On May 9 1825, Eugene accompanied his uncle Fortuné to Paris and then to Rheims to attend the consecration of the new king, Charles X. The historian, Rey, commented that “All the dignitaries of the kingdom, the archbishops and one bishop of each ecclesiastical province had been invited to this ceremony that boldly proclaimed the union of the Church and the State within this royal and Catholic authority.” Eugene was a monarchist and acknowledged the important role of the king and what this meant for the freedom of the Church’s ministry. What he reacts against here is the behavior of the dignitaries as they awaited the arrival of the king:
When shall I ever manage, very dear friend, to hide myself far from the world, yes, so far that I shall not be able to see or hear it. The more I regard it close at hand, the more it looks despicable and horrible to me. This time I can say that I find myself at the center of its magnificence, on an occasion when vanity unfurls all its opulence. Impossible to see anything more sumptuous; one’s eyes are dazzled. Yet these are only preliminaries for the most splendid ceremony that ever shall be seen during the reign of a powerful monarch. Prior to his arrival, all the celebrities of the kingdom are coming in crowds and jostling one another in this little corner of the earth.
Everybody is steeped in conceit; admiration and ecstasy abound. They think themselves remarkable merely from the fact of being just now at the focal point of the whole of Europe. They applaud any favors which elevate certain personages of whom they are jealous at heart but whom they flatter as long as they are not without hope of seeing themselves become their protégés.
It would be endless if I tried to describe all I see at close quarters but I would also never be able to say to what extent I disdain all that is made the object of the admiration and cupidity, I dare say, of all of them…
Is it thus that one must think, speak, act in order to gain a fortune and advance? I wish these people happiness but reserve the right, by taking the opposite direction, to protest by my conduct against all this lying, illusion and deplorable deception; my sole consolation will always be to see my companions walk with me in paths which from day to day become more unfamiliar but where we still find footsteps left by the saints to mark their passage and encourage those who wish to get to where they are…
I have talked so much about what is going on here that I have forgotten to tell you that the King will make his entrance tomorrow at two o’clock, that we will be waiting for him from noon with our bishops at the cathedral where he will come to attend first vespers and the sermon preached by His Eminence the Cardinal de la Fare, that he will present his gift to the church of Rheims consisting of vestments of great beauty, sacred vessels, etc., that tomorrow, Sunday, we will have to be at the church before six o’clock and, in consequence, will have to say Mass during the night, that on Monday will take place the procession of the nobility, Tuesday the grand parade, from assisting at which we will dispense ourselves, having chosen precisely that day to steal away…
Letter to Hippolyte Courtès, 26 May 1825, EO VI n 178
“Don’t aspire to be like the gilded weather vane on top of a great building. However much it may glitter, however high it may be, it adds nothing to the firmness of the structure. Rather, be like an old stone block hidden in the foundations, under the ground where no one can see you. Because of you, the house will not fall.” St. Josemaria Escriva
Who do we surround ourselves with? Whom do we serve, and how do we serve them? I am reminded of the person who seems to give to a charity only and on the condition that they will be written up and featured in the paper or be shown on the evening news. Not bad, but not healthy either. I look Eugene and is it any wonder he didn’t love all the fawning that went on, all the ‘guilding of the lily’ so to speak that can be a part of our lives. This is the man who has made it his mission, to love the poor. There are certainly times that we must take part in some activities, however as we see with Eugene we don’t need to turn ourselves over to it. Here we see him doing the least that is expected of him in his role within the Church and then leaving to return to his people and his preferred way of living.
I doubt that I shall ever be invited to sit at the head table in life, to ‘hold court’ of any type or to be noticed in that way. For me that would be a danger for I think it would be all too easy to fall into the trap of focussing all of my attention on how I looked and appeared to be, of currying favor and do everything just to be noticed. There can be a type and level of power in there and it would be so very easy to get caught up in it. It could become my whole life. Not a good idea for me.
I love what St. Josemarie wrote about the foundation stone – as I read it I did not so much picture in my mind weather vanes for they are not so common these days – but I did think of some of the Trump hotels with vast amounts of gold on their tops, on domes and of some very tall buildings which are only that tall so that they can be noticed and call the tallest and grandest in the world. Don’t think either that I am cornerstone material, strong or solid enough to be foundational. I keep going back to my prayer of asking God to make me little, make me hidden, to make a light to my neighbour’s feet.
As I read this text, it was similar to a sermon I shared with the novices this morning.
Jesus was saddened by those who were like “lost sheep”. It was his feeling upon seeing those who were hurting. Eugene was present to the poor in his midst “I always come away from these poor dwelling where installed misery is served by the most earnest charity”. And how as Oblates we know when we are with the rich and upper class – we see, sense and feel the plastic and when with the people we see the joy and share in the dance. The that is the Kindom of God which is at hand and in our midst.