Chibly Langlois

Chibly Langlois (French pronunciation: [lɑ̃glwa]; born 29 November 1958) is a Haitian Catholic prelate who has served as Bishop of Les Cayes since 2011. He is also president of the Haitian Bishops’ Conference.^[3]

His Eminence Chibly Langlois
Cardinal, Bishop of Les Cayes
Langlois in 2015
Church	Roman Catholic Church
Diocese	Les Cayes
Appointed	15 August 2011
Predecessor	Guire Poulard
Other post	Cardinal-Priest of San Giacomo in Augusta, President of Episcopal Conference of Haiti
Previous post	Bishop of Fort-Liberté (2004-2011)
Orders
Ordination	22 September 1991 by Guire Poulard
Consecration	6 June 2004 by Hubert Constant
Created cardinal	22 February 2014 by Pope Francis
Rank	Cardinal-Priest
Personal details
Born	(1958-11-29) November 29, 1958 (age 67) La Vallée-de-Jacmel, Haiti
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Motto	Servir Dieu et l'homme dans l'amour[1] (Serve God and humanity in love)[2]
Coat of arms

Styles of Chibly Langlois
Reference style	His Eminence
Spoken style	Your Eminence
Religious style	Cardinal
Informal style	Cardinal

Ordination history of Chibly Langlois
History Priestly ordination Date 22 September 1991 Episcopal consecration Principal consecrator Hubert Constant, OMI Co-consecrators Guire Poulard Joseph Serge Miot Date 6 June 2004 Cardinalate Elevated by Pope Francis Date 22 February 2014
Episcopal succession Bishops consecrated by Chibly Langlois as principal consecrator David Thomas Daniel Macaire, O.P. 12 April 2015 Jean Désinord 2 July 2016

Door of San Giacomo in Augusta, Rome, with plaques displaying the arms of Pope Francis (left) and those of Cardinal Langlois (right). (Despite the sign, San Giacomo is not actually a basilica.)

Pope Francis elevated Langlois to the College of Cardinals on 22 February 2014.^[4] As of February 2023, Langlois is the first and only Haitian cardinal in history. He was the only new cardinal elevated in the February 2014 consistory who was not an archbishop.^[3]

Biography

Langlois was born in 1958 in La Vallée in southeast Haiti to a poor family.^[5] Langlois entered the Grand Séminaire Notre-Dame of Port-au-Prince in 1985, where he studied philosophy and theology. From 1994 to 1996, he studied at the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome and obtained a licentiate in pastoral theology.^[6]

He was ordained as priest for the diocese of Jacmel on 22 September 1991.^[6][7]

On 8 April 2004, Langlois was appointed Bishop of Fort-Liberté by Pope John Paul II.^[8] On 15 August 2011 he was appointed Bishop of Les Cayes by Pope Benedict XVI.^[9]

When choosing to elevate Langlois to the College of Cardinals in 2014, Pope Francis bypassed many more senior Haitian bishops, including metropolitan archbishops Louis Kébreau and Guire Poulard.^[10] At the time, Poulard was Langlois's metropolitan in the ecclesiastical province of Port-au-Prince.

On 22 February 2014, Pope Francis appointed Langlois Cardinal-Priest of San Giacomo in Augusta.^[11] This Roman church had never before been designated as the titular church of a Catholic cardinal. Langlois took possession of his titular church on 7 June 2014.^[12] As of April 2025, Langlois is the first and only Haitian cardinal in history.

On 22 May 2014, Pope Francis appointed Cardinal Langlois a member of both the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Pontifical Commission for Latin America, and Secretariat for Communications.^[13] He is also president of the Haitian Bishops’ Conference.^[3]

Langlois was injured during the 2021 Haiti earthquake. He was at the bishop's residence when it partially collapsed during the quake. Langlois survived, but a priest and two employees were killed.^[14] On June 8, 2022, Langlois was injured in a serious car accident.^[15]

Langlois participated as a cardinal elector in the 2025 papal conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV.^[16]

See also

• Cardinals created by Francis