Fr. Jose Kumblolickal, MSFS, Ph.D.
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Parochial Vicarfrjosest-bart.orgBiography of Father Jose Kumblolickal Augustine, MSFS, Ph.D.
Father Jose Kumblolickal Augustine, MSFS, Ph.D., is a Catholic priest, missionary, theologian, professor, retreat preacher, spiritual director, and experienced religious superior. A native of Kerala, India, he was born on August 11, 1964, and was ordained to the priesthood on October 26, 1992.
He is a member of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales, commonly known as the MSFS or Fransalians. After many years of priestly, academic, missionary, and leadership service in India, Spain, the Philippines, and other countries, Father Jose came to the United States in 2022 to begin pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. Since July 1, 2024, he has served as Parochial Vicar at St. Bartholomew Catholic Church in Katy, Texas.The Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales
The Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales are an international religious congregation of the Latin Church founded on October 24, 1838, in Annecy, France, by the Servant of God Father Peter Marie Mermier. The congregation takes St. Francis de Sales as its principal patron and follows a Salesian spirituality characterized by gentleness, humility, missionary zeal, pastoral charity, and confidence in God’s love.
The Fransalians dedicate themselves especially to missionary evangelization, parish ministry, education, retreat preaching, spiritual renewal, and the formation of clergy, religious, and laypeople. The missionary spirit of the congregation is summarized in Father Mermier’s declaration, “I want missions.”
Father Jose’s priestly ministry reflects this Fransalian charism. Throughout his life, he has combined theological scholarship, missionary availability, spiritual formation, pastoral leadership, and the Salesian virtues of kindness and compassionate service.Education and Theological Formation
Father Jose completed a bachelor’s degree in Anthropology at Dharwad University in Karnataka, India, in 1988. During the same period, he completed his philosophical studies at Suvidya College in Bangalore. He subsequently earned a bachelor’s degree in Theology from the Jnana Deepa Pontifical Institute of Philosophy and Theology in Pune, India, in 1992.
Following his ordination to the priesthood, Father Jose pursued advanced theological studies in Spain. In 1999, he received a Licentiate in Dogmatic Theology from the Pontifical University of Salamanca.
In June 2002, he earned a doctorate in Spiritual Theology from the Faculty of Theology in Burgos, Spain. His doctoral dissertation, titled Union with God in St. John of the Cross and St. Francis de Sales: A Comparative Study, examined the doctrinal and spiritual teachings of these two Doctors of the Church concerning the soul’s journey toward loving union with God.
His dissertation was published in Spanish by Editorial Monte Carmelo in Burgos in 2002 under the title La unión con Dios en San Juan de la Cruz y San Francisco de Sales: Estudio comparativo de su propuesta doctrinal. The published work contains 309 pages and explores the relationship between the Carmelite and Salesian traditions of Christian spirituality.
Father Jose’s principal academic specializations include dogmatic theology, spiritual theology, Christian mysticism, Salesian spirituality, Carmelite spirituality, spiritual direction, discernment, prayer, and the history of Christian spirituality.Academic and Formational Ministry
Father Jose has served as a professor, visiting faculty member, lecturer, rector, and academic administrator in India, Spain, the United States, and the Philippines.
From 2003 to 2020, he served as a visiting faculty member at the Instituto de Teología in La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain. From 2007 to 2022, he was also a guest lecturer at the University of Burgos.
In the United States, Father Jose served as a visiting faculty member at DeSales University in Pennsylvania in 2007 and again in 2017.
In India, he taught at St. Peter’s Pontifical Institute in Bangalore from June 2005 to 2013. He served as Director and Lecturer at the Indian Institute of Spirituality in Bangalore from 2005 to 2009.
From 2009 to 2012, Father Jose was Rector and Lecturer at Tejas Vidya Peetha, the contextual and mission-oriented theologate of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales in Bangalore. In this responsibility, he participated in the theological, spiritual, pastoral, and missionary formation of seminarians preparing for the priesthood.
From 2018 to 2020, he taught theology at Divine Word Seminary in Tagaytay, Philippines.
Throughout his academic ministry, Father Jose has taught a wide range of theological and spiritual subjects, including:- Introduction to Theology
- Introduction to the Old Testament
- Introduction to the New Testament
- Patrology
- Ancient, medieval, and modern Church history
- Pneumatology
- Mariology
- Sacramental theology
- Trinitarian theology
- Theology of the Second Vatican Council
- Theology of consecrated life
- Ancient, medieval, and modern Christian spirituality
- Spiritual direction
- Spiritual discernment and discernment of spirits
- Contemporary developments in Christian spirituality
- Prayer and mysticism
Leadership in the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales
Father Jose has held several important positions of leadership within the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales.
From 2002 to 2005, he served as Director of Charis Bhavan, a charismatic renewal and retreat center in Athirampuzha, Kerala. In this ministry, he was involved in retreat preaching, spiritual renewal, counseling, and the accompaniment of individuals seeking a deeper relationship with God.
From 2003 to 2012, he served as a Provincial Councilor of the MSFS South-West India Province under three successive Provincial Superiors. From 2011 to 2012, he also served as Province Administrator.
In 2013, Father Jose served as a General Councilor of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales. He was subsequently appointed the fifth Provincial Superior of the MSFS South-West India Province, serving from 2013 to 2016. The congregation’s official history notes that during his leadership, the province strengthened many of its existing missions and ministries.
Father Jose also served the Archdiocese of Bangalore as Secretary to the Commission for Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue from 2005 to 2011. In this role, he helped promote respectful dialogue, understanding, and cooperation among Christians and members of other religious traditions.Educational and Social Outreach
Father Jose has also participated in educational initiatives serving economically disadvantaged children in India. He was involved in the Saint Francis School project in Bangalore, which sought to provide education, social integration, and opportunities for children living or working on the streets.
