In February \u2013 March 1819 Eugene was one of the five Missionaries doing the parish mission at Eygui\u00e8res. In this letter to the rest of the community in Aix we catch him in a moment of relaxation where he banters with them light-heartedly. The others were in church and he took a breather to write:<\/p>\n
\nI write you during the High Mass. It is truly a rest for me, for I am happy when I take myself in spirit to be among a family as interesting as ours. Be persuaded that the greatest sacrifice I can offer to the Lord is to be forcefully separated for so long a time, but it is for his greater glory.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
He is in a good mood and teases them because they have not written:<\/p>\n
\nYou are too lazy, my dear friends and beloved brothers. We are nearly at the end of the mission and I can say that I have received practically nothing from you for can I take into account the four lines that my dear brother Moreau wrote to me before ascending the altar? Meanwhile I know nothing of what you are doing or how you are.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
He speaks of Aix as a \u201chospital\u201d \u2013 but there are no indications of any of them being seriously ill \u2013 perhaps they had the winter colds associated with living in an enormous unheated convent. Then he describes how fatigued the five of them are because of the mission and uses his vivid imagination to portray themselves as soldiers returning from battle:<\/p>\n
\nHowever it is understandable not to be at ease when this solicitude of mine bears on a hospital such as yours. If you are the sick ones of our company, we have all the appearance of convalescents. Our pale, drawn features, our cracked voices and our languid appearance give us quite a remarkable appearance. We pretty well resemble warriors returning from a long, hard battle who painfully drag along their weapons of victory and yet who retain the noble assurance that portends new success at the first onslaught of the enemy.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Letter to the community in Aix, 7 March 1819, O.W. VI n 41<\/em><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A spirit of simplicity and joyfulness marks our communities. In sharing what we are and what we have with one another, we find acceptance and support. Each of us offers his friendship and places his God-given talents at the service of all. This enriches our spiritual life, our intellectual development and our apostolic activity.<\/em><\/p>\n
CC&RR, Constitution 39<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In February \u2013 March 1819 Eugene was one of the five Missionaries doing the parish mission at Eygui\u00e8res. In this letter to the rest of the community in Aix we catch him in a moment of relaxation where he banters … Continue reading