Reflecting on the powerful effects of the parish mission that had just concluded, Bishop Eugene marveled at the conversion of the men who usually never came near a church, and were often militantly against it..
What power has been able to produce such admirable results? It was necessary to see these men who, for a month, perhaps fifteen days, would not dare to make the sign of the cross upon entering the church, if they ever entered it; today, Sunday of Quinquagesima, that is, Sunday called Fat Sunday by the fashionable, to appear courageously as disciples of the Savior in the face of the entire city which they had more or less scandalized up to the present; not only to sing the praises of God and the hymns of their thankfulness in the whole course of the procession, but to glory in their conversion and to trample underfoot human respect, generously carrying in their buttonholes the cross, a visible sign of their reconciliation with God, and to want to not take it off even after the ceremony which, in bringing everyone together, made of them a formidable army corps, and to keep it on while returning home individually! It’s something as admirable as it is phenomenal, when a person knows in what century we are living and who are the men who surround us.
Eugene de Mazenod’s Diary, 21 January 1844, EO XXI
Writing to Father Tempier, Eugene shared the same sentimants:
Imagine, at my arrival yesterday I found in the church of St-Cannat a thousand men gathered and singing with their powerful voices hymns of gratitude. I confirmed more than 200, a thousand received Holy Communion. During the afternoon an immense procession of an even greater number of men courageously faced what people might say and filled the enclosure and the square of Le Calvaire as well as all the near-by streets, windows, balconies and roofs…
Each man in his lapel wore a cross hanging from a ribbon. and they wore this sign of grace the whole day long; and these men who, a few days previously, would have been ashamed to make the Sign of the Cross on entering a church, dared to wear this pious decoration in all the streets of the city and down to the port where many were seen walking. Isn’t this admirable? And what if it had been the women? We know what they can do in similar circumstances.
Letter to Father Henri Tempier, 19 February 1844, EO X n 834
How beautiful to be able to share these sentiments of Eugene’s enormous pastoral heart, from which was born the Mazenodian family.
It is a gift to recognize the joy that Eugene experienced as he saw the very visible transformations that God was making in the lives of those who attended the mission. And it was a joy that came from his heart, from being able to share his lived experience of God’s love. This goodness and greatness was not born from his own goodness, but rather from the gifts that God shared with him, from a heart that God had planted within him, nourished and formed with tenderness.
And I hear gratitude and pride in his voice as he shares the story with all of us.
I am reminded of the joy that we experience when witness the oblation of our brothers or sisters coming into the community, no matter their state of life; our joy as we witness and are a part of the baptism of a child and especially an adult as they join our community. And there is the very special joy of being able to give the Eucharist to others, as they come forward to receive God or as they lay in their hospital bed, allowing God to come to them. I find my heart filling along with my eyes as I reflect on the joy that I know in being a disciple and serving those I love, whether they are known to me or not.
It is in this way that we can all join Frank in saying “how beautiful to be able to share these sentiments of Eugene’s enormous pastoral heart, from which was born this Mazenodian family.” How beautiful to be a witness and a disciple to this great love that has been shared with us and that we in turn get to share with others.
Today is usually a day away from this place, but I returned this morning, not to fill in some spare moments in time but because I felt drawn: there was more to the piece than I recognized yesterday. I could feel something burgeoning within me, rising to the surface, not of its own volition but being pushed up. And as I read Eugene’s words again what came to mind was that while Eugene was celebrating the success of the mission, he was also glorifying the Lord who had done the converting, who had transformed the hearts of the men. It was the glory of God that led to joy and gratitude.
Loving service and discipleship. There are no fireworks going off with these words but there is quiet satisfaction and gratitude. And there is a sense of being exactly where God has planted me to be and grow and there is a certain joy in that. Service and discipleship. I have not turned myself over to subjugation, to being dominated, but rather to offering myself, (oblatio) to God and to all of God’s people; to sharing the gifts that I have received in the light that they were given to me.
It sounds so vast, so unbelievably holy, and good… And there is a small part of me that wants to shout and show the world, share with them the gifts I have received, much like the men who realized the love of God and who wore little crosses on their lapels.
So begins my day as the sun rises and brings light to the day. This is exactly where I have wanted to be. I recognize my humanity a little more this morning. It is in this light that I enter into the rhythm of Saturday as a member of the Mazenodian Family.