Our spiritan vocation

"Sent by the Father and consecrated by the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ came

Baptism of a child by a lay minister in a Brazilian basic community

to save all people. He continues, in the world of today, this mission of salvation of which the Church is the sacrament. In the midst of God's people, among the numerous and varied vocations which the Holy Spirit inspires, we Spiritans are called by the Father and "set apart" (Acts 13:2) to follow Jesus and to announce the Good News of the Kingdom" (Spiritan Rule of Life).  

A Congregation renewing

itself

Missionaries, including us Spiritans, try to live close to the people and the Churches that welcome them. Our work contributes to the coming of the Kingdom of God and its justice. During our 300 years of missionary service, we have played our part in the birth of new Churches. Today, these Churches have many vocations and are making their contribution to the missionary activity of the universal Church. In its turn, our Congregation is receiving new life from those joining us from the Churches of the southern hemisphere. The African and Latin-American confrères are greatly adding to the diversity of the spiritan family and increasing our awareness of the international dimension of mission. They help to show the universal face of the Church's mission, thereby adding a new vitality to its outreach.

Spiritans and the Manila Congress

We live and work in five continents. Our current choices for evangelisation follow those described by the International Missionary Congress in Manila in December, 1979:

"It suffices for the present to indicate here the continued building up of the local Church as the focus for evangelisation today, with dialogue as its essential mode:

- through a more resolute, creative and yet truly discerning and responsible inculturation;

- through inter-religious dialogue, undertaken in all seriousness;

- through solidarity and sharing with the poor and the advocacy of human rights;

- through the creation of grass-roots ecclesial communities with structures of genuine co-responsibility and ministries of charism and service;

- through the fostering of evangelising education in schools and in non-formal education;

- and through an adequate media-ministry."

Missionaries witness to the Christian mystery. In allowing themselves to be led by the Spirit, they find themselves living and working in places where they would never have dreamed of going on their own initiative. 

Discovering riches and diversity

Countries, races, languages and cultures are all an expression of the richness and diversity of the human race. In no way can they be seen as an obstacle to the proclamation of the Kingdom of God among the peoples. Missionaries often find themselves living in a non-Christian religious setting. This is the case for a third of the inhabitants of the island of Mauritius who are Christians, where two thirds are Hindus or Moslems. In the 1980's, we opened a centre which aimed at gathering together Christians, Hindus and Moslems in order to reach a better mutual understanding. Very few Christians were ready for such an experiment. Some found themselves disturbed in their faith and our Hindu and Moslem friends were very hesitant. But a small group decided to go further in the service of the mission, understood as a dialogue with those "believers in another mode" (Itaici).

This way of meeting and dialogue is taken slowly so as to give plenty of time for the growth of mutual appreciation and confidence. And by comparing religious experiences, the missionaries deepen their understanding of the Christian mystery. Their life of faith rids them of prejudices, misunderstandings and racism.

At the beginning of new Christian

communities

Missionaries are often involved in the creation of Basic Christian Communities (BCC). The BCC's put down their roots where the people live. In Sao Paulo , such a community was living in a situation of moral and social degradation. It seemed inevitable that the material decay would lead to spiritual decay. The people in this favela needed not only the force of faith, if they were to survive, but also drinking water. With time and leadership contributed by the priest, more people joined in the common effort until victory was achieved and water flowed. "It is clear that the victory had to be celebrated in the context of faith, fidelity and fraternity; a Brazilian celebration, with song, dance and a profound hope in the Lord of History" (Itaici).

The Basic Christian Communities create a place of material and spiritual solidarity. They take their inspiration from the Word of God and give flesh to the Christian virtue of hope. They help their members to eliminate all forms of racism, both amongst themselves and in the milieu in which they live. They denounce the social structures which produce all types of injustice. For example,

- the lack of the basic necessities for life (food, housing, work, education, and health);

- an inadequate wage for work done;

- the ignoring of the right of small farmers to own land, often expelled by the large landowners;

- the abuse of children and adults by those responsible for the organisation of prostitution and the drug trade.

This human degeneration swallows up the dignity and the most basic human rights of the people. The presence of missionaries, living close to the people, opens up new paths of hope. Through Jesus the Saviour, missionaries bring freedom to the oppressed; they work for the recognition of their dignity and respect for their freedom. The very preaching of the Good News is a denunciation of social injustice. The missionary community is the voice of the voiceless, the illegal immigrants, the exploited and the exiled. Missionaries today make use of the media to denounce those structures and practices that create poverty and new forms of slavery. They try to influence ways of thinking and are ready to use international pressure to promote justice and peace.

Love for the world

The proclamation of the Gospel is above all a witness of the love of God at work in this world. The suffering of people is shared by Christ and all those who are trying to follow him. Without this practical union with Christ, the Way, the Truth and the Life, the missionary community would be trying to witness with its own human resources, a witness that would accomplish nothing.

Our Spiritan Rule of Life reminds us that we are "set apart" to respond creatively to the needs of evangelisation of our time, living with those peoples, groups and individuals who have not yet heard the message of the Gospel.