RESPONDING TO THE CALL OF THE MOST ABANDONED

Posted on September 18, 2012 by franksantucci

Awareness of the religious situation of the orphans of Marseille became the awareness of God’s call to the service of a group that was abandoned. One of Eugene’s biographers gives us the background:

The Divine Providence Orphanage needed chaplains for the orphans whose religious, moral and vocational training was being provided on Lenche Place, in the residence formerly owned by the Requeti de Mirabeau family. On February 5, 1821, at a meeting of the Board of Directors, Father Dugas, who greatly admired Father de Mazenod, made a motion that the board appeal to the latter and his colleagues, since they had achieved such perfect results with the youngsters of Aix.

Leflon volume 2, page 180 

Eugene’s reaction to the request:

My uncle informed me about the proposal of the Members of the Work of Providence. If I understood it well, these men would want to know if we could undertake the direction of the poor people that their charity has gathered together in the former property of M. Allemand.
That kind of ministry enters perfectly into our line of work; I was so convinced of that, that three years ago I took some steps to bring the poor of the city of Aix together and instruct them in their religious duties;
certain difficulties obliged me to put off that plan to another time. Now it is all done at Marseilles. If those Gentlemen think that we can second the holy work that they have undertaken, we are at their command.

Letter to Madame Roux, 3 January 1821, EO XIII n. 32

To the Archbishop of Aix, whose responsibility the vacant diocese of Marseille was, he wrote of the:

desire to have such an establishment of missionaries like ours in their city to which they would entrust the care of those members of their flock who are most abandoned. They have experienced the incalculable advantage of such an establishment, not only for the great many people of this great city, but also for all the sectors that they would successively evangelize, and that could thereafter be easily cared for.

Letter to the Archbishop of Aix, 12 January 1821, EO XIII n. 33

Today:

The call of Jesus Christ, heard within the Church through people’s need for salvation, draws us together as Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

CC&RR, Constitution 1

 

“While women weep, as they do now, I’ll fight; while children go hungry, as they do now I’ll fight; while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I’ll fight; while there is a drunkard left, while there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, while there remains one dark soul without the light of God, I’ll fight; I’ll fight to the very end!”     General William Booth, Founder of the Salvation Army

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GOD CALLS THRU CONCRETE EVENTS

Posted on September 17, 2012 by franksantucci
My uncle informed me about the proposal of the Members of the Work of Providence. If I understood it well, these men would want to know if we could undertake the direction of the poor people that their charity has gathered together

Letter to Madame Roux in Marseille, 3 January 1821, EO XIII n. 32

Through this invitation the Missionaries of Provence recognized the call of God to establish themselves in Marseille. Why did this small Missionary group want to stretch their limited resources and also begin to work in Marseille?

There were two main reasons. Firstly, Eugene’s uncle Fortuné had been designated Bishop of this city in 1817 but political events had prevented its realization. So the presence of the Missionaries in this city would be important when circumstances would eventually allow Fortuné to take over the diocese.

Secondly, in 1820 Eugene’s Missionaries of Provence had joined the Missionaries of France for the mission of evangelization of the city of Marseille. The people of the city wanted them to minister permanently in their city. Unfortunately human interests and rivalry were to get in the way and cause problems in the future: a group of influential wealthy citizens wanted the Missionaries of France while it was the poorer classes who wanted Eugene’s Missionaries.

Oblate Rule of Life Invites us to continue seeking God’s invitations thru the events of everyday lifr

While maintaining within ourselves an atmosphere of silence and inner peace, we seek his presence in the hearts of the people and in the events of daily life.

CC&RR, Constitution 31

 

“We can only learn to know ourselves and do what we can
namely, surrender our will and fulfill God’s will in us.”      St. Teresa of Avila

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THE GOOD GOD KNOWS OUR NEEDS, THAT IS WHAT CONSOLES ME

Posted on September 15, 2012 by franksantucci

In March 1821 we find Eugene and the Missionaries involved in their third successive prolonged parish mission in five months. Eugene was physically exhausted and also had to handle one of his companions who was not coping with the level of catechetical teaching that the people required.

