Third Year of the Oblate Triennium:
Mission, Vow of Obedience and Evangelii Gaudium
23. OBLATE MISSIONARY LITURGY AND POPULAR PIETY
SETTING:
The animator arranges the ambience to facilitate prayer and sharing with religious symbols of
popular piety: A candle, incense, flowers, a picture of the Sacred Heart, BVM, etc. At the end
of our prayer we will spend 30 minutes before the Blessed Sacrament in Oraison.
MOTIVATION:
As preparation for the two hundredth anniversary of the foundation of our Oblate way of life
and the General Chapter we ask the Holy Spirit to help us share our faith, which has been
enriched by the popular piety of our people. This way we renew ourselves in the Charism of
the Founder.
SONG: Choose a song that is popular among the Faithful.
THE WORD OF GOD:
Mt 6:1, 9 "Beware of practicing your piety before men in order to be seen by them; for then
you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven…Pray then like this: Our Father
who art in heaven,…”
Mt 11:25-26 “At that time Jesus declared, "I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that
thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes;
yea, Father, for such was thy gracious will.
RESPONSE TO GOD’S WORD:
Psalm 86:1- 7, 11. Answer me, Lord, for I am poor and needy.
Incline thy ear, O Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.
Preserve my life, for I am godly; save thy servant who trusts in thee. Resp. Thou art
my God; be gracious to me, O Lord, for to thee do I cry all the day. Gladden the soul
of thy servant, for to thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. Resp.
Thou, O Lord, art good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call on thee.
Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer; hearken to my cry of supplication. Resp.
In the day of my trouble I call on thee, for thou dost answer me. Teach me
thy way, O Lord, that I may walk in thy truth. Resp.
OBLATE TEXT:
St Eugene: (DOV, “Devotions”, Roger Gauthier p.246)
“Father Toussaint Rambert has this to say on the subject: "Such, then, was Bishop de
Mazenod's piety: imbued with a lively faith, it embraced everything; it was great and lofty like
his spirit; generous, broad and strong like his will, ardent and affectionate like his heart;
simple, upright and sensible just like his fine soul [...] Initially, he did not dare to condemn
these novelties, because he was well aware that the Holy Spirit could be found in them, … and
that God's gifts are almost as varied as there are just souls on earth.”
Oblate Rule: 7g
In proclaiming the Word, it is our tradition to be simple and direct and to speak a
language adapted to and easily understood by our hearers. In all our ministry, but
especially in that of reconciliation, we will reflect the understanding, patience and
compassion of the Savior.
GOING DEEPER INTO THE THEME: Reflection on EG Nº 122-126
Oblate Missionary Liturgy
One day, a group of tribal leaders knocked on the door
of the presbytery. The parish priest welcomed them with a bit
of curiosity, then asking their intention. They told him that
they were not welcomed by some other religious leaders after
expressing their interest to join their group, due to their tribal
tradition of eating pork and drinking alcohol. Knowing the
situation, the parish priest said: “You are all welcomed here in
the Catholic Church! You can continue to eat pork and to
drink alcohol.” Then, finally, tens of villages in the region
joined the Catholic Church.
It is not about eating pork, not even about drinking
alcohol, but about respecting their local wisdom. They are
welcomed wholly, along with their tradition, their customs,
and even their way of believing God. They live, gradually, the
Christian faith in their own identity, their own culture. They see Christ with the eyes of their
local wisdom and understanding. It is truly the effective work of a missionary!
Being missionary is first being a man who lives the culture in which he belongs. Pope
Francis said in the Evangelii Gaudium: “Being human means “being at the same time son and
father of the culture to which one belongs” Once the Gospel has been inculturated in a people,
in their process of transmitting their culture they also transmit the faith in ever new forms;
hence the importance of understanding evangelization as inculturation.”(no.122) We live our
faith in the local atmosphere where we breathe and breathe day and night, always and always.
On regard to the celebration of faith, Liturgy, then, is the milieu as well as the source of
our missionary life. Our prayer life is essential for our apostolic life. In reality, elsewhere,
Oblates always encounter with the praxis of piety among the people. We, Oblates, always live
closely to the people with whom we share our faith as Christians. The Oblates immerse
themselves into the life of the people and find a way to be well inculturated in their local
wisdom and culture. Each person lives their faith by participating in the celebration of Mass,
other sacraments, as well as saying prayers, but of course, in their own ways, understandings,
and backgrounds. In other words, they live their faith, shared by all Christians in the world, in
their own circumstances, in what we call “popular piety”.
