Libermann, François Marie Paul (A) - Dictionary of African Christian Biography

<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en" class="no-js"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"> <meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=edge"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0"> <meta http-equiv="cleartype" content="on">  <link rel="stylesheet" href="/assets/css/main.css"> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/assets/css/bootstrap.css">   <title>Libermann, François Marie Paul (A) - Dictionary of African Christian Biography</title> <meta name="description" content="To collect, preserve, and make freely accessible biographical accounts and church histories – from oral and written sources – integral to a scholarly understanding of African Christianity."> <meta name="author" content="Quinn, Frederick"> <meta property="og:locale" content="en_US"> <meta property="og:site_name" content="Dictionary of African Christian Biography"> <meta property="og:title" content="Libermann, François Marie Paul (A)"> <meta property="og:type" content="article"> <meta property="article:published_time" content="1802-1852">   <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=UA-19985914-1"></script> <script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments)}; gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'UA-19985914-1'); </script>  <script> document.documentElement.className = document.documentElement.className.replace(/\bno-js\b/g, '') + ' js ';</script>  <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="57x57" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-57x57.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="60x60" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-60x60.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="72x72" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-72x72.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="76x76" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-76x76.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="114x114" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-114x114.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="120x120" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-120x120.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="144x144" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-144x144.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="152x152" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-152x152.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="180x180" href="/assets/favicon/apple-icon-180x180.png"> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="192x192" href="/assets/favicon/android-icon-192x192.png"> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="32x32" href="/assets/favicon/favicon-32x32.png"> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="96x96" href="/assets/favicon/favicon-96x96.png"> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="16x16" href="/assets/favicon/favicon-16x16.png"> <link rel="manifest" href="/manifest.json"> <meta name="msapplication-TileColor" content="#ffffff"> <meta name="msapplication-TileImage" content="/assets/favicon/ms-icon-144x144.png"> <meta name="theme-color" content="#ffffff"> </head> <body class="layout--archive" style="zoom: 1; margin-bottom: 354px;">  <div class="masthead-banner"> <div class="masthead__inner-wrap">  <div class="logo"> <a href="/#"><img src="/assets/images/logo-new-en.png"></a> </div> <nav class="top"> <input type="checkbox" id="drop" /> <label for="drop" class="toggle-m">Menu</label> <ul class="menu">    <li> <label for="drop-2" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="/">Home</a></div> </label> <a href="/"> <div class="drop">Home</div> </a> <input type="checkbox" id="drop-2" /> <ul class=="top"> <li class="second"><a href="/">English</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/fr/">Français</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/pt/">Português</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/sw/">Kiswahili</a></li> </ul> </li>    <li> <label for="drop-4" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="">Translation</a></div> </label> <a href=""> <div class="drop">Translation</div> </a> <input type="checkbox" id="drop-4" /> <ul class=="top"> <li class="second"> <div id="google_translate_element"></div> <script src="https://translate.google.com/translate_a/element.js?cb=googleTranslateElementInit"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> function googleTranslateElementInit() { new google.translate.TranslateElement({ pageLanguage: 'en' }, 'google_translate_element'); } </script> </li> </ul> </li>    <li> <label for="drop-5" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="/about/">About</a></div> </label> <a href="/about/"> <div class="drop">About</div> </a> <input type="checkbox" id="drop-5" /> <ul class=="top"> <li class="second"><a href="/about/vision/">Vision</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/about/editors-and-elders/">Editors and Elders</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/about/editorial-committee/">Executive Committee</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/about/donor-list/">Donors</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/about/partners/">Partners</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/about/usage/">Site Usage</a></li> </ul> </li>    <li> <label for="drop-0" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="/sort/stories/">Stories</a></div> </label> <a href="/sort/stories/"> <div class="drop">Stories</div> </a> <input type="checkbox" id="drop-0" /> <ul class=="top"> <li class="second"><a href="/sort/stories/latest-sort/">Newest