This past weekend I celebrated mass at St. Perpetua Parish in Lafayette, CA. I’m here to help out another Oblate, John Kasper, as he recovers from ankle surgery, which keeps him off his feet. It was the first time in 15 months that the community could join for a Sunday Eucharistic celebration without social distancing and wearing masks.
When the cantor made his usual opening remarks, saying, “Welcome to St. Perpetua Parish,” there was a rousing and spontaneous round of applause. When I began the mass, introducing myself, I commented, “From your reaction to the welcome from the cantor, it’s obvious you’re happy to be back together as a parish community.” With that, another rousing and spontaneous round of applause broke out. It was a heartwarming way to begin our liturgy, and, even as a stranger, I was moved and felt the welcoming spirit of this Catholic community. I was proud to claim St. Perpetua’s as a community led by an Oblate for 25 years.
Reflecting on this experience later, I could not help but recognize the human need to connect with other humans. It’s as if we are hard-wired to live in community, to share our lives, to rely on support and affection from others. It only affirms and strengthens my understanding of the value of community life we Oblates share. At the time of our first profession, part of our vow formula states, “For the love of God, and moved by a firm resolve to consecrate myself more fully to Him and to follow Christ more closely in my whole life…. I give myself with my whole heart to this religious family.”
Coincidently, in the past two weeks each of the Oblate American Provinces held their annual gathering. It has been two years since both Provinces gathered due to Covid restrictions. Unfortunately, each province met via Zoom, but it was still wonderful to meet together. We miss seeing one another. These annual meetings are one way we honor the vow we made to give ourselves with our whole heart to this religious family. Excluding last year due to Covid 19, the Toledo-Detroit Province has met every year for the past 33 years.
Pope Benedict wrote, “No man is an island, entire of itself. Our lives are involved with one another, through innumerable interactions, they are linked together…. The lives of others continually spill over into mine, in what I think, say, do, and achieve. And conversely, my life spills over into that of others: for better and for worse.”
For the Christian, participation in community life is a responsibility. We consciously fulfill this sacred obligation for the good of all the community. The times we are in demand the highest commitment of undivided loyalty to the human community, relational solidarity, and personal sacrifice on the part of each of us. For the health of our nation and for the good of our children, we must begin to recognize the signs of an excessive, unhealthy form of individualism, question it, and start moving toward a new, more communal spirit in keeping with the mind and heart of our God who created us to be one human family.
Rev. Jack Loughran, OSFS
Provincial, Toledo-Detroit Province
