CLOSE TO THE PEOPLE BY SPEAKING THEIR LANGUAGE (C8)
We will always be close to the people with whom we work, taking into account their values and aspirations.
Constitution 8
The Missionaries preached in Provençal, and their use of this language brought them closer to the humble and lesser-educated people. Eugene had founded his missionary family precisely to reach out to the most abandoned people by preaching in their language. The use of the Provencal language was a principle to which he insistently clung.
The official attitude of the Government after the Revolution was that French was the only language to be used so as to unify the country. The result was that the inhabitants of the remote villages who only knew Provençal were made to be even more abandoned. The Missionaries defied this in order more effectively to lead them to God.
An example took place in 1833 when the Mayor of La Ciotat had posted strongly-worded notices in the town condemning the Missionaries and their use of Provencal. Eugene responded:
We read there that the subject of the Mayor’s inconceivable diatribe is the language which I use in my instructions. I had thought until now that it was necessary to speak to the good farmers and fishermen in the language they understand best. The Mayor’s anger does not make me change my opinion.
BOUDENS, R., “Mgr. de Mazenod et le provençal” in Études Oblates 15 (1956), p. 6-7
In 1838, Eugene wrote in his diary about a pastoral visit he had made to a parish in his diocese:
All who accompanied me and attended me were struck, as I always am, by the sustained attention of those present, including the children, in fact by noting especially the children’s attentiveness.
This is a sure sign that I follow the only good method by speaking to them in their own language.
It also shows that we must put ourselves within the reach of people, not by narrating some idle stories, nor by translating some French speeches word for word, but by explaining one’s thought well. In this way we can give good instructions on the most sublime truths and do it with great benefit to the people. Do trust my experience.
Diary, September 4, 1838, EO XIX
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Once again we are reminded of the humility and daring that was woven into and throughout Eugene’s life and how we as members of the Oblate Charismatic Family try to walk in the footsteps of the apostles and those of St Eugene and his founding community.
One of my neighbours asked if I could help her to use the ParaTranspo app to get to her weekly physiotherapy appointment (ParaTranspo offers help to those who are challenged in different ways to be able get to where they need to go for the price of a bus ticket). Her children had installed the app on her laptop but did not have the time to explain how it worked or show her how to use it. She was terrified that if she made a mistake in the booking process she would miss her physiotherapy appointment.
The past two Mondays I have gone to her place to teach her how to use the app, and why it works the way it does. Next week I will go to watch and ensure she is comfortable doing it on her own.
It can be the small things that make the difference in how we do them. It can demand that we dare to share the Gospel to and with as many people that we meet. Constitution 8 is not for the weak of heart for it demands that we be bold, faithful and always loving. It is not about how we might serve and raise ourselves, but rather how we allow ourselves to be sent, in fidelity with Eugene’s gift of the Spirit.
Image how wondrous it will be upon our deaths to hear St. Eugene say: “…you have from the day we came together grasped the spirit which must animate us and which we must communicate to others. (To Father Tempier, August 15,1822)
Worth sharing. We all partake of the fruits of St. Eugene