Responding to the euphoria of the Oblates at the approbation, Eugene reflects on our family name.
May we understand well what we are! I hope that the Lord will give us this grace, with the assistance and by the protection of our holy Mother, the Immaculate Mary, for whom we must have a great devotion in our Congregation. Does it not seem to you that it is a sign of predestination to bear the name of Oblates of Mary, that is, consecrated to God under the patronage of Mary, a name the Congregation bears as a family name held in common with the most holy and immaculate Mother of God?
It is enough to make others jealous; but it is the Church who has given us this beautiful name,
In fact, it was Eugene himself who had changed the name from “Missionaries of Provence” to “Oblates of Mary Immaculate” and then asked the Pope to approve the change. (cf. https://www.eugenedemazenod.net/?p=2298). It is in this sense that the Church “gave” us the name. The Church ratified the inspiration that Eugene had received regarding our name and the identity it gives us. In this sense, our name and our identity belong to the Church, and therefore:
we receive it with respect, love and gratitude, proud of our dignity and of the rights that it gives us to the protection of her who is All Powerful in God’s presence.
Letter to Henri Tempier, 20 March 1826, EO VII n 231
Today these sentiments continue as our Rule of Life shows: “Mary Immaculate is patroness of our Congregation. Open to the Spirit, she consecrated herself totally as lowly handmaid to the person and work of the Savior. She received Christ in order to share him with all the world, whose hope he is. In her, we recognize the model of the Church’s faith and of our own.” CC&RR Constitution 10
“When she was asked to become the mother of the Messiah, Mary’s faith enabled her to give a humble and generous response…. Mary’s faith was frequently tested during the public life of Jesus, especially when she witnessed the rejection of her son. At the foot of the cross, her pilgrimage of faith had its moment of most severe testing. Mary continued to believe that, because Jesus was the Son of God. His sacrifice would bring salvation to humanity.” Pope John Paul II
Mary, “She received Christ in order to share him with all the world, whose hope he is. In her, we recognize the model of the Church’s faith and of our own.”
Almost 35 years ago a very wise Abbess asked me if I knew Our Lady. And when I responded that Mary was not a part of my life she suggested that I might want to ask Jesus to introduce us. And so I asked Jesus for that very thing, and I was introduced to His mother. And if it was possible it was as if my hand was put into hers and she became personal, a mother to me. It has been a personal journey with Our Lady whom I call Maman, guiding me, holding me, teaching me, and showing me how to stand in dignity as did/does she.
It is only this morning that I look at the stages of my journey through this life and marvel at all the unseen, marvel at the constancy of Mary in my life since then, of my devotion to her and relationship with her. From meeting Mary, to going to live at Madonna House, to moving and joining an Oblate parish and then walking along side of and with the Oblates, the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. She has been and continues to be such an integral part of my life and how I live. I seem only now to be ‘connecting all of the dots’. “we receive it with respect, love and gratitude, proud of our dignity and of the rights that it gives us to the protection of her who is All Powerful in God’s presence” It is a ‘faith thing’ and yet the most real part of me. Mary, our mother, our model, our patroness in life.