Stories</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/sort/stories/collected-memories/">Collected Memories</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/sort/stories/regional-histories/">Regional Histories</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/sort/stories/country-sort/">Modern Africa</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/sort/stories/ancient-church-index/">Ancient Africa</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/resources/datasheets/affiliation/">Affiliation</a></li> </ul> </li>    <li> <label for="drop-1" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="/projects/">Projects</a></div> </label> <a href="/projects/"> <div class="drop">Projects</div> </a> <input type="checkbox" id="drop-1" /> <ul class=="top"> <li class="second"><a href="/projects/women/">Women</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/projects/music-art/">Musicians and Artists</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/projects/diaspora">Diaspora</a></li> </ul> </li>    <li> <label for="drop-3" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="/resources">Resources</a></div> </label> <a href="/resources"> <div class="drop">Resources</div> </a> <input type="checkbox" id="drop-3" /> <ul class=="top"> <li class="second"><a href="/resources/introductory/">Introductory Resources</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/resources/educational/">Educational Resources</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/resources/bibliographic/">Bibliographic Resources</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/resources/oral-history/">Oral History Resources</a></li> </ul> </li>    <li> <label for="drop-6" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="/journal/">Journal</a></div> </label> <a href="/journal/"> <div class="drop">Journal</div> </a> </li>    <li> <label for="drop-7" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="/connect/">Connect</a></div> </label> <a href="/connect/"> <div class="drop">Connect</div> </a> <input type="checkbox" id="drop-7" /> <ul class=="top"> <li class="second"><a href="/connect/news/">News</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/connect/submit/">Submissions</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/connect/collaborate/">Collaborate</a></li> <li class="second"><a href="/connect/contact/">Contact Us</a></li> </ul> </li>    <li> <label for="drop-8" class="toggle"> <div class="drop"><a href="/donate/">Donate</a></div> </label> <a href="/donate/"> <div class="drop">Donate</div> </a> </li>    <label class="toggle" style="margin-left: .5vw !important; margin-right: .5vw !important;"> <a class="search-image" href="/search.html" style="padding: 0px !important"></a></label> <li class="menu"> <a class="search-image" href="/search.html" style="padding: 0px !important"></a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> <div class="masthead-bar-en"> </div> </div>  <div id="main" role="main"><a name="top"></a> <div class="sidebar sticky"> <div class="language-switch2">This page is available in:</div> <div class="language-switch"><div class="lang-head"> <div class="en"><a href="/stories/nonafricans/libermann-francois/" rel="permalink">EN</a></div> <div class="fr"><a href="/fr/stories/nonafricans/libermann-francois/" rel="permalink">FR</a></div> </div></div>  <nav class="nav__list"> <input id="ac-toc" name="accordion-toc" type="checkbox" /> <label for="ac-toc">Sort and Index Menu</label> <ul class="nav__items"> <li> <span class="nav__sub-title">Sort Stories By</span> <ul class="side"> <li><a href="/sort/stories/" class="">Name</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/latest-sort/" class="">Newest</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/century-sort/" class="">Century</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/tradition-sort/" class="">Tradition</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/country-sort/" class="">Country</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/author-sort/" class="">Author</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/project-luke/" class="">Project Luke</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/institution-sort/" class="">Institution</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/language-sort/" class="">Language</a></li> </ul> </li> <li> <span class="nav__sub-title">Category Indexes</span> <ul class="side"> <li><a href="/sort/stories/ancient-church-index/" class="">Ancient Christians</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/artist-index/" class="">Artists</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/catechist-index/" class="">Catechists</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/classic-index/" class="">Classic</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/clergy-index/" class="">Clergy</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/diaspora-index/" class="">Diaspora</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/ecologist-index/" class="">Ecologists</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/ecumenist-index/" class="">Ecumenists</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/evangelist-index/" class="">Evangelists</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/martyr-index/" class="">Martyrs</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/medical-index/" class="">Medical