So I have begun to give the morning instructions and I will give them in the evening to the extent that circumstances permit (for one must observe correctness even on missions, by having my companion preach from time to time) but I will repair, in the announcements which follow the prayers, the omissions of my confrere.

The Missionaries had a responsibility to give a solid and complete presentation of the contents of the faith to these people who had been abandoned since the Revolution. With this duty in mind, Eugene gives himself fully to the mission:

And who will give me the strength? The good God, I hope… I am quite tired, my voice is hoarse and only with an effort can I raise it but what else can I do? After all one has to continue.

The source of his strength is his relationship with God – his living “all for God” in closeness to the people.

The good God knows our needs, that is what consoles me in our distress.
… But God knows what his people needs. We have to leave matters to him, without however ceasing to ask him earnestly: “ut in messam suam mittant operarios secundum cor suum.” [ed. Mt. 9, 38: Rogate ergo Dominum messis, ut mittat operarios in messam suam, I Sam. 13, 14: Quaesivii Dominus sibi virum juxta cor suum. “Pray then the master of the harvest to send workers”… “after his own heart”]

Letter to Henri Tempier, 13 March 1821, EO VI n. 63

 

May today be peace within.
May you trust your highest power that you are exactly where you are meant to be…
May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you…
May you be content knowing you are a child of God…
Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise, and love.
It is there for each and every one of you.”         Mother Theresa of Calcutta

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THE CALL OF JESUS CHRIST, HEARD WITHIN THE CHURCH

Posted on September 14, 2012 by franksantucci

As the small Society of Missionaries of Provence grew in numbers and commitments, one can see the preoccupation of Eugene to establish a solid foundation that would ensure stability. From the beginning he saw the importance of a carefully-written Rule of Life, and the members had been working on it for years to produce it in 1818. Now, three years later we find them constantly reworking the first version. In this light Eugene wrote to Hippolyte Courtès:

Father Tempier would wish to suppress the words: ‘Although the house of Aix en Provence be the headquarters of the Society’, not because he does not recognize this status as justified but because they would be surprised at Rome at seeing no approbation of the Bishop for this house designated as the cradle of the Society. This remark is correct. We must therefore suppress this phrase for the moment.

Letter to Hippolyte Courtès, 21 February 1821, EO VI n. 62

What is important about this excerpt is the understanding that all that was being done by the Missionaries had to be in communion with the leadership of the Church. God had brought about the foundation of the Missionaries within the Church to be at the service of its universal mission. The 1818 Rule was still a private Rule, but it is clear that Eugene was preparing a final version for the approval of the Church leadership – at local diocesan level and then of Rome. This was to happen on 17 February 1826.

Our Rule of Life today continues to build on this foundation:

The call of Jesus Christ, heard within the Church through people’s need for salvation, draws us together as Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

CC&RR, Constitution 1

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.

CC&RR, Constitution 6

 

“You can be committed to Church but not committed to Christ, but you cannot be committed to Christ and not committed to church.”    Joel Osteen

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EACH MISSIONARY OUGHT TO DO THE WORK OF FOUR

Posted on September 13, 2012 by franksantucci

After five years of existence we find the Missionaries gradually increasing in number and having to make decisions and adjust to new situations. Henri Tempier was at ND du Laus and finding life tough. He had written to Eugene to ask for an assistant:

Judge for yourself, I am superior over spiritual and temporal matters for a large community, rector of a parish, chaplain of a shrine and alternately professor of theology and philosophy

Letter of Henri Tempier to Eugene de Mazenod in Missions O.M.I., 1897, p. 179.

Eugene’s reply was not very comforting:

The idea of having two professors for two students is not to my liking especially in a Society where each ought to do the work of four.

Letter to Henri Tempier, 4 February 1821, E.O. VI n. 61

He had caught Eugene at a bad moment because there was the possibility of having to send men to Marseille for the foundation of a new community – and he was trying to work out how to fulfil all these commitments. In fact he was concerned and generously did send help. Yvon Beaudoin notes that the community of Laus had 24 members at the end of the year 1821, amongst whom there were a few fathers (Tempier, Touche, Courtès) and some coadjutor brothers.(Footnote 2 in E.O. VI n. 61) and several students.

