Eugene had received the honor of being made a knight of the religious and military Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus The Oblate historian, Rey, who knew Eugene well, introduces this letter by saying: \u201cit shows us the point of view that he uses to judge this honorific recognition, whose religious spirit allowed no illusions as to its intrinsic value: we note how these words will apply to every other honor which the Founder of the Oblates was to receive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nI really think you make fun of me in your manner of remarking about my knighthood. But I see some hope of it being useful to the Society. What pleases me, you see, is that the King indicates precisely the reason why I have done good to his subjects, that is, by missions.<\/strong><\/h5>\n
He could have stated others which would not have been of any use to me or at least which I could not have called upon in the event of some future plans we might have.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Letter to Marius Suzanne, 7 March 1827, EO VII n 264<\/em><\/p>\n
Rey continues: \u201cEverything is connected with the salvation of souls by his beloved religious family: an honor awarded because of the zeal that could open up new regions to evangelize \u2013 that is enough reason to give value that nothing else can remove.\u201d Rey I p. 425<\/p>\n
Eugene accepted this honor only because of its usefulness. It recognized the value of the Oblate missionary work, and, secondly, he hoped that it would open up a new missionary establishment in the Kingdom of Sardignia. Many official portraits of Eugene as Bishop show him wearing this decoration.<\/p>\n
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\u201cNo person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Calvin Coolidge<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Eugene had received the honor of being made a knight of the religious and military Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus The Oblate historian, Rey, who knew Eugene well, introduces this letter by saying: \u201cit shows us the point of … Continue reading