The Superior General, assisted by his Council, has the responsibility to govern and animate the Congregation.
The Superior General “confirms his fellow members in their Spiritan calling, in keeping with the sprit of the Founders and the living tradition of the Institute. He makes the unity among all Spiritans a reality. He assures the unity of all with the Church. He strives for the common good and the vitality of the Congregation.” (SRL 192)
“While respectful of its diversity, the General Council safeguards the unity of the Congregation. While making due allowance for subsidiarity, it watches over the work of the circumscriptions and their faithfulness to the Spiritan calling. It works for the growth of the Institute and promotes new initiatives in mission. It safeguards and encourages the solidarity between circumscriptions and also the international character of the Congregation, because these two bear witness to brotherhood and to community.” (SRL 198.1)
Alain Mayama
Superior General
Fr. Alain Mayama was born in Congo Brazzaville in 1971. He did his initial formation, postulancy and philosophy at Daniel Brottier in Libreville, Gabon, noviciate at Mbalmayo in Cameroun and theology at SIST, Nigeria. He made his perpetual religious profession in 1999 and was ordained priest in 2000.
He began his missionary life in Cameroon as formator. During his doctoral studies at Duquesne in the USA, he was the chaplain of a hospital in Port Huron, Detroit, from 2007 to 2008. He continued his mission as a formator in Libreville, Gabon from 2008 to 2010. While still on mission, he was elected Provincial Superior of Congo Brazzaville, his Province of origin. He attended the General Chapter of Bagamoyo in 2012 as a delegate and was elected General Assistant.
It was providential that he was elected on 18th October, a day when the Church celebrates the feast of St. Luke, the Evangelist who dedicated his Gospel to the evangelization of the Gentiles (Luke 1:1-4) and from whom we have the opening words of the Spiritan Rule of Life: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, for He has anointed me, to bring the good news to the afflicted. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives, sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim a year of favour from the Lord” (Lk 4:18-19).
Jeffrey Duaime
1st Assistant
Fr. Jeffrey Duaime was born in the United States in 1958. He made his perpetual religious profession in 1985 and was ordained a priest in 1986.
He began his missionary life in Haiti in pastoral ministry. He then moved to the United States where he worked for eleven years in parish ministry and another eleven years in education. He was also in charge of the vocation office and Provincial of the Province of USA East. He was elected Provincial Superior of the Province of USA in 2012.
Jude Nnorom
2nd Assistant
Fr. Jude Nnorom was born in Nigeria in 1968. He made his perpetual profession in 1993, and was ordained priest in 1994.
He began his missionary life in South Africa as parish priest, vocations promoter, director of the postulancy (2002-2004) and Master of Novices (2003-2004). He was appointed Superior of the South Africa Group in 2004, exercising this responsibility until 2010. He undertook peace studies at Notre Dame University, USA (2011-2012) and subsequently spent a year with Religious for Peace, a multi-Religious organization in consultation with the United Nations. He was appointed to be in charge of the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) Service and Inter Religious Dialogue of the Spiritans in Rome (2015-2018). He returned to South Africa to be part of an emerging project that is exploring the unique urbanization of Africa, with increasing informal settlements and slums, while serving as an interim Superior of the Group.
Philip Massawe
General Assistant
Fr. Philip Massawe was born in Tanzania in 1957. He made his perpetual profession in 1984 and was ordained priest in 1985.
He began his missionary life in Zambia, where he worked from 1985 to 1989. Between 1993 and 1999 he was the first Assistant of the Province of East Africa (EAP). Returning to Tanzania, he exercised various responsibilities, working first with the Maasai people (1999-2000), then as Rector of the Spiritan Seminary of Arusha (2000-2006). He was appointed by the General Council to be the Coordinator of Formation and Education in Rome (2006-2014), as well as Rector of Villa Notre Dame (2014-2016). He was elected Provincial Superior of Tanzania in 2017.
Tony Neves
General Assistant
Fr. António Neves was born in Portugal in 1962. He made his perpetual religious profession in 1985 and was ordained a priest in 1989.
