Who are we?
We are missionaries. We began 188 years ago, on January 25, 1816, when Father Eugene de Mazenod and four companions came together to preach missions in Provencal, in the rural countryside of southern France.
Currently, how many are we?
We are 4,440 Oblates in all - young men, old men, Oblates in formation, priests, Brothers! Of this total, 580 are in formation, having already made their first commitment. For the highest number in formation, the prize goes to Africa, with 165 young men in training.
Where are we?
We are in the five continents. The branch planted in Aix-en-Provence thrived well: more than 700 in Africa, 1450 in Europe, 630 in Asia, 360 in Latin America, 750 in Canada, 480 in the United States.
What do we do?
And all these people, what do they do? We do everything. We are not specialized, except in facing urgent needs.... It was enough for bishops to come to our Founder and say to him: "I do not have anybody..." for him to act, re-examine his manpower, cut personnel here and there, and release 2 or 3 men for these new needs. And that continues today still. You see, it is a question of passion, of missionary concern....
- "Whoever wishes to become one of us must have an ardent desire for his own perfection, and be enflamed with the love for Our Lord Jesus Christ and his Church and a burning zeal for the salvation of souls.." (Rule of 1853)
- "We are men set apart for the Gospel, men ready to leave everything to be disciples of Jesus." (Constitution 2)
- "The community of the Apostles with Jesus is the model of our life." (Const. 3)
- "Like the Apostle, to preach "Jesus Christ, and him crucified... not in loftiness of speech. " That is to say, by making manifest that we have pondered in our hearts the words which we proclaim, and that we began to practice before setting out to teach." (Rule of 1826)
- "Wherever we work, our mission is especially to those people whose condition cries out for salvation and for the hope which only Jesus Christ can fully bring." (Const. 5)
- "The Founder left us a legacy: 'Among yourselves practice charity, charity, charity - and, outside, zeal for the salvation of souls.' In fidelity to that testament, each member's zeal is sustained by the bonds of fraternal charity." (Const. 37)
These quotations show both the realism and the ideal of our life. Seeing the demands of our commitment sometimes frightens us. Mediocrity is always a potential danger. Daily generous fidelity, often heroic, that is the way followed by our brothers whose holiness the Church has recognized: Saint Eugene de Mazenod, the Blessed Joseph Gerard, the apostle of Basuthos, and Blessed Jozef Cebula, who was killed in Mauthausen in 1943, and so many others whose anonymous holiness is registered in the heart of God.
St. Eugene de Mazenod
| Founder of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate
The world offered much to Eugene de Mazenod. Through his father he was nobility. Through his mother he was wealthy. But within nine years of his birth his world changed. The French Revolution made Eugene and his family political refugees for twelve years. His family fled France, his parents separated, and his inheritance disappeared. On his return to his homeland at the age of twenty, he sought to find his place in the new France. It was a time of growing disillusionment, but Eugene’s gaze was drawn more and more away from himself to the pressing needs of the spiritually and materially needy and the needs of the Church. He decided to do something about it. He became a priest. Fr. de Mazenod set about rebuilding a world of Christian values. From village to village he went preaching, bringing the Word and the Sacraments to all, visiting prisons, and offering the poor a renewed sense of their dignity. Others joined him and in 1826 a new religious family - to be called the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate - came into being. Even while Bishop of Marseilles, Eugene cared for his Oblate family. He sent his men on missions throughout Europe, to the United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa, and Sri Lanka.
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| Today they extend to every continent working in over 70 countries. His life of virtue was recognized by the Church and on December 3, 1995 he was declared a Saint. Inspired by the vision of their founder, St. Eugene, the Oblates preach the Good News to the poor. They serve in a variety of ministries. They serve in parishes, staff shrines and retreat houses, work with youth, and strive to respond to all needs, spiritual and material.
Prayer to ask a special favor
God, Our Father, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, you called St. Eugene de Mazenod to gather priests and brothers as Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate to announce the Gospel, especially among the poor and neglected. May we be inflamed with his zeal for announcing the Gospel of Jesus Christ our Savior and receive through his intercession the special grace we ask for at this time.
St. Eugene de Mazenod, pray for us.
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At age 26, Eugene's struggle to "find himself" ended when he entered the seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris. After his ordination in 1811 at age 29, Fr. de Mazenod declined the first assignment offered to him, the prestigious position of Vicar General to the Bishop of Amiens. Instead, he asked to work with the poor, neglected, and abandoned people of Aix.
Fr. de Mazenod visited the sick and those in jail and reached out to the troubled youth of Aix. He also preached church missions to the poor, working-class people of Aix. Instead of the French used by members of the upper class, he spoke to them in their own Provencal dialect.
Realizing that he alone could not meet the needs of Aix's many poor, Fr. de Mazenod invited other men to join in his work. he purchased a former Carmelite convent and its adjoining church for his future community. Soon, a small band of priests was formed, and they began preaching church missions throughout the French countryside, calling themselves the Missionaries of Provence.
When the success of their work led to requests for their services on a wider scale, de Mazenod took steps to form his coworkers into a religious congregation. In 1826, de Mazenod received approval from Pope Leo XII for his new congregation, placed them under the patronage of Mary and so they were known as the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.
In 1837, Fr. de Mazenod became the Bishop of Marseilles. The new bishop had many plans for his diocese, from realigning parish boundaries to fighting the government's monopoly on education. While serving as bishop, Eugene de Mazenod continued to oversee his small congregation of priests in Aix and to plan their future.
In 1841, at the request of Bishop Bourget of Montreal, four Oblate priests and two brothers went to Canada and began the congregation's missionary outreach. Soon, Bishop de Mazenod began receiving more requests for help. While seeking priests for his mission in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), one bishop was told to visit Marseilles where he would find a "bishop with a heart as big as St. Pauls', as big as the world."
Bishop de Mazenod was determined to answer every request for missionaries that he received. Before his death in 1861, his congregation of 416 men had spread to ten countries, including Canada, the U.S., England, Ireland, Sri Lanka, and South Africa. His message of service to others has inspired many men to answer the call to serve in Oblate missions throughout the world.
Efforts to have Bishop de Mazenod canonized began in 1926 and were rewarded with his beatification in 1975. The process continued, and on December 3, 1995, Pope John Paul II proclaimed him a saint of the Church
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