 

“Phrases like ‘overworked and underpaid’ perpetuate that feeling.” Lena Bottos

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TAKE CARE OF ME IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD

Posted on September 12, 2012 by franksantucci

Writing to his mother during the demanding parish mission in Brignoles, Eugene reminds her of his need to be supported in prayer by her. He needs to be taken care of by her in the presence of God.

But, even though we are separated in body, we can be present to each other in spirit. Certainly, I greatly need you to take care of me before the good Lord: it is no light matter to have the responsibility of a ministry like that laid on me…

Letter to his mother, 16 January 1821, E.O. XIII n. 35

The preferred form of prayer of Eugene was that of being present to the other person thru them both being in the presence of God. It was a question of putting into practice the promise of Jesus: “Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am present among them.” (Matthew 18:20)

Thirteen years before he had written to her in similar terms, and often did the same in later years:

… Dearest Mother, do you really think that I was not beside you last night? … Indeed yes, darling mother, we spent the night together at the foot of the altar, which for me represented the crib in Bethlehem; together we offered our gifts to our Savior and asked him to come to birth in our hearts and strengthen us in all that is weak…
Let us often look for one another in the heart of our loveable Master

Letter to his mother, 25 December 1808, E.O. XIV n. 37

It was a form of prayerful communion and support that we will find him constantly using with his Missionaries – especially in the evening prayer of oraison.

 

“If there are two persons praying, there are three. If three meet to pray, there are four praying. There is always one more than you can see.”    S. D. Gordon

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THE MISSIONARY AS A CHANNEL THRU WHICH GOD BRINGS LIFE

Posted on September 11, 2012 by franksantucci

Referring of the parish mission that they were involved in from 14 January to 25 February 1821 in the town of Brignoles, Eugene spoke of the responsibility involved in the ministry:

it is no light matter to have the responsibility of a ministry like that laid on me: to announce the day of the Lord to a large number of people, a people who are abandoned,

The ministry is the continuation of that of Jesus himself: “he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor…. and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come” Luke 4: 18-19. Referring to himself as a canal thru which God acts, he does not want his personal weaknesses to get in the way of God’s work.

… to fear lest the lack of virtue, the personal infidelity of the minister be an obstacle, intercepting, so to speak, the flow of those precious graces of salvation, those life-giving waters which are meant to reach the faithful through his channel.
There is enough to be concerned about; and if it were not for the experience of God’s superabundant mercies and his compassion for the incapacity and weakness of those he sends, no doubt because he favors the people he wishes to save, there would be every reason to lose courage.

Letter to his mother, 16 January 1821, E.O. XIII n. 35

 Every member of the Mazenodian family can also define his or her daily mission in terms of being channels of living water to those around them.

“But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” John 4:14

 

“Be holy and you will do wonders in the lives of everyone whose life you touch. Be united with God, and He will work miracles through you, and beyond your wildest dreams.”    Mother Teresa of Calcutta

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NON-CLERICAL CLOTHING

Posted on September 10, 2012 by franksantucci

Writing to Henri Tempier, who was the one responsible for the formation of the novices at Laus, Eugene speaks about the dress of the Missionaries. The gesture of receiving the cassock (soutane) marked the official beginning of the novitiate period. They “took the habit” – they consciously took on the dress of the Missionary as a sign that they consciously “became” missionaries.

They cannot be novices without taking the habit of the missionary. Their stay among the guests will have to be prolonged, that is to say, outside the novitiate, until they have their soutane, which will be given to them the day they enter the novitiate, if they arrived without it.

If the novice was already an ordained priest, he would have arrived wearing the ‘rabat’ around his neck. It was a square of black cloth with white borders that was the sign of the diocesan priest. The day he became a Missionary he had to remove that symbol of priesthood and wear the identification sign of the Missionary.

When anyone seeks admission who already has his soutane, he should keep the rabat as long as he is with the guests and then put it aside the day of his entrance into the novitiate, because the habit of the missionary is the soutane without the rabat.

Letter to Henri Tempier, 18 January 1821, E.O. VI n.59

Clerical dress has changed in the two centuries since this was written, and we are no longer familiar with the use of the rabat as it was worn then. Eugene was underlining that the identity of the Missionary was not to be confused with that of a diocesan priest. (Interestingly, when Eugene became the Bishop of the Diocese of Marseille, he did wear the rabat in unity with his diocesan clergy, whose chief pastor he was.)