Practitioners</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/missionary-index/" class="">Missionaries</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/musician-index/" class="">Musicians</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/nationalist-index/" class="">Nationalists</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/non-africans-index/" class="">Non-Africans</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/non-christian-index/" class="">Non-Christians</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/persecuted-index/" class="">Persecuted</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/photo-index/" class="">Photos</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/scholar-index/" class="">Scholars</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/theologian-index/" class="">Theologians</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/translator-index/" class="">Translators</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/women-index/" class="">Women</a></li> <li><a href="/sort/stories/youth-index/" class="">Youth</a></li> </ul> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> <article class="page" itemscope itemtype="http://schema.org/CreativeWork"> <meta itemprop="headline" content="Libermann, François Marie Paul (A)"> <meta itemprop="datePublished" content="1802-1852">  <div class="page__inner-wrap"> <header> <div class="classic"> <div class="classic__logo"></div> <div class="classic__text"><h3 class="classic-header">Classic DACB Collection</h3>All articles created or submitted in the first twenty years of the project, from 1995 to 2015.</div> </div></div> <br> <h1 class="page__title" itemprop="headline">Libermann, François Marie Paul (A) </h1> <p class="page__meta"> 1802-1852 <br/> Catholic Church <br/> Non Africans <br/> </p> </header> <section class="page__content" itemprop="text">  <blockquote> <p>Faites-vous nègres avec les nègres.</p> <p>(Make yourself black with the blacks) – François Libermann</p> </blockquote> <p>Jaigel Libermann, scion of a Polish Jewish family, was on his way to becoming a second-generation rabbi when he was converted to Christianity. The twenty-year-old Alsatian talmudic scholar was influenced by David Drach, a leading Parisian Jewish intellectual, who had converted to Catholicism. On November 12, 1825, Libermann too was converted and was baptized a few days later. He took the name François for Francis of Assisi. Although he studied for the priesthood, Libermann was plagued with epilepsy and was not ordained until 1841 at age thirty-nine. He had only thirteen years of active ministry remaining, but in that time he became one of France’s most important nineteenth-century missionary voices.</p> <p>Shortly after his ordination he opened a novitiate for the Society of the Holy Heart of Mary to send priests abroad. The new priest had long been interested in France’s black colonial world, having carefully questioned former missionaries who had served in Réunion, Madagascar, and Haiti. Initially only three missionaries appeared. Haiti and Mauritius became off limits for political reasons, and the long-established Holy Ghost Fathers claimed francophone West Africa as their territory. Meanwhile, Rome, in response to the antislavery movement, created the Vicariate Apostolic of the Two Guineas extending five thousand miles along the West African coast. Fr. Libermann contributed seven priests and three lay workers, who set out for Cape Palmas in 1843. As was often the case, death and disease decimated the missionary ranks. It was not until September 28, 1844, that the first permanent station was founded as St. Mary of Gabon. The site was called Libreville, the French counterpart to Monrovia, Liberia, and became a base against the slave trade.</p> <p>In 1848 Libermann broke the impasse with the Holy Ghost Fathers. His order and the Holy Ghost Fathers merged. Libermann became head of the new Congregation of the Holy Ghost. The agreement included supervision of a seminary to train colonial clergy and - the most controversial point – plans to train an indigenous African clergy. Between 1869 and 1910 twenty-two Africans were ordained to the Roman Catholic priesthood.</p> <p>Writing to his priests in Dakar and Gabon on November 19, 1847, Libermann enumerated his ideas about the missionary role of Christians in language paralleling that of St. Paul. In particular, he stressed the need for <em>kenosis</em>, the self-emptying of a person to stand in poverty and solidarity with Africans. Libermann drew on a passage in Philippians (2:5-11) that Christ, in entering the world, did not establish himself as an equal to God, but came as a servant. As such Christ was willing to be humiliated and suffer death on the cross. Here is Libermann’s fullest statement of <em>kenosis</em> in a missionary setting:</p> <blockquote> <p>Empty yourselves of Europe, of its manners and mentality; make yourselves black with the blacks, then you will understand them as they should be understood; make yourself black with the blacks to form them as they should be, not in the way of Europe, but leaving them what is their own; behave toward them as servants would behave to their masters, adapting to the customs, attitudes and habits of their masters.[1]</p> </blockquote> <p>Wracked by migraine headaches and the return of epilepsy, Libermann died in early February 1852. Although only fifty years of age and active in the mission field for little more than a decade, his prodigious energy, deep spirituality, and wide-ranging interests made his achievements among the most lasting in French missionary history: he championed an indigenous church with a carefully trained indigenous clergy and hierarchy; he advocated separation of the church from the French state; he exemplified personal holiness, lived out in a religious community; and he was a leader in a wider civilizing effort, the <em>mission civilisatrice</em> of French colonial officials.[2]</p> <blockquote> <p>Polish Jew, training to be a rabbi, you found your way to Christ and to Africa. Scholar and organizer, whose earthly life was plagued by poor health, in the self-emptying of Christ who gave up all upon the cross, you found the model and mission of the church, one for your century and ours. Amen.