Antony John Baptist

Antony John Baptist (born April 15, 1965) is an Indian Catholic priest from Tamil Nadu, biblical scholar, theologian and pastor. He serves as the director of the National Biblical, Catechetical and Liturgical Centre (NBCLC) in Bangalore. His academic and pastoral work is focused on contextual theology and the interpretation of biblical narratives, particularly from the perspective of marginalised communities such as Dalit women.

Education Antony John Baptist holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) and a Doctor Litterarum (DLitt) from the University of Madras, where he studied in the Department of Christian Studies. He also earned a Licentiate in Sacred Scripture (LSS) from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome. Apart from his theological studies, he has earned a BA in History from University of Madras and an MA in History from Annamalai University.

Baptist also served as Secretary to the Commission for the Bible of the Tamil Nadu Bishops’ Council. Since May 2017, he has been the Executive Secretary of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI), Bible Commission. In January 2021, Baptist was appointed as the Director of the National Biblical Catechetical and Liturgical Centre (NBCLC) in Bangalore, under the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI).

Baptist is a member of the Editorial Board of Concilium journal. He also serves on the Translations Committee of the Bible Society of India, and as the Coordinator for the South Asian Sub-region of the Catholic Biblical Federation.

In addition to his leadership roles, Baptist teaches as adjunct faculty at Vidya Deep College, DVK Pontifical Athenaeum, St. Peter's Pontifical Seminary and also at the Department of Christian Studies at the University of Madras, where he has served as a visiting professor.