On
Tuesday May 27th, some of the Spiritans from the Toronto area
gathered at Shanahan House for an evening prayer and celebration of
the actual 300th anniversary of the founding of the congregation.
From very humble beginnings - an effort by Claude Poullart des Places
to help train poor students to minister as priests to neglected
people in France - it developed into a missionary family that now
works in five continents and which has played a crucial part in the
Church's missionary work throughout the last three centuries. It was
on Pentecost Sunday, May 27th 1703, after Mass, in Our Lady's chapel
of the church of St. Etienne des-Grès in Paris in front of the
statue of Notre
Dame de Bonne Délivrance,
the so called Black Madonna of Paris, the 24-year-old, not yet
ordained, Claude Francis Poullart des Places (1679 - 1709) and his
dozen friends consecrated themselves to bring the Good News to the
poor by dedicating themselves to the Holy Spirit under the invocation
of the Blessed Virgin. That day marked the humble beginnings of the
Spiritans, the Congregation of the Holy Ghost. Three hundred years
later in the backyard of a Toronto neighbourhood house, Spiritans,
young and old, from several countries continue to bear witness to the
legacy of Poullart des Places.
Welcome
to the site of the TransCanada Province of the Spiritans. We are a
Roman Catholic Religious Congregation of over three thousand members,
founded in 1703. Our missions are spread worldwide. While we may be
found involved in many diverse ministries, we have dedicated
ourselves to working with the poor and in those situations where the
Church has difficulty in finding ministers. We hope you enjoy your
visit to our site and that while browsing you will keep us in your
prayers. May God bless you.
