Writing to Fr Court\u00e8s, one of the first Oblates in Aix en Provence, about his impending visit to Rome at the summons of the Pope, he says:<\/p>\n
\n… Now I cannot put off telling you something that will come as quite a shock. I am leaving for Rome. The Pope has just put my obedience to this test. Don\u2019t tell anyone about this journey before it has been made public and even then don\u2019t say I am going on the Pope\u2019s command. My sense of foreboding in view of the trust that the Head of the Church is showing me is more than I can say.<\/strong><\/h5>\n
He wants me to leave without the least delay for an important message that he wishes to communicate to me personally and to induce me to respond promptly to his invitation he appeals to my well-known sense of devotion to our holy faith.<\/strong><\/h5>\n
I don\u2019t hesitate for a moment to obey but I have a presentiment that I am going to be entrusted with some troublesome mission in some region of America. Colleagues who had to be brought in on the matter are carried away by other kinds of conjectures. For myself I see no other possibility. When the Pope speaks to a bishop with the good of the Church in view, he must be obeyed, cost what it might. Redouble your prayers on my behalf. Affectionate greetings.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Letter to Hippolyte Court\u00e8s, 31 July 1833, EO VIII n 448<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Writing to Fr Court\u00e8s, one of the first Oblates in Aix en Provence, about his impending visit to Rome at the summons of the Pope, he says: … Now I cannot put off telling you something that will come as … Continue reading