Fr. Eliecer SANDOVAL

Details

Published: 22 January 2020

Prayer for the canonization
In our communities, disseminated over four continents, we pray daily for the canonization of our Founder. The prayer ends with a request for grace. In addition to the specific intentions that each person or community can express, all of us can unite to ask for a common grace. Our sincere and selfless prayer can lead us to the miracle necessary for his beatification.

Twelve intentions proposed by the General Council to the whole Society
The General Council proposes twelve intentions, from March 2017 to February 2018, and I am glad to convey them to you. Thus, for a whole month, we ourselves and our friends can ask through the intercession of Bishop Marion Brésillac a grace on some specific points of our missionary activity, a work which he himself began. 

How to add the intention to the prayer?
At the point where the prayer says: "... By his intercession we will receive the graces of which we have need. In particular..." we will add the proposed intention, by saying it aloud. Here below follow the intentions for the 12 months, starting from March 2017

Commenting of and gathering information on each monthly intention
Each community can find a suitable occasion to focus on and elaborate the intention of the month with examples and quotations taken from our newsletters, documents and website. (EG for the month of March taking the experience of primary evangelization of one of our members from the SMA Web Site; or reading out the list of the newly ordained for the month of September, etc.)

MARCH 2017:The grace that SMA missionaries develop their ministry of primary evangelization to remote and poor regions in Africa.

APRIL 2017: The grace of taking generous and wise initiatives to help African migrants

MAY 2017: The grace of a good discernment and inspired decisions at the SMA Plenary Council in Nairobi.

JUNE 2017: The grace that SMA presence in Sierra Leone will help to actualize the missionary spirit of Brésillac for the West African Church.

JULY 2017: The grace of spiritual accompaniment and formation for SMA associates, lay missionaries and volunteers.

AUGUST 2017: The grace of continuous sharing of personnel and financial resources among the units of the SMA for the good of mission.

SEPTEMBER 2017: The grace of joy in pastoral ministry for the newly ordained SMA priests.

OCTOBER 2017: The grace of fruitful collaboration among priests, brothers, sisters and laity, who share the common patrimony of the African Missions.

NOVEMBER 2017: The grace of actualizing our missionary vocation through Event 2017.

DECEMBER 2017: The grace of perseverance and hope for Christian communities facing daily insecurity and terrorism

JANUARY 2018: The grace of a renewed evangelizing presence of SMA communities in Europe and America.

FEBRUARY 2018: The grace of justice and reconciliation for African countries with social, ethnic and political troubles.

Details

Published: 28 February 2017

The General Council is the central executive body of the SMA. Its headquarters are in Rome. It is composed of the Superior General, the Vicar General and two general councilors, all elected by the General Assembly for a term of six years. He leads and ensures the vitality of the Company internationally, inspiring its members and associates in their life and missionary work.

                                                 
Superior General: Antonio Porcellato (Italy)

Fr. Antonio Porcellato was born on March 28, 1955. A native of the Diocese of Treviso in Italy, he joined SMA in 1974. Ordained in 1980, he was assigned in the Ivory Coast in Abidjan where he specializes in pastoral theology at the Catholic Institute of West Africa (ICAO). He then vicar of the parish of St Paul de San Pedro. After 10 years in Italy as vocations promoter, trainer and Provincial Councillor, he was appointed in 1995 to the team of the International Spiritual Year in Abomey Calavi in Benin. From there he was appointed teacher and spiritual director at the Foyer SMA Ibadan until his appointment as Vice District Superior en formation SMA Africa (DFA) in 2001. From 2007 to date, he is Vice SMA provincial Superior of Italy and in charge of missionary and vocations in the SMA-NDA community Feriole Italy. Fr. Porcellato was elected Vicar General of the SMA on April 30, 2013 and Superior General on May 10, 2019.

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Vicar General: François de Paul HOUNGUE(Benin) 

Father François de Paul HOUNGUE was born April 2, 1971 in Cotonou, Benin, He joined SMA in October 1994 after his university studies. On December 2nd 2002 at Ibadan in Nigeria, he made his permanent commitment to the SMA before being ordained a priest on July 5th 2003 in Cotonou. As a priest, François de Paul worked for 4 years in the midst of Bayaka Pygmies of Belemboke successively as assistant and and as Parish Priest of the mission and for the Pygmy Project in the diocese of Berberati in Central African Republic. From 2007 to 2009 he studied dogmatic theology at Boston College in the US. In October 2009, he returned to CAR to be in-charge of Bimbo Bangui training home. His travels in the service training took him to the Philippines, where he was appointed as the superior of the house of philosophy and theology based in Manila. In October 2013, he was elected as the vice-superior of the District-in-formation of the Bight of Benin (Ibadan/Nigeria). Following the election of François Gnonhossou as bishop of Dassa Zoume, François de Paul HOUNGUE was elected as the General Councillor by the Plenary Council on 5 June 2015. Since September 2015 he joined the other Councillors in Rome. He was elected the Vicar General of the Sociey on May 16, 2019.

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

General Councillor: Francis Rozario (India)

Fr. Francis Rozario is from the Diocese of Salem in India. Born in 1975, he issued his perpetual oath in 2002 before being ordained a priest in 2003. Assigned to Nigeria, he worked there in the diocese of Kontagora as Vicar Parish New Bussa. He then parish priest of Agwara. From 2006 to 2010 he studied exegesis in Rome. So far, there is a trainer at the SMA formation house in Ibadan and teacher at the Major Seminary St. Peter and Paul Bodija Nigeria. He was elected General Councillor of the SMA on April 30, 2013 and renewed to the same post on May 16, 2019.

