Eugene prayerfully discerned the choice of Oblates to respond to the invitation to establish the first missionary community in the United States. He understood it as a call from God, and wrote:
Respond with joy to this call, be faithful to your vocation and count on the most abundant blessings of God and on a recompense proportionate to the excellence of the great mission you are going to fulfil.
Letter to Fr. Pascal Ricard, 8 January 1847. EO I n 74
REFLECTION
“Many people mistake our work for our vocation. Our vocation is the love of Jesus.” Saint Mother Teresa
God, grant me the light of grace I need in my vocation to live each moment fully in your presence. May I focus on the quality of my life as opposed to the quantity of my achievements.
Fr. Frank Santucci OMI currently holds the Kusenberger Chair of Oblate Studies and is assisted by Fr. David Muñoz OMI. They are teachers at OST, and have Oblate and lay students following their online courses in many parts of the world. They are involved in promoting St. Eugene de Mazenod’s charism, spirituality and mission at many levels in the United States and throughout the countries where the Oblates and lay members f the Mazenodian Family are present. Father Frank has been producing these daily guided readings to the writings of Saint Eugene de Mazenod since 2010. They are published in English, French, Spanish and Polish, visit: http://www.eugenedemazenod.net/