Background
Kalacherry was born on 20 April 1892 in Kainakary.
Kalacherry was born on 20 April 1892 in Kainakary.
He was ordained priest at the age of 27 on 19 April 1919, and as Rev Doctor James Kalacherry, served as Lecturer in Logic at Saint Berchmans College, Changanassery, Kottayam, Kerala. In 1927, he was appointed Bishop of Changanacherry (Syro-Malabarese church), India. Sister Alphonsa was canonised as India"s first female Catholic saint on 9 November 2008.
Bishop Kalacherry also founded the Catholic Action group of the diocese.
In 1945, he campaigned against the move by C. P. Ramaswami Iyer, the then Diwan of Travancore, to nationalise all schools. Bishop Kalacherry founded Assumption College, in central Travancore on 12 August 1949, providing tertiary education for women.
He died in office at the age of 57 on 27 October 1949.