The congregation of the Mission (commonly known as the “the Vincentian”) is a worldwide order of 4000 Roman Catholic priests and brothers in 86 countries founded by St. Vincent De Paul in 1625 for the evangelization of the poor and the formation and education of the diocesan clergy.
The men in our congregation pronounce the vows of celibacy, poverty and obedience to God for the whole time of their lives. It was St. Vincent’s intention to create a community with the flexibility and mobility of a missionary society that would live and work in close contact with the world for the sake of accomplishing the mission of Jesus Christ.
The seal of the Congregation of the Mission depicts its focus and reasons for existence: Jesus is the source of our salvation which is inscribed in Latin in the seal, “Evangelizare Pauperibus Misit Me” – meaning, “He has sent me to bring Good News to the Poor”. The initials “C.M.” follow the name of every Vincentian in the world and it stands for, “Congregation of the Mission” and identifies us as the priests and brothers of St. Vincent DePaul.
The spirit of the Vincentians comprises those personal attitudes and actions of Christ which our founder recommended to all the members from the very beginning: love and reverence for God, openness to Divine Providence, compassionate, effective love for the laity in their formation, so that they too may work for the evangelization of the poor. The Congregation strives to express its spirit in five virtues drawn from its own special way of imitating Jesus Christ, namely Simplicity, Gentleness, Humility, Self-Denial and Zeal. Vincentian priest and brothers total over 4000 members worldwide and serve in 86 countries.
In 1981 we The Vincentians of Midwest Province currently known as the Western Province of The United States of America came to Kenya in response to the Bishop of Marsabit asking us to train their men for the diocesan priesthood. In 1998 we opened our own seminary in Nairobi, DePaul Centre.
Today, we celebrate our existence in Kenya, with continuous commitment to train diocesan seminarians and priests in different ways at Christ the King Major seminary in Nyeri, St. Augustine Major Seminary Mabanga in Bungoma Diocese. and at St. Thomas Aquinas in Nairobi. We are also training our men for Vincentian Vocation at DePaul Centre Nairobi. Our existence here in Kenya is blessed with two parishes Namely; Holy Cross Thigio, St. Vincent DePaul Kamulu Parish in the Archdiocese of Nairobi, St, Vincent DePaul Giathugu Parish in Archdiocese Nyeri, St. Kizito Matisi Parish in the Diocese of Kitale, Our Lady of Assumption Indangalasia Parish in the Diocese of Kakamega, and Our Lady Queen of Peace Kyebando Parish in Jinja Diocese Uganda Mission, where we meet and serve the poor.
In order to achieve the objectives of our mission as the Congregation of the Mission Kenya Region, we do work in close collaboration with the larger Vincentian Family That is; the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent DePaul, Society of Saint Vincent DePaul, and The Vincentian Marian Youth Group and other stakeholders such as the Bishops, local and international donor agencies, other religious groups in Kenya, The civil societies and the Government of Kenya in perfecting our mission here in Kenya.
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