CHAPTER I.

CICM Spirituality
Lesson 1: The Name (in Latin): Congregatio Immaculati Cordis Mariae or
The Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (in Tagalog: Kapatiran ng Kalinis-
linisang Puso ni Maria)

After the proclamation of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception by Pope Pius IX in 1854 in
his papal bull Ineffabilis Deus, and the assignment of the liturgical feast, there was the rapid spread of the
devotion to the “Immaculate Heart of Mary”. This was one of the circumstances when Fr. Theophile
Verbist and his first companions/co-founders Frs. Alois van Segvelt, Frans Vranckx, and Remi Verlinden
unanimously agreed to consecrate the Mission to “the Holy Incarnation of Our Lord Jesus Christ and to the
Immaculate Heart of the Very Blessed Virgin Mary, to whom they committed themselves to recommend
daily the interests of the Congregation.” It is thus clear that they were placing the Congregation under the
patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The current CICM emblem includes in its upper portion the Virgin with a Child inside a trunk, who is Our
Lady of Grace of Scheut, which was venerated in the village where Fr. Verbist established the first
headquarters of the Congregation.

Lesson 2: Dedicated to Jesus, the Incarnate Word

CFC 491-99, Jesus as Savior/Redeemer (from Cosmic Evil, from Socio-Political Oppression, from
Life’s Meaninglessness). Jesus’ act of redemption does not only refer to saving from sin, but includes
liberation from socio-economic evil such as poverty, ignorance, discrimination, disease, etc. As dedicated to
the Incarnate Word, to Jesus, these forms of evil are addressed by the CICM through their various
missionary involvements.

- The heart of the CICM spirituality is “completely centered on the Incarnation of the Word, as its
principal source” (CICM Constitutions Commentary, 44). That is the reason why the CICM is at the
service of the work of Redemption. Art 12-16 of the CICM Constitutions of 1988 deal with this
dedication to the Incarnate Word—this constant reference to the Person of Jesus should profoundly
characterize the whole life of a CICM missionary: he must thus enter into the life and the mission of
Him who “emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant” (Phil 2:7). Thus the Incarnate Word is his
fundamental inspiration in all his missionary commitments (Pycke, p.16) be it in his educational or
parish apostolate, in caring for the environment or for streetchildren, in Carlatan or in Mongolia, or
even in a simple ministry of presence; all these endeavors are related to the work of Redemption,
directed towards the building up of the Kingdom.

- This is the meaning of the cross in the topmost part of the CICM emblem:“The cross means poverty,
suffering, deprivation and failure that often mark the life of missionaries and their enterprises. But
the cross also always carries in it the seed of life and resurrection.” (Pycke, p.16)

\
 Lesson 3: Mary, Mother of the Incarnate Word, Patroness of the CICM

LG 64, Mary model of discipleship

- Article 16 of the CICM Constitutions connects Mary to Jesus, to whom the CICM identity and
mission are hinged: “God chose Mary to be the Mother of the Incarnate Word. In her, He reveals
himself as the One who exalts the lowly. She has a special place in our lives as missionaries of the
Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.” The CICM missionary therefore is invited to look
into Mary’s heart in her unqualified “yes” to the call of the Father to follow Jesus. “We turn to her, model of
faith and total dedication to God and to her Son’s mission.”
- The lower right portion of the CICM emblem shows a heart surrounded by twelve stars; this is a clear
reference to the traditional Catholic interpretation of Rev 12:1.

