We continue reflecting on Eugene\u2019s letter to the Bishop of Fr\u00e9jus on the crisis which he had provoked by removing his men from the Missionaries. In earlier entries we have seen the collateral damage that this caused.<\/p>\n
\nThrough the imprudence of those who provoked this decision and are spreading it from house to house, however, everyone is taken up by it, and each is giving his own opinion without understanding the root of the question. We are blamed without being listened to, for we refrain from speaking. We are calumniated and ill-favored, and this tends to discredit our persons and ministry.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
He points out the good work that the Missionaries have done in the eight years of their existence, and their constant loyalty to the local bishops.<\/p>\n
\nAfter eight years of peaceful profession this storm is breaking over us! And the fatal blow is struck by that authority on whose support alone we rely, under the auspices of which we were founded, have grown, and continue to exist. In fact, are not the bishops our natural guardians, our fathers and the object of our veneration and love?<\/strong><\/h5>\n
Yes, my Lord, their will is our rule, their authority the soul of our corps, the component of all our activities; we exist only through them and for them, to work without respite, on their orders, for the salvation of the people entrusted to them, and to alleviate their preoccupations by all our zealous efforts.<\/strong><\/h5>\n
Eight years have gone by without our having received the least reproach in the exercise of our holy duties. Our way of life, our conduct, I can honestly say, has been the subject of edification for all those who have been in a position to follow and appreciate it.<\/strong><\/h5>\n
Our ecclesiastical superiors, under whose eyes we are working, have constantly encouraged us and always approved every step we have taken.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
This harmony was shaken by the action of the Bishop of Fr\u00e9jus, as Eugene explains:<\/p>\n
\nWe were about to spread the good effects of our ministry by multiplying our work through the establishment of various houses in the dioceses which we have evangelized. The Bishops of Gap, Digne, Marseilles and Nimes have given us the most complimentary signs of their protection and were calling for our service, which we were ready to give them, exactly as we would have done for you at your first sign; and now your arm punches us with a fatal blow which confounds all our plans, and in its consequences shakes our institutions, injures our persons and leaves us, so to say, at the mercy of our enemies who are none other than those whose tendencies we opposed and whose passions we thwarted by fulfilling exactly the sacred duties of the ministry entrusted to us.<\/strong><\/h5>\n
Admit, my Lord, that we have a just cause to be put out because of this. Besides, if I go by the rumors I hear, this is only the beginning of our woes and you are preparing an even more serious blow for us.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Letter to Bishop C.A. de Richery of Fr\u00e9jus. 12 November 1823, EO XIII n. 44<\/em><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“Be obedient to the bishop and to one another, as Jesus Christ was in the flesh to the Father, and the apostles to Christ and to the Father and to the Spirit, so that there may be unity in flesh and in spirit.”\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em>St. Ignatius of Antioch<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
We continue reflecting on Eugene\u2019s letter to the Bishop of Fr\u00e9jus on the crisis which he had provoked by removing his men from the Missionaries. In earlier entries we have seen the collateral damage that this caused. Through the imprudence … Continue reading