Rome: On 7th May 2015, Clifford Sunil Ranjar S.J., brilliantly defended his doctoral thesis “Be Merciful as Your Father is Merciful – An Exegetical and Theological Analysis of the Sermon on the Plain (Luke 6,17-49)” at the Pontifical Gregorian University.
He prepared his doctoral thesis under the guidance of renowned New Testament scholar Professor Dean Béchard, SJ.
The panel of examiners for public defence of the thesis was chaired by Prof. Javier Lopez. The other members of the panel were Prof. Dean Béchard and Prof. Massimo Grilli.
The panel was unanimous in evaluating his research as of high quality. He was specifically appreciated for his competence in Greek and Hebrew, his orderly mind and ability to read critically; and for presenting his findings in logically coherent manner.
His seven long years of study at the Pontifical Biblical Institute, Rome, culminated in obtaining doctorate in Sacred Scriptures. First four years he spent in mastering classical languages and obtaining Licentiate in Sacred Scriptures and the past three years he devoted himself for doctoral studies.
Dr Clifford Sunil Ranjar hails from Miyar, Karkala. He is the youngest son of Lucy and Ambrose Ranjar and brother of Asha, Walter, Daniel and late Titus.
Studious from his school days, Dr Clifford Sunil had obtained Bachelor (B.Sc – 1998) and Masters (M.Sc – 2003) degrees in Mathematics from Karnataka University, Dharwad. Over the years, he developed interest in learning languages. Currently he can speak / read in a dozen languages. He has obtained proficiency in four classical European languages (Hebrew, Greek, Latin and Aramaic). He knows five contemporary foreign languages viz., English. Italian, German, French, and Spanish. Besides, being a Mangalorean catholic, he is obviously conversant in Konkani, Tulu, Kannada and Hindi.
He regularly conducts courses in Latin, Hebrew and Greek every summer at the Jesuit Regional Theology Centre in Anekal, Bangalore. In fact, he has taught Hebrew at Pontifical Biblical Institute, Rome, as a guest lecturer. Earlier, he taught mathematics at St Joseph’s Pre-University College Bangalore (2003-04) and was the vice principal of the college during the same period.
He is a member of Karnataka Jesuit Province. After completion of his SSLC at Sri Bhuvanendra High School, Karkala and PUC at St Aloysius College Mangalore, he joined the Jesuits (Society of Jesus) at Mount St Joseph, Bangalore in 1992. He was ordained Priest in 2007.
It was indeed a proud moment for his parents Lucy and Ambrose Ranjar, Asha (his sister), Smitha (sister-in-law), Karnataka Jesuits and hosts of friends and well-wishers to be present at the brilliant doctoral defence of Dr Clifford Sunil Ranjar SJ, on 7th May 2015.
It was an emotional moment when the examination panel and packed hall of academics gave a thunderous applause to Lucy and Ambrose Ranjar who could make it to Rome to witness the academic success of their son and to celebrate their Golden Wedding Anniversary.
Irrespective of my views on religion and texts written thousands of year ago, I respect this man for what he has managed to accomplish. It takes an enormous amount of discipline and dedication to devote time and energy to master old classical languages (Samskrutam, Hebrew, Latin etc) and achieve the level of proficiency this man did. I wish him all the best in his future projects.
Sunil you made us proud…Hats off to you..well done. May your mission hereafter be enlightening many more in the field of scripture. May the hidden Lord in the scripture be known to many many faithful through you.
Hi Sunil, feeling very proud by reading this news and viewing this pictures. Just rewind my memory back and remembered our childhood school days of Mangalore. Very very happy to see you at this great heights. My best wishes are always with you. God bless.
Congrats Dr. Fr. Sunil, may God bless you always in the years ahead. This was indeed a serious commitment and will always be an inspiration for others to follow.
Dear Fr. Sunil,
I take great pride in congratulating you on your great achievement. I must commend your dedication and interest in exploring this religious theological teachings and attaining a mastery on this subject. I can imagine the tough obstacles that came across in your journey. I hope to meet up with you very soon in ROME. I wish you all the very best and I take this opportunity to wish your parents a very happy 50th Wedding Anniversary at this occasion. They are indeed fortunate to have a son like you who have made them proud. There is no other better gift for their 50th Anniversary than your great achievement.
Prashanth Menezes , Karkala/Dubai
Congratulations Fr. Sunil and all the family members.