This Kerala bishop has donated his kidney to save a 30-year-old Hindu

In a noble gesture, a Catholic bishop in Kerala has decided to donate one of his kidneys to save the life of a 30-year-old Hindu man, who is suffering from the organ failure.

Auxiliary Bishop of Pala Diocese Jacob Murickan recently appeared before an authorisation committee of Kottayam Government Medical College to complete all legal formalities with regard to donating one of his kidneys to E Sooraj.

“This is perhaps for the first time in the history, a serving bishop is donating one of his kidneys to save a valuable life,” said Kidney Federation Chairman Father Davis Chiramal.

Chiramal, who had earlier donated his kidney to an ailing person in Kerala, said the organ transplantation surgery will be performed at Lakeshore Hospital, Ernakulam, on June 1.

“Sooraj belongs to a very poor family. He is the sole breadwinner of his family comprising his mother and wife. He had lost his father four years ago. Later, his brother died of heart attack. Hearing his sad stories, the bishop decided to donate one of his kidneys to the Hindu youth. We also want to generate money from generous people for successfully completing the organ transplantation surgery,” the priest said.

The authorisation committee for unrelated donors approved Murickan as a donor at a meeting held at Kottayam medical college on Friday. The committee comprises medical experts and government officials.

Sooraj, approached Kidney Federation of India, a social service organisation that helps people transplant kidney, when he was faced with financial crisis following regular dialysis. Bishop Murickan expressed his willingness to donate his kidney when he came to know about Sooraj’s condition from Chiramal, who is the federation’s Chairman.

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Muricken was declared Auxiliary Bishop of Palai in 2012 while serving as the Diocesan Pastoral Coordinator. On September 19, 2013, he, along with the other newly-appointed bishops from around the world, was received in audience by Pope Francis at the Vatican.