Lesson 4: Fr. Theophile Verbist and His Companions

The Vatican II Document, “Ad Gentes” clearly states: “Therefore, let the missionaries, God's co-
workers, ( cf. 1 Cor. 3:9), raise up congregations of the faithful such that, walking worthy of the vocation to
which they have been called (cf. Eph. 4:1), they may exercise the priestly, prophetic, and royal office which
God has entrusted to them. In this way, the Christian community will be a sign of God's presence in the
world: for by reason of the Eucharistic sacrifice, this community is ceaselessly on the way with Christ to the
Father; carefully nourished on the word of God; it bears witness to Christ; and finally, it walks in charity
and is fervent with the apostolic spirit.” (Ad Gentes, Chapter V # 15, on Missionaries)

Such missionary vocation/commitment of Fr. Theophile and his companions is clearly

supported in the above document. The CICM missionaries continue sharing the joy of the Gospel by
ministering to the people of different races in the world, and celebrating the Word of God in the Liturgy and
in the sacraments as Evangelii Nuntiandi beautifully puts; “Evangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation
proper to the Church, her deepest identity. She exists in order to evangelize, that is to say, in order to
preach and teach, to be the channel of the gift of grace, to reconcile sinners with God, and to perpetuate
Christ's sacrifice in the Mass, which is the memorial of His death and glorious resurrection.” (E.N. #14 )

Furthermore, the Apostolic Exhortation of his Holiness Pope Paul VI,“To the Episcopate, To the
Clergy and To All the Faithful of the Entire World” states:

“The Twelve and the first generation of Christians understood well the lesson of this text and
other similar ones; they made them into a program of action. Even persecution, by scattering the apostles,
helped to spread the Word and to establish the Church in ever more distant regions…In the course of
history, the generations of Christians have periodically faced various obstacles to this universal mission. On
the one hand, on the part of the evangelizers themselves, there has been the temptation for various reasons
to narrow down the field of their missionary activity. On the other hand, there has been the often humanly
insurmountable resistance of the people being addressed by the evangelizers. Furthermore, we must note
with sadness that the evangelizing work of the Church is strongly opposed, if not prevented, by certain
public powers. Even in our own day it happens that preachers of God's Word are deprived of their rights,
persecuted, threatened or eliminated solely for preaching Jesus Christ and His Gospel. But we are confident
that despite these painful trials the activity of these apostles will never meet final failure in any part of the
world.( #49-50)

This is very true in as far as the missionary activity of the CICM is concerned. The death of the
founder and many other confreres who were martyred for the sake of the mission did not become a
hindrance for the congregation to expand worldwide. Despite adversities, the congregation remained faithful
to the very origin of its missionary identity and constantly renews its deepest commitment to the Lord’s call
to proclaim the Good News of salvation to the whole world, to all creation, right to the ends of the earth!

Indeed, the legacy left by the Founder remains alive in every CICM missionary: a life to the end in
the service of the mission. Such is the “mark” of CICM: the call to leave everything for the sake of the
mission. Such is the participation of the congregation in the great mission of evangelization in response to
Jesus' last words in the Gospel conferring on the evangelization which the Lord entrusts to His apostles a
limitless universality: "Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation."

LESSON 5: CICM Motto: Cor Unun et Anima Una

The motto “One Heart and One Soul” obviously refers to a fundamental aspect of the vocation of the
CICM priests and brothers who are joined to live and work together out of diverse nationalities and cultures.
As such, “…they are a sign of solidarity among the particular Churches in their universal mission” (Art. 2,
Provisional Constitutions of 1987), and hence, they witness to universal brotherhood. Truly, there is in
CICM a call to brotherhood that has grown over the years. It has taken the shape of internationality and
universal brotherhood. At the bottom of it all lies the call to be available totally, to be sent for a lifetime in
the service of the Proclamation of the Good News. Originally a Belgian Foundation, CICM has grown into
an international religious missionary congregation of men from different races, colors and nationalities who
are dedicated to universal brotherhood.