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

                                                               
General Councillor: Krzysztof Pachut (Poland)

Fr. Krzysztof Pachut hails from Poland. He was born on July 24, 1978 in Limanowa, Poland. He joined the SMA in 2000. After a year in the country, he did his pastoral year in Togo, Spiritual year in Calavi (Benin) and theology in Strasbourg where he became a permanent member of the SMA. He was ordained a deacon in 2007 and priest in 2008. Krzysztof was appointed to Central African Republic after his ordination and he served in Monasao mission.

He was called back to Poland in 2012 to do vocation and mission animation. He was appointed the Vice Superior of Polish District in Formation in 2013 and Councillor in 2016. He was elected as the General Councillor in 2019.

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Address: Via della Nocetta 111, Roma 00164, Italy

Tel: 0039-0666168420

Details

Published: 30 November 2014

The cause of beatification of the Founder

For a number of years, the cause of beatification of our founder among the objectives of the SMA. But the procedures to be followed in such an approach are quite complex. Every day in our various communities we pray that "the Church recognizes the holiness of this great servant of the mission, and that through her intercession, we get the graces we need." As the postulator, it seems useful to share with you some thoughts to help a better understanding of this common goal each SMA. One cause of founding an institute of beatification implies a strong commitment on the part of its members. It is therefore necessary to be understood by all members. The essence of our faith rests in the recognition of Jesus Christ Son of God, died and rose again for the salvation of mankind. It should be known to all, especially the poor. This announcement will bear abundant fruit if we witness to his love. Today more than ever, the world needs credible witnesses: the saints can be seen therefore as having embodied in them the Good News of Jesus to be received by all. "The Church is the living saints comments of the gospel, because they embodied the interpretation of the Word of God and therefore, a real path to reach Christ. "(HU von Balthasar) Every Christian is bound to answer God's call to holiness. As missionaries and priests, our responsibility is great: make visible the great goodness of God for the world, especially for those living in the midst of situations of suffering physical, moral, physical and spiritual. A beatification is not that fidelity to formalities. She is, whatever the circumstances, a return to the basics of our faith and our desire to be priests and missionaries after the heart of God. Beyond the circumstances of time, place, with changing attitudes, the saints, the blessed have a message to deliver: if we listen to an open heart and if we have their blessings, they will get to us the graces we need to act well. In our case, we must admit that Bishop Brésillac was not well known. The publication of his writings and reflections, and its pensions has opened a new era approach to make it better known and appreciated today. The case also forced us to seek and edit texts which until then were unknown. On the other hand the founder is not only a gift to us, but also for our friends, our benefactors, the Christian faithful and all those to whom we preach. There is no reason that we do make known to them, in simplicity and discretion.

Recently, the number of those who know him grew. They resort to his intercession and present, through him, needs to God. We who keep talking about solidarity with the poor and most abandoned, must be restless until we presented them our founding as the servant of all, alongside the humble, small and poor.

Today we have a fifty cases of graces received through the intercession of the Servant of God Bishop Marion Brésillac. They come from all over the world and describe healings, jobs obtained, success in school, recoveries of family peace ... It should be recalled that the recognition of the sanctity of a person is the result of devotion to this person .dropoff window This is one of the conditions for success of a cause of beatification. A miracle accepted by the Church for the beatification is a gift from God. But it is achieved through our commitment to promote the cause. It is therefore important to broadcast images of our Founder, and if necessary, follow up specific cases. We invite you therefore to foster collaboration of the faithful, it is an act of charity that will benefit them. - These people can broadcast images of the Founder especially for the sick; - Ask them to pray a novena or triduum and if they get the pardon, help them draft a written testimony, as simple as it is, to promote the cause. The Cause of the Founder requires active engagement and good will of all. If you have any suggestions on the issue, I will be more than happy to know them.

Fr Bruno Semplicio

Postulator:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Details

Published: 30 November 2014

The general archives of SMA are located in the General House via della Nocetta 111. They have the status of private archives: they are not open to the general public. However, we gladly welcome researchers wishing to consult the old documents more than 50 years.

SMA Archives contain:

- Letters written by / to our founder, Bishop Marion Brésillac and by senior generals who succeeded him: Father Planque (from 1859 to 1907, typing 8.700 letters fill 19 volumes), Bishop Pellet (from 1907 to 1914: 13 volumes), Bishop Duret (from 1914 to 1919 a volume), etc.

- The letters from missionaries in Africa since 1858 (mainly from Dahomey, Western Nigeria, Gold Coast, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Egypt).

- Several "customary" or mission Journals (diaries).

- Correspondence between the Prosecutor in Rome and Propaganda.

- Biographical information on members of the SMA.

Related to archives, a library contains some theses and monographs made by our colleagues or students who conducted their research in our archives, as well as various books about missionaries or African themes.                                                     

The current archivist is Fr. Andrea Mandonico:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Phone number : (00 39) 06 66 16 84 36

Opening hours: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday: 9 am 00-12: 30 pm; 15 h 00 to 17 h 30.

The archives are closed during school holidays.

It is good to announce in advance by email the day it is proposed to come: an email will confirm quickly that the archivist will be present to welcome you.

Details

Published: 30 November 2014

                   The Secretariat of the SMA is located in the Generalate, Via della Nocetta 111 Roma (Italy)

Fr. Emmanuel Dim SMA is the current the Secretary General of the SMA. He hails from the Nigerian Province. After his priestly ordination in 2013, he was sent to South Africa for mission until 2019 after which he came to Rome to complete a licentiate degree in Canon Law at the Lateran University. The Secretariat is the administrative centre of the Society at the service of the General Council and the whole Society. The work is rich and varied, ranging from translation and publication of documents, to organization of international meetings in various locations around the world. The Secretary General can be contacted at the following address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Details

Published: 30 November 2014