Poullart des Places and Libermann each express, in their own way, this same understanding of docility to the Holy Spirit. For Poullart, it is expressed first and foremost as a trusting surrender to the divine breath. From the very beginning, he invited his companions to become hearts open and available to God’s action: to adore the Holy Spirit, to ardently seek the fire of divine love, to imitate the inner openness that allows God to act freely.
The primacy of God is the foundation of Spiritan spirituality. It arises from an encounter: that of a heart which discovers that God has gone before it, that he loves it, that he calls it to a life greater than itself. One cannot truly be a Spiritan without this foundational encounter. Poullart and Libermann, each in their own story, experienced this inner transformation.
This novena seeks to help us welcome the Spirit’s work of renewing the grace of our vocation. May it become for each of us a time of visitation: may the Spirit surprise us, console us, send us forth, and fashion us — even today — into Spiritans after God’s own heart.
D. Belmiro Cuica Chissengueti: as a Spiritan, it was a joy to help coordinate the Pope’s visit to Angola. Among those who greeted him at the conclusion of the meeting with missionaries was Father Bernard Duchene, CSSp, who is celebrating 50 years of missionary service in Angola.
A momentous occasion for the country and for the Church. At a time when we hope to strengthen our Spiritan presence in Algeria, this visit encourages us in our apostolic mission, especially in the daily work of dialogue with Muslims.
For us Spiritans, the Pope’s visit was a profound blessing and a renewed call to mission. Truly, “the Lord has been great with us, and we are filled with joy.” The theme of the visit, “Christ, Light of Guinea, towards a future of hope,” beautifully captured both the history and the mission of the Church in Equatorial Guinea, especially as the country marks the 170th anniversary of evangelization.
For us, Spiritan missionaries (C.S.Sp), these visits represent a call to rediscover our charism and the way we live out our mission, in the footsteps of Claude Poullart des Places and François Libermann. They invite us to rekindle our missionary zeal in the Holy Spirit, whose seal we bear, and to commit ourselves more deeply to social justice, while being artisans of peace and reconciliation. Finally, they encourage us to form Christians who are strong in faith and fully engaged in the life and transformation of society.
On this 28th of February 2026, ninety years after his departure, we remember a missionary who was entirely devoted to the poorest of the poor and faithful to the intuition of the founders. His life, marked by unshakeable confidence, constant courage and inventive charity, left a luminous mark that continues to inspire the Spiritan family. Beatified in 1984, Daniel Brottier remains for us a model of openness to the Spirit and absolute trust in God.
The Holy Father has appointed Bishop Teodoro Mendes Tavares, of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, as Bishop of the Diocese of Santiago de Cabo Verde (Cape Verde). He has until now served as Bishop of the Diocese of Ponta de Pedras (Brazil).