CHARISM AND SPIRIT OF VINCENTIAN CONGREGATION
The spirit of the Vincentian Congregation is the participation in the spirit of Christ, ever active in the Church, lived and recommended by St. Vincent, its heavenly patron. This spirit is an intimate, personal love of the Father, docility to the divine providence and an ardent, compassionate love of the poor. The members of the congregation try to understand the spirit of Christ and be imbued with it by having continual recourse to the Gospel as the source of Christian life and to the teaching and example of St. Vincent, contained especially in the Common Rules. As visualized by St. Vincent, they should strive to give expression to the spirit of Christ, resplendent in the five virtues of simplicity, humility, meekness, mortification and zeal for the salvation of souls. These virtues become the faculties of the soul of the congregation and all the actions of its members may always be animated by them. The ardent and compassionate love of the poor shall inspire the Vincentians to work hard and to do their best to improve the conditions of the poor, and to share their lot by adopting a humble and simple life style.
A whole-hearted commitment to the evangelization of the poor and their human and Christian advancement is the identifying mark and charism of the congregation. The members organize and evaluate all their activities in the light of this specific charism, and continue to renew the congregation in the same spirit. They experience their vocation mainly in the desire to serve the poor. This desire is the compelling force behind all their activities.