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After his appointment on March 19, 2024 as Archbishop of Kananga, on the Solemnity of Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary, protector of the Holy Family and patron Archdiocese, this date is now symbolic for Mgr. for Bishop Félicien Ntambue Kasembe: father of the Archdiocese and shepherd protector of the flock.
Rev. Father Edouard Tsimba, CICM, appointed auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo on July 15, 2023, was ordained bishop in Kinshasa on September 9, 2023.
On June 12, 2023, during the CICM 16 General Chapter, we celebrated the 200th anniversary of the birth of our Founder, Théophile Verbist.
The vocation of brothers is gradually disappearing in CICM. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that the candidates who request to be brothers are few; and on the other hand, they get discouraged and change their mind during or after their formation. One of the reasons would be that they do not see very clearly their place in a clerical Institute. Therefore, the General Chapter invites the confreres to avoid any clericalist attitude and to stress more our being religious missionary than being a priest.
Acts of the 15th CICM General Chapter, 2017
In this regard, the CICM General Government organizes the General Assembly of the CICM Brothers from August 14 to 20, 2022, in Rome. In his welcoming words, Charles Phukuta, our Superior General, stressed the contribution of the CICM Brothers to the CICM missions worldwide in the past. He then urged the participants to reflect on what we must cherish in living our CICM religious and missionary life and what to improve to boost Brothers' vocation in our Congregation. We thank Adorable Castillo, our Vicar General, for organizing the gathering, Ghislain H. Toussé (ACO), John Mallare (ACO) for their translation service, and all the speakers.
{gallery}Geeneral Assembly Of CICM Brothers{/gallery}
Since November 28, 2021, we have been celebrating the bicentenary of the birth of Father Théophile Verbist, our Founder. As we are celebrating the 199th birth anniversary (June 12, 2022), we are happy to unveil the logo the General Government approved to honor the 200th birth anniversary of Father Théophile Verbist (June 12, 2023).
Art. 2 of our CICM constitutions, which states, “Just like our founder, each of us has heard the call of Christ: ‘Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Gospel to all creation” (Mk. 16:15)” is the logo backdrop for the bicentennial celebration of the birth of our Founder Fr. Théophile Verbist. The bicentennial logo conveys the spirit of the past, Verbist’s missionary call, and its relevance today.
The cathedral-like icon represents the cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp, Belgium, the birthplace of Théophile Verbist.
The icon next to the high cathedral depicts the Great Wall of China, which was inspired by Verbist’s ardent desire to go to the mission and serve the Chinese orphans.
The crescent vector shape reminds us that Verbist’s mission began in China and spread worldwide. Verbist’s missionary spirit to leave his home country to help people of different races inspired many others to follow in his footsteps, abandoning all to fulfill God’s call. Verbist’s mission is still very much alive today, as symbolized by the crescent shape. Every CICM’s core mission is to go wherever they are sent.
Finally, Verbist’s visage reminds us that his model and spirit continue to guide this missionary Institute.
May this logo inspire all CICM from all over the world, from the great cities to far-flung rural places, as we celebrate One Heart and One Soul, our Founder’s bicentennial birth.