After God, it was the religious family of Missionaries he belonged to that was the most important focus of his life. Having spent six weeks in Paris, Eugene felt the separation even more acutely:<\/p>\n
\nDo you not know that I regard myself as exiled in Paris, that I cannot live long separated from my dear family, and that my sole consolation is to converse with you and about all of you\u2026<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
While in Paris, Eugene had received several offers of ecclesiastical posts, including an appointment that would have led to his becoming Bishop of Chartres. These offer are what the world considers \u201cgood fortune,\u201d but not for Eugene:<\/p>\n
\nOh I fear not to sacrifice the happiness of living with her whom they call in the world good fortune; I consider myself happy, on the contrary, to be able to credit myself for having known how to appreciate and prefer this family of my choice, to everything the world can offer…<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Letter to Henri Tempier, 22 August 1817, O.W. VI n. 21<\/em><\/p>\n
On the same day he repeats the same sentiment in a letter to the whole community. His heart is with his Missionary family in doing a ministry dedicated to his fellow-citizens of Provence:<\/p>\n
\nHas it now been proved that I love you more than anything, my dear friends of the city of my birth? <\/strong><\/h5>\n
No, nothing has been able to seduce me. I have sacrificed for you what is called in the world one\u2019s fortune and I am well pleased. I am not referring to the two positions of Grand Vicar in the provinces for they were not worth counting or comparing with our holy mission and our dear Congregation, but to something more. And how could I consent to live two hundred leagues away from what is most dear in the world? I did not have the strength to acquiesce to that idea. <\/strong><\/h5>\n
The refusal might have seemed surprising but was not displeasing, such was the respect for my motive. So much so that I shall still have the happiness of living amongst all that I love. Let us pray God that this will always be for his greater glory and for our salvation. I shall never regret what I have just done because I believed myself obliged to be more interested in the spiritual good of my fellow citizens than in my fortune, this being the term we have to use.<\/strong><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Letter to the Missionaries of Provence at Aix, 22 August 1817, O.W. VI n. 22<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After God, it was the religious family of Missionaries he belonged to that was the most important focus of his life. Having spent six weeks in Paris, Eugene felt the separation even more acutely: Do you not know that I … Continue reading