Spiritans in Europe Some 1,300 had been so trained by the time the Seminary was suppressed in 1792 by the French Revolution. Reduced in Europe to a few members the society was allowed to restart under Napoleon in 1902 when they were asked to concentrate exclusively on supplying priests committed to work in the French colonies in Africa, the West Indies and the Indian Ocean. Some Irishmen were enlisted as from 1920, but the 1930 Revolution threatened once again to undo the work of rebuilding the Society. In 1848 the Spiritans were joined by a convert Jew Fr. Francis Libermann, who had launched a society to cater mainly for the emancipated black slaves in the French colonies. Fr. Libermann was elected superior of the society. When Irish-born Bishop Baron of Philadelphia volunteered to go to Liberia to take charge of the pastoral cares of the slaves repatriated from America he turned to Fr. Libermann for personnel.