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Category Archives: LETTERS
THE TRUE REASONS BEHIND EUGENE’S VOCATION TO THE PRIESTHOOD
Having expressed his annoyance at the interpretation that the gossips gave to his vocation, Eugene now explains the real reasons to his father. The break of communications caused by the war had made it impossible for Eugene to tell his … Continue reading
ANNOYANCE AT BEING MISJUDGED BY SOCIAL GOSSIP
At the time of Eugene’s decision to go to the seminary, the war between Napoleon and Britain had prevented communications between France and Palermo. Eugene’s father was thus not aware that his son had studied to be a priest and … Continue reading
WE WOULD ABANDON THEM IF WE JOINED YOU BECAUSE WE ALONE, AND NOT YOU, CAN HELP THEM
What touched the heart of Eugene and made him respond was the plight of people in Provence who were not being adequately catered for by the normal ministry of the local church. Now, you will perhaps ask why, since I … Continue reading
THE MISSIONARY COMMUNITY “ONLY EXISTS IN MY HEAD”
It now becomes clear that Eugene has thought deeply about founding a group of mission preachers in Provence. He understands that the appalling condition of the people calls him to a response, and he begins to look at practical side … Continue reading
TO GO OFF AND BURY MYSELF IN SOME WELL REGULATED COMMUNITY
Eugene continues to reflect on his process of discerning God’s will for him as he recuperates from his near-fatal illness. His desire to be “all for God” draws him to a monastic existence. Yet, he is living the “all for … Continue reading
IF IT IS GOD’S WILL I WILL LEAVE TOMORROW FOR THE MOON IF I HAVE TO
A month earlier, Eugene had received an offer to join his priest friend, Forbin Janson, in an association of priests to restore the ravaged Church in France by means of preaching parish missions. This letter shows that the seed of … Continue reading
IN THE END, THOUGH WITH SADNESS, I GO MY WAY, PLACING MY TRUST IN GOD ALONE
Struggling to regain his health, Eugene gives his friend, Forbin Janson, an idea of how many demands are made on him. We glimpse his tiredness and his need for intimacy as he experienced a sense of feeling alone in the … Continue reading
I YEARN SOMETIMES FOR SOLITUDE
1814 had not only been the year of political change in France, it also was the year when Eugene had been on the point of death. His serious illness had left him weak, and in this letter he shows something … Continue reading
UP TO NOW AND FOR A LONG TIME I AM EVERYONE’S SERVANT AND AT THE DISPOSITION OF THE FIRST-COMER
After Napoleon’s departure, things were changing in France and the Pope had asked for mission preaching to be used in order to restore the state of the ravaged French Church. Eugene’s friend Charles Forbin Janson responded immediately by starting a … Continue reading
WITHOUT HIM I WOULD NEVER HAVE KNOWN GOD
Eugene’s friend, Father Forbin Janson was visiting Rome, and is here asked to find the tomb of Don Bartolo Zinelli, who had been Eugene’s mentor in Venice. What Don Bartolo had been in Eugene’s life as an adolescent, Eugene himself … Continue reading