It is absolutely true what Pope Francis has said in the Evangelii Gaudium when he talks
about the popular piety: “Popular piety enables us to see how the faith, once received, becomes
embodied in a culture and is constantly passed on.” (no. 123). In our daily encounter with the
people, we find the faith lived and celebrated among the people. We are encouraged, of course,
to guard them in the faith, as “a good pastor, as Pope Francis says: “
To understand this
reality we need to approach it with the gaze of the Good Shepherd, who seeks not to judge but
to love.”(no. 125)
We, then, can journey together with the people, celebrating faith as one and the same
Christians inspired by the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who works among us. As Oblates,
we live our missionary charism by being a person whose heart embraces everybody, every
culture, and every religious diversities; being a person close to the people. Always we are
reminded by our Constitution and Rules: “We will always be close to the people with whom
we work, taking into account their values and aspirations…” (C.8). We are strengthened in
walking hand in hand with people while “We let our lives be enriched by the poor and the
marginalized as we work with them, for they can make us hear in new ways the Gospel we
proclaim..” (R 8a).
Oblates are not only close to the people, but also ready to hear the Holy Spirit
whispering daily among peoples. He inspires us to live our faith in full truth and love. He
leads us to know Christ the one who has delivered His life for the salvation of all. Pope said:
“One can say that “a people continuously evangelizes itself”.[98] Herein lies the importance
of popular piety, a true expression of the spontaneous missionary activity of the people of
God. This is an ongoing and developing process, of which the Holy Spirit is the principal
agent (no.122). And, he added: “the popular piety, as a fruit of the inculturated Gospel, is an
active evangelizing power which we must not underestimate: to do so would be to fail to
recognize the work of the Holy Spirit (no. 126).
The Holy Spirit works in us and continually enlightens us to be true missionaries;
being men rightly inculturated; men with respect and wisdom. By that, we are able to worship
God and celebrate faith, our Christian faith, in the soil and air of the local context. We believe
that it pleases God that we finally trust Him who daily blesses us and His people to whom He
has sent His Son, the Lord and Savior; He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
(Henricus Asodo Istoyo, omi. Aix en Provence)
TIME OF SILENT REFLECTION
SHARING OUR FAITH:
The animator invites each Oblate present to share what has inspired him in the reflection and
around the questions:
Share an experience in which the piety of the people has helped you prepare the Liturgy.
What are the difficulties or obstacles in adapting liturgy to the popular piety of the people?
Who or what has been supportive or brought joy to my Oblate missionary liturgy? What can
I do to make our community liturgy a living font of energy to nourish our Oblate mission?
COMMITMENT:
During the Oblate Triennium we are in a discernment process, preparing for the General
Chapter and the 200 year anniversary of our Congregation. How can we grow and be
transformed into what God wants and the world needs? What concrete gesture could we
choose as a sign of conversion? Let us ask God to inspire us, help us be bold and courageous.
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING AND INTENTIONS:
The animator invites each person present to pray, to thank God for the piety of the people, to
thank god for the daily signs of His presence and to ask for whatever might be needed.
FINAL PRAYER:
Together before the Blessed Sacrament for 30 minutes in Oraison
Constitution 33 - Following our tradition, we devote an hour each day to mental prayer, part
of which is spent together in the presence ofthe Blessed Sacrament.
The Founder - The evening adoration, which gathers the community before the Blessed
Sacrament, was for Eugene de Mazenod both a loving personal conversation with our Savior
and a family meeting in his presence. As a daily community practice, this exercise was
borrowed from the Redemptorists; as a form of affective rather than discursive prayer, it comes
from the Sulpicians. It is a long collective “visit” to the Blessed Sacrament, and the Founder
treasured it, along with shorter visits throughout the day, as a means of keeping us habitually
and lovingly present to the Lord. Especially in his later years, the Founder wrote to
missionaries to tell them of his union with them during this evening exercise. (Oblate Prayer, p.
51)
BLESSING AND SONG:
The animator asks an Oblate to bless the group with the Blessed Sacrament and then all sing
the Salve Regina.