He began his missionary life in Angola in 1989 in formation and pastoral work. Upon his return to Portugal, he studied communication and political science and worked in missionary animation, youth ministry and social communication. He served first as Provincial Assistant before being appointed Provincial of Portugal between 2012 and 2018. He was then appointed to Rome as coordinator of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) and Interreligious Dialogue (DIR).
Marc Botzung
General Assistant
Fr. Marc Botzung was born in France in 1967, and made his perpetual religious profession in 1994. He was ordained a priest in 1995. He began his missionary life in Mauritania (formerly FANO), where he worked for eleven years. He also worked in France as a vocation animator for six years. At the request of the General Council, he served for eight years as Spiritan Coordinator for Islamic-Christian Relations. Elected Provincial of France in 2015, he held this missionary responsibility until 2021.
Albert Assamba
General Assistant
Fr. Albert Assamba was born in Cameroon in 1971. After his perpetual religious profession in 2005, he was ordained a priest in 2006. He began his missionary life in Yaoundé, in parish ministry. Assistant Provincial from 2011 to 2016, he was elected Provincial Superior of Cameroon in 2016.
Jean-Marc Sierro
General Bursar
Fr. Jean-Marc Sierro was born on the 28th of July 1958 in Switzerland. He studied theology in Fribourg where he obtained a Master in Theology. Ordained in 1988 he was appointed to the Republic of Central Africa where he did his missionary placement from 1979 to 1981. In 1992 he had to come home because of malaria. Since he could not go back immediately, he did his master’s degree at the University Institute of Development Studies in Geneva from 1992 to 1994, while engaging in Sunday ministry with the pastoral team in the parish of Carouge.
In 1994 he was appointed as bursar in the Province of Switzerland while being fully involved in all the affairs of the Congregation in the country. In parallel with this responsibility, he was for seven years a member of the theological commission Swiss Lenten Action. He was also lecturer at the at the department of Science of Religions of the Faculty of Letters of Fribourg University, where for 12 years he taught African culture and religion and gave courses on the important authors of sociology and religions and the methodology of scientific research. Together with other religious, he helped found the Swiss branch of the Africa-Europe Faith and Justice Network, of which he is still a member, as well as the Voyage-Partage group which arranges for young people to have an experience of mission for a period from three months to a year.
Since the beginning of 2015 he has been the General Bursar of the Congregation.
Damien Meki
General Secretary
Born on 29/07/1965 in Ziguinchor in Senegal, after primary and secondary studies in his native country, Damien Meki began his Spiritan formation and became a “citizen of the world”. He studied philosophy in Bangui, Central African Republic, then in Libreville, Gabon and finally in Brazzaville, Congo. In 1987, he was admitted to the novitiate in Mbalmayo. On 8 September 1988, he made his religious profession in the Congregation. He continued his theological studies at SIST – Nigeria. He was ordained a priest on 18 July 1992. After his ordination, he was sent to France to study Philosophy and Theology at the University of Strasbourg. A few years later, he did specialized training in Dublin and then at Duquesne University in the United States.
As a missionary, Damien has worked in France, Gabon and Senegal; he has been in turn parish vicar, formator and university chaplain. Damien has taught at the Grand Séminaire Daniel Brottier in Libreville and at the Consortium Saint Augustin in Dakar. He has also been a lecturer in Philosophy at the ISTR in Marseille. Damien is fluent in French and English and his missionary experience in Africa, Europe and the United States, working in parishes, in houses of formation and in administration as provincial secretary in France is an advantage for this service that the congregation has entrusted to him.
From 16 to 26 September, six newly appointed Spiritan Superiors convened with the General Council for a time of fraternal exchange, formation, and shared discernment.
From June 22nd to July 5th, over 50 Spiritans, from around the world, including members of the General Council, elected delegates, and functionaries, gathered at Chevilly Larue, the former Senior Scholasticate of the French Province, on the outskirts of Paris, for the 9th Enlarged General Council (EGC) of the Congregation, to evaluate the implementation of the decisions of the General Chapter and also study new means of strengthening and bringing about the Congregations objectives (SRL 205.3).