The University of Burgos identified Father Jose and Father Joy Vazhappillil as leaders of this project. Through cooperation with the University of Burgos, volunteers and educators participated in initiatives intended to support the personal and educational development of children in Bangalore.
This work reflects Father Jose’s commitment to the Fransalian mission of educating young people and communicating the love and gentleness of God through practical service.Missionary Ministry in the Philippines
In June 2018, Father Jose was appointed Delegation Superior of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales in the Philippines, a responsibility he held until 2021.
During this period, he combined religious leadership with seminary formation, theological education, pastoral ministry, and the accompaniment of missionaries. From 2018 to 2020, he also taught theology at Divine Word Seminary in Tagaytay.
His service in the Philippines continued the international and missionary character of his priesthood and prepared the way for his subsequent pastoral ministry in the United States.Ministry in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston
After completing his leadership assignment in the Philippines, Father Jose was sent to the United States to undertake pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.
An official circular of the MSFS South-West India Province records that Father Jose arrived in Houston on July 22, 2022, to begin his new pastoral ministry.St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church, Spring, Texas
Soon after arriving in Houston, Father Jose began serving at St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church in Spring, Texas. Public records place him exercising priestly ministry at the parish by approximately August 18, 2022, when he celebrated a funeral Mass there.
From approximately August 18, 2022, until June 30, 2024, Father Jose carried out his pastoral ministry at St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church. During his time there, he served the parish community through the celebration of the sacraments, liturgical ministry, preaching, spiritual direction, pastoral counseling, and other areas of parish life. He ministered to a large and culturally diverse Catholic community, serving the faithful in both English and Spanish.
Parish records identify Father Jose as Parochial Vicar at St. Ignatius. He worked with the pastor and the other members of the clergy in providing sacramental and pastoral care for the community.
In June 2024, the parish announced that Father Jose had been asked to transfer to St. Bartholomew Catholic Church in Katy as part of the new priest assignments taking effect on July 1. The pastor of St. Ignatius expressed gratitude for the gifts and talents that Father Jose had shared with the parish community.
In accepting the new assignment, Father Jose expressed his missionary availability by stating:
“I am a missionary, and my call is to go where I am needed.”
His final day of ministry at St. Ignatius of Loyola was June 30, 2024.St. Bartholomew Catholic Church, Katy, Texas
Effective July 1, 2024, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, then Archbishop of Galveston-Houston, appointed Father Jose Parochial Vicar at St. Bartholomew Catholic Church in Katy, Texas. The appointment is recorded in the official pastoral appointments of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.
Father Jose brought to St. Bartholomew more than three decades of priestly ministry, extensive theological education, international missionary experience, fluency in several languages, and many years of experience in religious leadership, seminary formation, and spiritual direction.
At St. Bartholomew, he serves the faithful through the celebration of the Eucharist and the other sacraments, preaching, teaching, hearing confessions, pastoral counseling, spiritual direction, ministry to the sick and bereaved, adult faith formation, retreat ministry, and service to both the English- and Spanish-speaking communities. The parish’s clergy directory identifies him as one of its Parochial Vicars.
Father Jose has also contributed to the parish’s public expressions of Eucharistic faith. In November 2025, he carried the Blessed Sacrament and helped lead a three-mile Eucharistic procession from St. Bartholomew to Katy City Hall and back to the church for Benediction. The procession brought together hundreds of parishioners who prayed and sang in English and Spanish while publicly celebrating the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.
Through his ministry at St. Bartholomew, Father Jose continues to place his theological formation, missionary experience, pastoral gifts, and Salesian spirituality at the service of the parish community.Publications and Writings
Father Jose’s principal published work is:
La unión con Dios en San Juan de la Cruz y San Francisco de Sales: Estudio comparativo de su propuesta doctrinal. Editorial Monte Carmelo, Burgos, 2002.
His other writings include:
“Dark Night of the Soul from a Salesian Perspective,” in All by Love: New Vistas in Theological Spirituality, edited by Jose Maniparambil and Henry Kodikuthiyil, Bangalore, 2011.
“Friendship with God in St. Teresa of Avila,” in the Indian Journal of Spirituality, Volume 32, Bangalore, 2007.
His publications reflect his sustained study of the Christian mystical tradition, particularly the teachings of St. John of the Cross, St. Teresa of Avila, and St. Francis de Sales. His work emphasizes that authentic Christian spirituality leads the human person toward a loving and transformative union with God.Languages and International Experience
Father Jose’s mother tongue is Malayalam. He also speaks the Indian languages Kannada, Telugu, and Hindi.
He is fluent in English, Spanish, and French in reading, writing, and speaking. In addition, he has working knowledge of German, Italian, Portuguese, and Tagalog.
Father Jose lived, studied, and worked in Spain for six years and returned regularly as a visiting professor for approximately twenty years. His priestly, academic, missionary, and formational service has taken him to numerous countries throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, North America, and South America.Pastoral Gifts and Spirituality
Father Jose’s particular gifts include theological teaching, retreat preaching, spiritual direction, spiritual counseling, music, and sports.
His priestly ministry reflects the Fransalian conviction that theological learning must ultimately lead people toward a deeper friendship and union with God. His academic formation gives depth to his preaching and teaching, while his missionary experience enables him to serve people from many different languages, cultures, and backgrounds.
Through his service in India, Spain, the Philippines, and the United States, Father Jose has sought to unite intellectual formation, missionary availability, pastoral compassion, and the Salesian virtues of gentleness, humility, joy, and love.
His life and ministry continue to embody the missionary spirit of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales: to go wherever he is needed, to proclaim the Gospel with gentleness, and to help others grow in friendship and union with God.