On Wednesday, 29 October, the Church of Mauritius in general and the Spiritan family in particular were celebrating. And with good reason: Father Guy Simonet turned 100! A century of life, faith, service and passion at the heart of the mission.
Born on Thursday, 29 October 1925, in Curepipe, Guy is the third child of nine siblings: six girls and three boys, born to Marcel and Marguerite Simonet. After an excellent education at the Royal College of Port Louis, where he studied science, he intended to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a pharmacist. But an encounter would change the course of his life: that of Father Boëtard, a Spiritan priest from Brittany and a veteran of the Second World War. Through his faith and witness, this priest would awaken an unexpected vocation in Guy.
With no real religious training, and to his father’s great surprise, Guy decided in 1946 to leave for France to enter the seminary. He continued his training successively in Auvergne, Mortain in Normandy, and then Chevilly-Larue, where he spent his last four years of study. He made his religious profession on 16 September 1947 and was ordained a Spiritan priest on 5 July 1953.
Shortly after his priestly ordination, the young missionary was sent to the island of Réunion, where he spent 62 years of his life serving the people of Réunion. He exercised his ministry in several parishes: Salazie, Les Avirons, Trois-Bassins and L’Entre-Deux.
Mgr. Gilbert Aubry, Bishop Emeritus of Réunion, has fond memories of his former English teacher at the Petit Séminaire de Cilaos: “I remember a man of faith, passionate and fair… and also an excellent footballer!”
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Father Simonet was indeed a missionary who was close to the people, sharing the life of the people of Réunion, their joys and their sorrows. He knew how to listen, console and reconcile, carrying the Word of God from the north to the south of the island. Behind his rigour and sense of discipline lay a deeply human and passionate man. He always took care of his health, watching his diet and his treatments, but also his spirit: a lover of sport, he was captain of a football team from the age of 11 and an enthusiastic motorcyclist for over 50 years. He also had a passion for poetry, particularly the verses of Charles Baudelaire, which he loved to recite with fervour.
In 2015, at the age of 90, Father Guy Simonet returned to Mauritius, where he continues to live his faith with the same fervour. Today, at the age of 100, he still keeps the Eucharist at the centre of his life, in prayer, peace and fidelity.
In giving thanks for this century of life given to the Lord, we celebrate not only a man, but also a shining witness to missionary joy; an example of perseverance and living faith.
In giving thanks for Father Guy Simonet’s century of life, we honour not only his longevity but the radiant witness of a missionary who embodied the joy of the Gospel and the passion of service. His perseverance, closeness to the people, and ability to unite discipline with deep humanity remain a living example for the Spiritan family and the wider Church. His life, offered entirely to God and to others, continues to inspire us to believe that mission is always born of love, sustained by hope, and strengthened by grace.
Fr. Wilbert KALENGA WA KALENGA, CSSp.
Superior of the Circumscription of Mauritius
