Early in his ministry, St Eugene realized that a community would be necessary for mutual support and to ensure a significant impact with the ministry. The mission is what draws us and it is community that nurtures us.
Community is God's gift to us, and through us a gift to all people. Among other things it signifies the communal life to which all of humanity is called. Community is good news for the Church and for the world and it is in this sense that community is itself already a form of mission.
From the youngest and newest members to the oldest and most experienced, Oblates live in community wherever possible. In Oblate life, community means a unity and a communion of life and heart with our brother Oblates. We work at that! In the more remote areas in Canada's north, in sparsely populated areas across Canada, and in other missionary territory, you will find Oblates living alone. Even so, our love for the community causes us to gather from time to time to support one another and to pray and celebrate as brothers.
The community allows us to be ourselves, encourages us to develop our talents, invites us to share these gifts, and supports us in ministry. Because our faith is strengthened in the community, we are able to minister more effectively.
But our Oblate communities do not exist in isolation. We are part of the larger process of a hunger and a search for community in the church and the world. This search for community is a longing to have an identity, to be accepted in our own uniqueness, to be able to share, to belong, to be a part of, to have a group identity.
As Oblates, we want our communities to be real centers of life and hope, which speak to our brothers and sisters around the world. By living together in spite of the difficulties involved, we believe that Christ wants us to show that his unifying love and spirit are stronger than all the forces of disruption, and that the liberation of people has already begun.
We truly believe that community is a great value and we invite you to make it both a source of and place for integral growth. And it will be that a place for real growth if it is built around Christ; if prayer permeates its life; if the sharing of faith and life is its normal practice; if we, its members, have the courage to live a healthy transparency; if our lifestyles are simple and conformed to the vows that we profess; if pardon and reconciliation are embraced as gifts of the Spirit and the fruit of discernment; if the ministry of each of us is shared and reviewed with the others; if each person takes an interest in the work of the others; and if it is full of compassion sensitive to the trials of those around it and actively engaged in trying to relieve their needs.
Excerpt from Letter of the 1998 General Chapter to the Oblates
Br Don Claerhout and Fr Bill Stang in KenyaThe Oblate Community in Labrador City