburb of Bombay (St. George's Ashram, Chembur), and Tabor Ashram near Kalyan, an ancient city to the immediate east of Bombay (Tabor Ashram). However, as the popularity of the Ashrams grew, controversies also began. Today, the Divine Retreat Center is allegedly the largest retreat center in the world. Since 1990, over 10 million pilgrims from all over the world have attended retreats here. Weekly retreats are held back-to-back non-stop every week of the year.DIVINE RETREAT ASHRAM-Faridabad-Delhi,
TABOR RETREAT ASHRAM-Kalyan-Mumbai,
DIVINE MERCY RETREAT CENTRE-Elavur-Chennai,
ARULALAYAM RETREAT CENTRE-Ambattur-Chennai,
KOVAI DIVINE DHIANA ILLAM-Coimbatore,
LOGOS RETREAT CENTRE-Bangalore,
JNANODAYA RETREAT CENTRE-Hubli,
SINAI DIVINE DHANASHRAM-Kurnool,
DIVINE MERCY DHAYANASHRAM-Mangalagiri,
DIVINE LOVE RETREAT CENTRE –Jalalkhali,
DIVINE RENEWAL RETREAT CENTRE –Margherita,
PARITHRANA RETREAT CENTRE-Kottayam,
JUBILEE RETREAT CENTRE-Calicut,
-----------------
DIVINE TV MINISTRY
-------------------
Divine TV first went on-air in UK, Europe and the Middle East on 24 December 2008. This was quickly followed with the launch of Divine Vision Network in USA and Canada on 25th May 2009.
There is a great demand from the rest of the world to view Divine TV, the 24-hour commercial-free television channel of Divine Vision Network (DVN) from Divine Retreat Centre – the world's largest Catholic retreat centre.
With much joy, we are pleased to announce the launch DVN Online TV on 04 October 2009! Divine TV is now available on the Internet in every country across the globe, at any time, every single day
POV
POV
POV may refer to:* Parliament of Victoria, Australia* Persistence of vision, a theory addressing the visual phenomenon of image retention** POV toy or device, a device that displays an image to a viewer by displaying one piece at a time in rapid succession and in varied locations* Point of view **...
Controversies
The Bishops of Bombay have for unstated reasons tried to suppress the Chembur center, largely through the official organ, the Examiner. The Kerala High Court has ordered the Kerala Police to investigate alleged rapes and murders at the Potta Ashram (Divine Retreat Center); the police say that over a ten year period from 1996 to 2006, there have been at least 975 unexplained deaths or suspected murders at the Potta Ashram. This could be, however, due to the fact that the centre hosts a hospice for patients with AIDS and other incurable diseases.External links
www.divinetv.inwww.dvnonline.org