Dear friends,

You have been so good as to respond in large numbers to the request for prayers we made last Thursday.

To those who have made the effort of reading to the end of the laborious articles of Vincent Mongaillard, based on a complete misconception of the history of the Church, of her rules and her liturgy, on an ignorance of the workings of the ICKSP, on a confusion between a seminary intended for the formation of good priests for eternity and a training centre for friendly organisers of holiday clubs, on the comments of “witnesses”, who bravely remain anonymous and of two canons in trouble with canonical rules, you will find the message addressed by Monsignor Wach on the 15th June to the aforementioned journalist.

This will be our only response to Vincent Mongaillard.

May Saint Francis de Sales, patron of journalists, intercede for us.

Sir, 

I have received your email of 6t June, 2023.

I had thought that a journalist who pursues the legitimate goal of informing his readers ought to lead an investigation of quality, use measured and prudent language, and avoid personal animosity.

This is not your way of doing things in the many questions which you have asked me, which seem more like a copy-pasted pamphlet than a serious inquiry.

Since you are investigating our Institute, why did you not begin by consulting our website, freely accessible, which holds all sorts of archives since 2008? You would have discovered the history of our modest institute, its connection with the authorities at Rome from its origin, and the role of several cardinals in its foundation. There you would have found detailed information about our ecclesiastical situation, and thus answers to many of your questions.

If you had consulted our annual calendars, distributed throughout our apostolates, you would have seen the good relations we have with the bishops, especially in France, including the president of the Bishops’ Conference of France, in whose diocese we have an apostolate, which he entrusted to us.

You would have discovered there that our Institute, which every year welcomes the numerous seminarians sent by Divine Providence, opens new apostolates every year in France and throughout the world at the request of bishops, and has the joy of ordaining a number of priests every year for the service of the Holy Church.

You would have discovered there the formation given at seminary, the doctrinal formation at the school of Saint Thomas Aquinas, the formation in community life and liturgy at the school of Saint Benedict and the demanding life of charity at the school of Saint Francis de Sales. There you would have read that the seminary is a place of discernment, and that not everyone perseveres, which does not imply that their departure coincides with bullying and vexation, or that some are expelled for good reasons that it would be shameful for them to admit. There you would have discovered the good work of the teachers at seminary, which I admire greatly and which I see every time I visit Gricigliano, as I myself spend nine-tenths of the year away from the seminary, working for the Institute.

You would have discovered the beautiful vocation of our Sister Adorers, consecrated to God in prayer for the priesthood, who are frequently called on by bishops to open new convents. In them, I admire their humility and their continual prayer in the Church’s service.

You would have discovered the missionary reality of our institute, and the apostolic work of several of our priests in Africa, especially in Gabon, as well as our ties of friendship with the local authorities, both ecclesiastic and civil. You would have seen the good work that they do in difficult circumstances, with the most destitute, with the starving, with those sick with leprosy, with orphans.

You would have seen the work of our priests throughout the world, who care for the poorest who they meet in their outreach work, in visits to the sick and to the elderly, who they visit in their missions as chaplains of hospitals or of care homes. You would have seen the work undertaken in prisons by our priests who have received a mission from the bishop to accompany those who are incarcerated.

You would have also discovered the good work of our priests with bishops in administration, chancelleries, diocesan archives and with the Roman authorities.

You would have seen there the great commitment of our priests in the schools we have on two continents (Africa and Europe), in which, in the midst of so many sacrifices, we see the fruit of the action of Grace in the formation of young people, of which, we have had a recent eloquent example (Henri d’Anselme).

You would have seen and read there that we welcome all the faithful sent to us by the Good Lord, whatever their past might be, whatever their history might be, since that is the mission of the Church and of men of the Church, to welcome those who are sent to them, to try to guide them towards God.

I regret your bias, just as I suffer when I witness infidelities in commitments taken before the Lord or with the Institute. The lack of honesty with the Church, in order to serve ends that are personal or political deeply wounds me.

I take comfort in seeing the beautiful fruits of the ministries of our priests, sometimes weakened by a world in need of guidance, but confident in the formation they received at seminary.

These are the answers I intend to give, inseparable from each other.

Yours sincerely, 

Mgr Gilles Wach