The 2025 Enlarged General Council (EGC) gathered in Chevilly for a time of shared discernment, renewal, and recommitment to the Spiritan mission. After eight full days of presentations, prayer, and reflection, delegates undertook the important task of shaping proposals to help the General Council through the next four years, until the General Chapter of 2029.…
On the morning of 30th June, Philip Massawe and Justi Tarimo presented a compelling reflection on Formation which remains at the core of Spiritan missionary life, shaping confreres, communities and leaders led by the Spirit to something new. Bagamoyo II calls for renewed commitment to formation through collaboration, strategic planning, and investment in formators, novice…
On Sunday, June 29th, the Feast of the two Apostles St Peter and St Paul, over 40 members of the Enlarged General Council, after an early breakfast at Chevilly Larue, boarded a coach at 6.50am which drove us to Montparnasse station in Paris where we took the fast 8.22am TGV train to Rennes to begin…
On the morning of 28 June, Jeff Duaime presented a compelling reflection on Living Diversity and Interculturality, drawn from Chapter 7 of Bagamoyo. His presentation emphasized the urgent call to cultivate intercultural communities as a living expression of the Gospel in a divided and polarized world. Drawing on Pope Francis’ teachings and the Congregation’s evolving…
On Friday, 27 June, the Superior General, Fr. Alain Mayama presented report, guiding the delegates at the Enlarged General Council 2025 to revisit the foundational principles of leadership and governance in our Congregation, reflecting on their evolving relevance in today’s intercultural and global context. Rooted in Vatican II and reaffirmed by the 1968–69 General Chapter,…
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On the morning of 25th June, the Enlarged General Council consecrated its reflection to a deepening of Spiritan Mission through two essential expressions: Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation and Development. The reports titled Animating Justice and Peace Within the Spiritan Mission and Building Toward Mission Sustainability: CDO Reflections for EGC 2025 explore how the…
The Congregation of the Holy Spirit, in its ongoing journey of discernment, formation, and missionary renewal, convenes its ninth Enlarged General Council (EGC)—a sacred moment in the life of the Congregation that brings together delegates from Spiritan circumscriptions around the world. This historic gathering marks not merely a continuation of tradition but a renewed expression…
In preparation for the forthcoming Enlarged General Council (EGC) 22 June – 5 July, the General Council (GC) hosted a zoom meeting for Delegates and functionaries on Thursday 15 May 2025. A total of 102 confreres from different unions of circumscriptions, participated in the virtual meeting. the Superior General, Fr. Alain Mayama, welcomed all the…
The General Council held the Meeting of New Spiritan Major Superiors from 17th to 27th September 2024, with 12 participants. The new superiors were from many different circumscriptions around the globe – Africa, Europe, North America, Latin America, Oceania and Asia – living and working in very diverse social, economic, cultural, political and ecclesial situations.…
Saint Pope John Paul II instituted the World Day of Consecrated life in 1996 to answer the intimate need to praise the Lord more solemnly and to thank him for the great gift of consecrated life, to promote a knowledge of and esteem for the consecrated life by the entire People of God and to…
Letter from the Superior General on the occasion of the Fest of Pentecost. “May the coming of the Spirit this Pentecost renew our hope, our confidence and our courage in the midst of the difficulties and challenges our mission entails and empower us anew in his service.”
Orlando Zanovelli, Postulator General to the Congregation for the Cause of Saints at the Vatican, gives us some updates on the Causes of our Funders and other members of the congregation.
Formal opening of the Enlarged General Council on 22nd June 2025 by Fr. Alain Mayama, Superior General
The new spiritan superiors met in Rome to prepare themselves for their new leadership role.
Over the past two years we have reflected together on our Spiritan Mission and, hopefully, each circumscription has been able to assess its missionary engagements and specified its missionary orientations in fidelity to our charism and in accordance with the decisions of Bagamoyo II.
The General Council launches this 2nd October 2024, the Second phase of the Animation Plan focusing on Spiritan spirituality. There are three main objectives which will strengthen our Spiritan life and mission: renewal of our personal and community prayer, recovering our Spiritan roots and the promotion of the cause of our founders. If our founders were able to successfully carry out their activities and their projects, it is thanks to their spiritual life, putting God at the heart of their activities and works.
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