YOU WILL REJOICE IN THE THOUGHT THAT THERE IS PERHAPS NO CONGREGATION IN THE CHURCH WHICH, RELATIVE TO THE NUMBER OF ITS SUBJECTS, DOES AS MUCH GOOD AS OURS.

Posted on September 16, 2022 by franksantucci

How do I express my enthusiasm for having Jesus in my life? How contagious is it?

We catch the enthusiasm of Eugene’s missionary zeal as he describes a letter from Father Ambrose Vincens who was the novice-master and local superior at ND de L’Osier

Letter from Fr. Vincens, very satisfying for the details which he gives me about several of their missions and about their works during this winter. Truly, all the work that is carried out by the ministry of our congregation is admirable. Bring together all the reports which come to me from Corsica, from America and from the different countries of France and England, and you will see whether there is place for blessing the Lord for his mercy, and you will rejoice in the thought that there is perhaps no congregation in the Church which, relative to the number of its subjects, does as much good as ours.

Eugene de Mazenod’s Diary, 2 April 1845, EO XXI

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1 Response to YOU WILL REJOICE IN THE THOUGHT THAT THERE IS PERHAPS NO CONGREGATION IN THE CHURCH WHICH, RELATIVE TO THE NUMBER OF ITS SUBJECTS, DOES AS MUCH GOOD AS OURS.

  1. Eleanor Rabnett, Lay Oblate says:
    September 16, 2022 at 13:12

    One of the things that I have noticed over the years is the aroma of joy which is evident among the members of the Oblate Family especially when they gather together. In some ways it is as if their very beings take on the characteristics of living joy.

    I think of how sharing is the very nature of love, the DNA of love – intimately personal and communal at the same time. Never just one or the other, but always the ‘both and’. Having Jesus in my life locked up in my heart is not enough – it must be shared and given away -whether there seem to be any returns or not.

    Like an artist who paints their vision of joy and life in order to share it, or like a conductor of a great orchestra who draws out the music just waiting to be freed through the instruments of sound…

    This coming weekend I will express a little of my enthusiasm for having Jesus in my life as I preach at our parish Masses. I get to ‘break open the Word’ and share my experience of God, hopefully in such a way that God will use me to open the hearts of those I am sharing with. Not so much for them to see my heart, but rather for them to relax their hearts and allow themselves to be touched by God. God will transform in ways personal and intimate, yet ultimately in communion with those they meet and love, those they serve and care for, those they meet who do not yet know and recognise God standing before them and even hiding within.

    I am reminded of the burning bush that did not consume.

    A continual unfolding…

    Reply

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