</p> </blockquote> <p>Frederick Quinn</p> <hr /> <p>Notes:</p> <ol> <li> <p>Quoted in Hastings, <em>The Church in Africa</em>, 296.</p> </li> <li> <p>John Bauer, <em>2000 Years of Christianity in Africa: An African Church History</em> (Nairobi, Kenya: Paulines Publications, 1998), 136-141.</p> </li> </ol> <hr /> <p>This article is reproduced, with permission, from <em>African Saints: Saints, Martyrs, and Holy People from the Continent of Africa</em>, copyright © 2002 by Frederick Quinn, Crossroads Publishing Company, New York, New York. All rights reserved.</p> </section> </div> </article> </div> <script> (async () => { const asyncLightweightSearch = async (query) => new Promise((resolve) => { if (window.getLightweightSearchResults) resolve(getLightweightSearchResults(query, -1)); const checkInterval = setInterval(() => { if (window.getLightweightSearchResults) { clearInterval(checkInterval); resolve(getLightweightSearchResults(query)); } }, 250); }); const cleanPageTitle = (title) => { const letters = "abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz".toUpperCase().split(""); letters.forEach((letter) => { title = title.split(`(${letter})`).join(""); }); title = title.trim(); return title; } let pageTitle = `Libermann, François Marie Paul (A)`; pageTitle = cleanPageTitle(pageTitle); asyncLightweightSearch(pageTitle).then((e) => { let alternates = e.filter(e => cleanPageTitle(e.title).toLowerCase() === pageTitle.toLowerCase()); if(alternates.length > 0) { const alternatesElm = document.createElement('div'); alternatesElm.classList.add('alternate'); alternatesElm.innerHTML = "Multiple versions are available: " + alternates.map(e => `<a href="${e.url}">${e.title.split(pageTitle).join("").trim()}</a>`).join(' • '); const afterElm = document.querySelector('.page__content'); afterElm.parentElement.insertBefore(alternatesElm, afterElm); } }) })(); </script>  <div class="page__footer">  <div class="awards-wrap"> <div class="awards"> <a style="width: 33.33%; display: block; float: right;" href="/about/awards/"> <img class="awards__icon" src="/assets/images/asa-award.png"/> </a> <a style="width: 33.33%; display: block; float: right;" href="/about/awards/"> <img class="awards__icon" src="/assets/images/neh-award.png"/> </a> <a style="width: 33.33%; display: block; float: right;" href="/about/awards/"> <img class="awards__icon" src="/assets/images/eb-award.png"/> </a> </div> </div> <footer> <div class="foot-box">  <div class="box"> <h3>Donate</h3> <p style="margin-bottom: 1em;"> <a href="/donate/"><img alt="QR Code" src="/assets/images/qr-dacb200.png" ></a></p> <a href="/donate/" class="btn btn--inverse-long">Support DACB</a> </div>  <div class="box__end"> <h3>Journal</h3> <p>Sign up here to receive the quarterly <i>Journal of African Christian Biography</i> and DACB News (FREE).</p> <div style="margin-top: .5em;"> <div id="mc_embed_signup_small"> <form action="//dacb.us3.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=485445b23ed18ff0163e2d7a1&id=68e419fc0f" method="post" id="mc-embedded-subscribe-form" name="mc-embedded-subscribe-form" class="validate" target="_blank" novalidate> <div id="mc_embed_signup_scroll"> <div class="mc-field-group"> <input type="text" value="" name="FNAME" class="" id="mce-FNAME" placeholder="First Name"> </div> <div class="mc-field-group2"> <input type="text" value="" name="LNAME" class="" id="mce-LNAME" placeholder="Last Name"> </div> <div class="mc-field-group-wide"> <input type="email" value="" name="EMAIL" class="required email" id="mce-EMAIL" style="font-size:.62em;padding: 4px;" placeholder="Email Address"> </div> <div id="mce-responses" class="clear"> <div class="response" id="mce-error-response" style="display:none; font-size:.5em;"></div> <div class="response" id="mce-success-response" style="display:none; font-size:.5em;"></div> </div>  <div style="position: absolute; left: -5000px;" aria-hidden="true"><input type="text" name="b_485445b23ed18ff0163e2d7a1_68e419fc0f" tabindex="-1" value=""></div> <div class="clear"><input type="submit" value="Submit" name="subscribe" id="mc-embedded-subscribe" class="btn btn--inverse-long"></div> </div> </form> </div> <script type='text/javascript' src='//s3.amazonaws.com/downloads.mailchimp.com/js/mc-validate.js'></script><script type='text/javascript'>(function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[1]='FNAME';ftypes[1]='text';fnames[2]='LNAME';ftypes[2]='text';fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';fnames[3]='MMERGE3';ftypes[3]='text';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true);</script> </div> </div>  <div class="page__footer-copyright"> <div class="box_one"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/DictionaryofAfricanChristianBiography"> <img src="/assets/images/fb-full-white.png" class="facebook"/> </a></div> <div class="box_two"> Site redesigned by Alex Mayfield (2017 and 2019). Last updated: 12 February 2025.<br>© 2025 Dictionary of African Christian Biography.<br><a href="/connect/contact/">Contact Us</a> | <a href="/about/usage/">Usage & Citation Information</a> </div> <div class="box_three"> <a href="https://www.bu.edu/cgcm/"> <img src="/assets/images/cgcm.png" class="facebook"/> </a> </div> </div> </div> </footer> </div>   <script> var BASE_URL = ''; </script>  <script src="/assets/js/vendors/plugins.min.js"></script>  <script src="/assets/js/vendors/jquery.min.js"></script>  <script src="/assets/js/vendors/bootstrap.min.js"></script>  <script src="/assets/js/main.js"></script>   <script src="/assets/js/search-engine/search-lightweight.bundle.js?v=WednesdayFebruary12252157" async></script> </body> </html>

CINXE.COM

Libermann, François Marie Paul (A) - Dictionary of African Christian Biography