The bright smile on the white bearded face, the blue eyes shining with joy, all on the face that the few wrinkles of the seventies did not hide the youthfulness of the soul. That is the impression that comes immediately when facing the priest Florent Priuli, who is also known as "the man with the golden hand" or "the white wizard". We will not be surprised to know his work schedule every day, if not in the operating room, he is in the clinic, he works non-stop from morning to night, he is a missionary and finds happiness here .
Father Florent Priuli told Aleteia newspaper : "It's wonderful. When we sustain life, we become co-workers with the Lord who gives life.” From five o'clock in the morning he got up to work and usually only after midnight did he leave his patients to go to sleep because there were too many patients and there were many serious cases to take care of, he was almost always by their side. “Patients from all over the world flock to Tanguieta, which is the first and last line of emergency for them,” he explained. Every year 5000 patients are operated on and the hospital receives 20,000 new diseases every year. They come from Benin but also from neighboring countries like Togo, Burkina Faso, Mali or Niger.
The patient is the "teacher"
His attraction is due to his spirit of respect for his patients. In the spirit of Saint John of the Cross: "I must consider the sick as my teacher". “This means we have to put the patient’s best interests first and I have to always put this focus first,” Fr Florent explains. According to his father, devotion knows no bounds: “Often we feel as though the sick person has taken over our minds. But actually, it's a good thing because we have to give them the utmost care and make them happy."
Father Florent with a stethoscope on his neck
It was through prayer that Father Florent obtained the strength he needed to keep this extraordinary power. Waking up at 5 a.m., he spends time in prayer and begins his watch at 7:30 a.m. Morning prayer, incense, and Mass to start a busy working day. Concerned about keeping in touch with the benefactors and friends of the hospital, he took time to respond to letters.
The family of St. John of the Cross with "the motto of serving the most needy" quickly won over the generous heart of the young Italian. At a young age, Florent set out for Africa, first living in Togo. Here Florent served at the Afagnan hospital. In 1979, he went to Tanguieta, the northernmost region of Benin, where there was a very small and rarely used hospital. Father is the one who developed the medical system here. In 1979 the hospital had only 85 beds, now the hospital has 415 beds.
Missionary by caring for those who suffer
With 25% of the population being Catholic, missionary work in an animist country like Benin is a challenge. “We are called to proclaim the Good News of mercy and the best way to proclaim it is to bear witness to the mercy of God to those who suffer,” said Father Florent enthusiastically. Apostolate for the sick is the first lever of evangelization: “I think we evangelize best when we follow closely the spirit of Saint John of the Cross, because Christ himself proclaimed the Gospel. , heal the sick, anoint the dying.
Priest Florent in his officeFurthermore, the priest maintains a good relationship with the animists. And he did not hesitate to prescribe the treatment using "natural" or "traditional" medicine that he learned from the local doctors. He found them to be based on “ancient knowledge that sometimes has very good results” and rates these therapies as very effective. “There is not a disease for which God does not have a cure, and sometimes medicine is found in herbs, in roots,” he notes. Father Florent is a close friend of the Muslim patriarch Moussa Aboubacar and has a good relationship with Muslims, he said: “He used to tell me, in the chapel last Friday, he prayed for me.”
“The transition will ensure the future of the hospital, leaving not only the walls, the equipment, but also the spirit that inspired it from the beginning,” he continued. The hospital needs generous hearts to continue working, so there are retired doctors from many countries such as Italy, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain or the United States to help Dr. Florent.
In a hospital operation
The hospital lives on charity, Father Florent tells the touching story of an old man who was touched by the "miracle of Tanguieta" and spent all his old age savings to give to the hospital, he entrusted his old age to themselves in the hands of God. Father Florent laughed: "It's Providence who's watching!"
Above all, through the miracles that happen every day at this hospital, the "miracle of Tanguieta" is almost God's constant providential eye for this area.
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