Apparently in the France of that time the rabat was also a sign of the Gallican Church which stressed its independence from Roman supremacy – a sentiment not shared by Eugene, who was unmistakably an ultramontanist and wanted to be as fully in communion with Rome as possible.

Today for the Missionary Oblate who is a priest, the Rule of Life says: ”The Oblate habit is the same as the clerical dress of the diocese in which we live. When we wear a cassock, our only distinctive sign is the Oblate cross.” Constitution 64

 

‘As every lord gives a certain dress (uniform) to his servants, charity is the very dress of Christ. Our Saviour, who is the Lord above all lords, would have his servants known by their badge, which is love.”    Latimer

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IN COMMUNION WITH OUR ANCESTORS

Posted on September 8, 2012 by franksantucci

Writing to Henri Tempier and the novices and young students at Laus:

I have drawn up right away the list of our rooms and have chosen the guardian saints that I wish to give to each dweller in them. Our patron saints would be already installed if we had found the pictures of all those whom we want to have as guests.

Letter to Henri Tempier, 9 January 1821, E.O. VI n. 58

Eugene was profoundly aware of the importance of the communion of the saints – our ancestors in the faith. “Saints” in the usage of St. Paul referred to the communion of all baptized Christians, united and connected with one another in Jesus Christ, and which continued beyond their death in the fullness of the Kingdom.

Tempier had written to Eugene to tell him how each room at Laus had been dedicated to a saint. They had decided that this was not going to be an empty gesture, but that the occupant of each room had to spend time reflecting and praying around that particular saint who would be his “guest.”

 

How are we—saints in process—related to the saints who have entered into the fullness of divine life? Elizabeth Johnson, in her splendid book on the communion of saints called Friends of God and Prophets, speaks of two different paradigms for understanding that relationship: “one an egalitarian model that names [the saints] as companions and friends, the other a patriarchal [model] that casts certain privileged dead into positions of patronage.”

In the first model they are that wonderful “cloud of witnesses” spoken of in Hebrews (12:1) who are our friends, encouraging us, rooting for us, also challenging us to complete the work they had begun.

In the second model, they are seen as heavenly intercessors around the throne of God who manipulate heavenly strings for us. We are their clients and they are our patrons.    William H. Shannon

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A FATHER’S CONCERN

Posted on September 7, 2012 by franksantucci

Eugene’s joyful pride in the generosity of the young students and novices is tempered by the

dreadful apostasy of the wretch who could not be brought back to his duty by the example of conduct as edifying as yours

Yvon Beaudoin explains: “He apparently refers to F. M. Dalmas who made his profession on November 1, 1819… The Founder wrote, under this name, in the Register of entries to the Novitiate: “The first to give us the example of the most shameful apostasy.” Father de Mazenod habitually designated as an apostate any Oblate who left, without sufficient motives, after having pronounced his vows.” (Footnote 2 in O.W. VI n. 56)

Eugene, always dazzled by the beauty of the vocation of the oblate and of the total generosity of his act of oblation to God, could not understand how anyone could possibly turn away from it. He thundered against it and feared for the eternal salvation of the person involved who had gone against his solemn promise to God by turning back (“No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” Luke 9:62). In encouraging his family, we see the pride of the father of the family and also his deep pain when one of his sons becomes a “prodigal.”

I say nothing of the son of perdition. The Spirit of God has spoken to you better than I could do so and you have understood his language too well for me to add anything of mine. Happy community! Holy family! Keep as precious the gifts that the Lord has shared with you so abundantly, walk in the path into which you have been thrust, so to speak, at the sight of the precipice which has claimed the infidel.

Letter to the students and novices at Notre Dame du Laus, 29 November 1820,
O.W. VI n. 56

“Sometimes we don’t need another chance to express how we feel or to ask someone to understand our situation. Sometimes we just need a firm kick in the pants. An unsmiling expectation that if we mean all these wonderful things we talk about and sing about, then let’s see something to prove it.”      Dietrich Bonhoeffer

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