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Recent Posts
- FOR THE REST, I DO MY BEST TO LEAVE IT TO GOD
- GOD ALONE KNOWS HOW TO REWARD WHAT WE HAVE DONE FOR HIM. SO, WE MUST DO EVERYTHING TO PLEASE HIM
- IT IS A CONSOLATION FOR ME TO BREATHE THE SAME AIR, TO OFFER THE HOLY SACRIFICE ON THE SAME ALTARS, TO BE ABLE TO PRAY AT HIS TOMB
- THERE IS NOT A CORNER OF ROME WHICH IS NOT A MONUMENT OF FAITH OR PIETY
- THE ROMAN MARTYRS ARE STILL THE OBJECT OF VENERATION OF PEOPLES
Recent Comments
- Eleanor Rabnett, Lay Oblate on FAITH-FOCUSED INVESTMENT GROUPS: A PRESENCE WHERE DECISIONS AFFECTING THE FUTURE OF THE POOR ARE BEING MADE (Rule 9a)
- Eleanor Rabnett, Lay Oblate on VIVAT: A PRESENCE WHERE DECISIONS AFFECTING THE FUTURE OF THE POOR ARE BEING MADE (Rule 9a)
- Eleanor Rabnett, Lay Oblate on WE SHOW A VERY HUMAN FACE OF JESUS TO THE WORLD, ONE FULL OF COMPASSION AND SOLIDARITY (Rule 9a)
- Eleanor Rabnett, Lay Oblate on JUSTICE, PEACE AND THE INTEGRITY OF CREATION AS AN INTEGRAL PART OF EVANGELIZATION (Rule 9a)
- Eleanor Rabnett, Lay Oblate on WALKING THE LINE BETWEEN PROPHETIC VISION AND SPIRITUAL SUSTENANCE (CONSTITUTION 9)
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“A father’s communication with his many children… that is one of the most agreeable occupations of my life” 1857
The bishops become a living symbol of God’s love for us through grace; a grace that is readily available to them. Here they are seen not as men who control or try to hold a power over their subjects but as elders and parental figures who love and rejoice in the great fortune of their children.
Such a love begins and comes from God, comes from an indwelling of the Holy Spirit. We have seen this from Eugene’s writings at the retreat he made before being made Bishop of Marseilles. Being Bishop of Icosia was certainly a position for him, but it was when he was preparing to become Bishop of Marseilles that he discovered within himself a new grace from God; a grace that flooded his heart and being with a tender love for all those who would be members of his flock.
I stop for a moment and look at the love my heart holds for my Mazenodian brothers and sisters, for the members of my parish community, for the people I have come to love from any number of communities where I live. The love that fills me is not self generated but rather comes from a gift of the Holy Spirit, an indwelling of the Spirit, of the Beloved within me.
Something that is available to all of us but which we must say ‘yes’ to and then turn ourselves over to that, becoming disciples if I dare to use that word. More than just pious and holy-sounding words – this comes from God, an immense and ever-growing grace that pervades every atom of our beings. It is from this stance that we offer ourselves with love. It is from this stance that we live out our oblation.