In support of this universal brotherhood, Ad Gentes indicates that; “In order that the proper goals and
results may be obtained, all missionary workers should have but "one heart and one soul" (Acts 4:32) in the actual
carrying out of mission work itself. ( Chapter V, #30, on Planning Missionary Activity)

Furthermore, at the CICM General Conference of 1978, the Superior General says, “If ever, it is
here we have understood that this is the Lord’s calling to our group. Internationalization as universal
brotherhood is not a project the Congregation set for itself, but a call from the Lord. It is a challenge, as
one confrere put it, to preach the Gospel not only with words, but with our lives.”Our “Cor unum et anima
una” (one heart, one soul) is a beautiful logo, but it remains a challenge, an ideal we have to make true
every day, lest our message of the Good News becomes “a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal”. (1 Cor
13:1)
 “One heart and one soul”, we witness to the Father’s will that all men and women be brothers and
sisters in Christ. We are a sign of solidarity among the particular Churches in this universal mission as our
Founder wrote: “Provided we have good missionaries, very generous, well mortified, we will carry out the
will of God; their nationality matters little to me.”

Lesson 6: The Charism: Ad Extra, Ad Intra

“Therefore, by the Holy Spirit, who distributes the charismata as He wills for the common good (1
Cor. 12:11), He inspires the missionary vocation in the hearts of individuals, and at the same time He raises
up in the Church certain institutes, which take as their own special task the duty of preaching the Gospel, a
duty belonging to the whole Church. They are assigned with a special vocation who, being endowed with a
suitable natural temperament, and being fit as regards talent and other qualities, have been trained to
undertake mission work; or be they autochthonous or be they foreigners: priests, Religious, or laymen. Sent
by legitimate authority, they go out in faith and obedience to those who are far from Christ. They are set
apart for the work for which they have been taken up (cf. Acts 13:2), as ministers of the Gospel, "that the
offering up of the Gentiles may become acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Spirit" (Rom. 15:16).(Ad
Gentes, Chapter IV, # 23)

The response of the CICM is clear as indicated in their mission statement which says;

“…Enlightened by those who preceded us and who - like our founder - left their
Familiar surroundings to follow Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word, by integrating
themselves into a foreign culture, and by living in solidarity with another people;
Enriched by those we serve, especially the poor who reveal to us the sin of the
world  and who help us discover the true meaning of God's plan of love, we CICM
missionaries of different races and cultures live and work together as brothers in
order to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ wherever it is most needed.”

This is the charism of the CICM: “There is something of the fingerprint of the Founder that
continues to give the CICM its own face, and its own contribution to the CHURCH. If anything marks
CICM, IT IS THE CALL TO LEAVE EVERYTHING FOR THE SAKE OF THE MISSION.” - FR. Gabriel
Dieryck, CICM

The CICM missionary is called to go beyond geographical and religious boundaries to share Jesus
Christ with all those who do not know Him. This is the CICM charismad-extra (towards the outside): to go
where they are sent…where they are most needed…in frontier situations. Like the founder, Fr. Theophile
Verbist, the CICM missionaries heed the call of Christ as they say with conviction; “ We are sent to the
nations to announce the Good News, wherever our missionary presence is most needed, especially where
the Gospel is not known or lived. We leave our country to proclaim salvation as the great gift of God which
liberates from everything that oppresses and divides people.” Every CICM missionary then, is willing to
leave behind everything, including his family, culture and possessions. He is sent to proclaim the Good
News of salvation to all nations. This Good news of salvation is a gift of God that liberates people from all
forms of oppression and sin.
 The ad extra dimension of their missionary identity (going to another country) or leaving their
country of origin as CICM missionaries and making themselves vulnerable as foreigners in the midst of a
different people, is still a valuable testimony, especially in this age when the world is full of migrants. 

Another dimension of the CICM charism is stated in the phrase “to bring the Good News of Jesus
Christ wherever it is most needed.” This does not necessitate the missionary to leave his own country but to
be where his service is most needed, may it be in his own country or anywhere, which is the ad intra
dimension of the CICM missionary identity. Ad extra, ad intra therefore expresses the reality of a CICM
missionary vocation: to be a CICM is to leave one’s home, family and culture, and even one’s country ( ad
extra) or simply one’s region, to learn a new language and a new culture, to be with other people. The
understanding/stress now is not necessarily therefore to physically leave one’s country, but to respond to a
situation where one’s missionary presence is most needed (ad intra).