Tag Archives: parish missions

YOU ARE MISSING YOUR AIM AND RENDERING YOURSELF USELESS

The mission in the village of Ventabren gives us an indication of how Eugene guided the young Oblates in the ways of doing an Oblate mission. It was preached by Fathers Jean Baptiste Honorat (aged 24 and a priest for … Continue reading

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CATECHETICAL INSTRUCTIONS ARE MUCH MORE USEFUL TO THE UNEDUCATED THAN BEAUTIFUL SERMONS

During the months of October and November, the Missionaries had joined the Jesuits for a mission to the city of Gap, near the Alps. The language of the mission was French and in this connection Eugene refers to a letter … Continue reading

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IN PREACHING, COUNT A LITTLE MORE ON THE HELP OF GRACE RATHER THAN ON YOUR EXCESSIVE EFFORTS

Marius Suzanne was 24 years old and learning the work of preaching missions. In this letter Eugene guides him by giving him feedback from some of his listeners during the mission in Gap The Bishop of Gap has written to … Continue reading

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GOD DOES NOT WANT THE DREGS OF OUR EXHAUSTION

Eugene’s concern for his Oblates was holistic – it included every aspect of their lives. He wanted then to be all for God, great saints, dedicated community members and zealous missionaries prepared to give their lives for their ideals. In … Continue reading

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LIGHTING MANY FLAMES

All the preparation that went into a parish mission usually ensured good results. The personal lifestyle of the Missionaries, their preparation of preaching material and evangelizing activities, their efforts to be living what they preached as a community etc. all … Continue reading

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RESPECTING PARISH STRUCTURES

Eugene reminds the Pastor of Aubagne that when the Missionaries came to a parish for a prolonged mission, they showed their closeness to the people by respecting the existing parish structures and cooperating with the Pastor and his assistants in … Continue reading

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CLOSE TO THE PEOPLE IN THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION

In making preparations for the Aubagne mission, Eugene touches on the heart of the mission, which is the personal God-encounter of each individual in the sacrament of reconciliation. The Pastor of Aubagne had been a former member of the Lazarist … Continue reading

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A SIMPLE MISSIONARY LIFESTYLE

August 15 had given Eugene a renewed clarity of vision and injection of missionary zeal. The focus of the ministry of the community was more clearly on the aspect of “all for God”  and service to the most abandoned rather … Continue reading

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ALL FOR GOD THRU MISSIONARY GENEROSITY

1822 was a busy year for Eugene and the Missionaries, with sixteen weeks of intensive mission preaching (at Signes -beginning of January to mid-February, at Lorgues -February 17 to March 31, and at Barcelonnette -April 20 to May 20). Before … Continue reading

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MISSION GLIMPSES IN LA CIOTAT

Eugene and some of the Missionaries were fully involved in the seven-week long parish mission at La Ciotat. Some extracts from the few letters he had time to write to the people closest to him give us some glimpses of … Continue reading

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