I WILL FAITHFULLY KEEP MY VOWS WHILE TRYING TO CONFORM MY EXTERIOR CONDUCT TO WHAT THE BISHOP PRESCRIBES IN ORDER NOT TO DISTURB THE PUBLIC ORDER.

As Eugene reflects on the conflict with the surrounding bishops regarding the status of the Oblates in their dioceses, it becomes the opportunity for him to clarify his thoughts of the meaning of their vows. Firstly he points out that the Oblates in the diocese had never made any act of revolt or defiance to the bishop, but rather that they have tried to cooperate with him at all times for the good of the people of his diocese.

A bishop does not have the right to prevent us from making vows especially when those who make them do not seek to revolt against the orders that he can give them, and while waiting for the Holy See to pronounce itself. He cannot dispense those who do not have recourse to him for that, still less can he declare them null. I regard all that they threaten us with as an abuse of power. What reason have we given to the complaints of His Grace the Archbishop? There are no priests in the diocese who have lived in a greater spirit of submission and in a more absolute state of dependence. Can anyone accuse us of a single act of insubordination or revolt?

In fact, their choice of religious life and making vows was intended to make them more dedicated and God-focused missionaries:

What? Because, in order to live more saintly lives and render ourselves more worthy of our ministry, we wish to follow and practice the evangelical counsels, we become criminals? We would have jeopardized the prerogatives of the episcopate? We would deserve to be anathematised and proscribed? That would be giving too much scope to the Promitto.

He then affirms the validity of the vows and his intention to live his commitment to God through them

What does it matter to me if they regard my vows as null? They are not so, notwithstanding; now, if they are not so, who will prevent me from renewing them a thousand times a day? Yes, until the Holy See decides to the contrary, I believe myself to have the right to deprive myself voluntarily of the ability to have recourse to the authority of the bishop to dispense me of the vows that I willed to contract in perpetuity, I believe that the bishop cannot annul my engagement; that if he claims to dispense me and I am convinced that there are no legitimate reasons, I shall regard his dispensation as without effect.
I will faithfully keep my vows while trying to conform my exterior conduct to what the bishop prescribes in order not to disturb the public order.

Letter to Hippolyte Courtès, 29 October 1823, EO VI n. 117

Clearly, in order to prevent this confusion in the future, Eugene would have to approach the Pope to make their status official in the Church. This was to happen two years later on 17 February 1826. In the history of the Church the question of the authority of the Bishop over the religious congregations in his diocese has not always been clear. Our present Rule of Life gives “communion” as the keyword for living this relationship in a diocese.

Our love for the Church inspires us to fulfil our mission in communion with the pastors whom the Lord has given to his people; we accept loyally, with an enlightened faith, the guidance and teachings of the successors of Peter and the Apostles.

We coordinate our missionary activity with the overall pastoral plan of the local Churches where we work, and we collaborate in a spirit of brotherhood with others who work for the Gospel.  CC&RR Constitution 6

 

“As I visit Oblates around the world I see how close we are to the poor, how our lives are marked by simplicity and approachability. I am convinced of the necessity of our charism in the life of the Church. We bring people close to the Church, to the Body of Christ, and in our closeness to the poor we receive Christ too.”    Fr. Louis Lougen OMI, Superior General

This entry was posted in LETTERS and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink.

2 Responses to I WILL FAITHFULLY KEEP MY VOWS WHILE TRYING TO CONFORM MY EXTERIOR CONDUCT TO WHAT THE BISHOP PRESCRIBES IN ORDER NOT TO DISTURB THE PUBLIC ORDER.

  1. Eleanor Rabnett, Oblate Associate says:

    Wow! I can almost feel the strength of the quill as he wrote this. This is what I have been waiting for and it is worth waiting for! God bless Eugene. God has blessed Eugene! The power of his statements. The freedom of his statements. One can almost hear his voice speaking the words as he writes them. And the love, of God, of the Church. “I will faithfully keep my vows while trying to conform my exterior conduct to what the bishop prescribes in order not to disturb the public order.” Still trying to build up, unify rather than divide. Bringing and keeping God squarely in the equation with all else revolving around God. And the truth of it all which rises above the human brokenness and sin. Is it any wonder that the Society and then the new Congregation would attract so many and so fast, and that they would eventually become known and be requested around the world?

    Who could not be inspired? Who could not respond to such a call and live out that response with all that God has given to them? This morning there is more light, even before the dawn, there is hope [always there is hope but sometimes it is quiet and tiny, and other times it is louder and brighter].

    And although the Constitution and Rules have been written for the Congregation, some of them invite many of the Oblate Associates to a way of living and being in our every day lives. They give us a framework, an example, a road map that we may follow if we feel called to that. I find that so much of it can be applied to my life, today, in what is going on with myself, with parish, with my community(s) [and how they all seem to be a part of the other somehow, certainly they touch and overlap into the other]. “Our love for the Church inspires us to fulfil our mission in communion with the pastors whom the Lord has given to his people; we accept loyally, with an enlightened faith, the guidance and teachings of the successors of Peter and the Apostles. We coordinate our missionary activity with the overall pastoral plan of the local Churches where we work, and we collaborate in a spirit of brotherhood with others who work for the Gospel. CC&RR Constitution 6” We too can and do serve, we walk in faith on the path that has been chosen for us and that we are called to.

    Yes that key word “communion” – it seems to draw, to call and channel the light and the hope. It speaks out to the yearning that we all are born with and live to attain.

    I am filled once again with gratitude, to Eugene and his living out his “all” for God, and for sharing that with us, to the Oblates who continue today to share the charism of Eugene, their gift of the Spirit and who accompany us on our journey [they lead but they also walk with] while teaching us to be able to do the same in how we live. This is life-giving. “We are all Ministers of the Mercy of God….” St. Eugene de Mazenod

  2. Anda says:

    For those of us not in religious life or associateship, isn’t the sentence
    “I will faithfully keep my vows while trying to conform my exterior conduct to what the bishop prescribes in order not to disturb the public order,”
    basically what we do in our parish life, exchanging the word “vows” with ” faith”?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *