The missionaries were going on their missionary expedition as members of a community, and so before each mission departure there was a moment of community prayer and send-off:
Before leaving the house, they will go to the church in their travel dress, that is to say in soutane [ed cassock], with their walking stick in hand and breviary under their arm.
They will kneel around the altar. The assembled community will be in choir dress.
The missioning prayer took place before the Eucharistic Presence of Jesus, highlighting that it was Jesus who was sending.
The missionary responsible for the week will take out the holy ciborium and place it upon the altar. All will recite together… [ed a list of prayers follows]. The missionaries will receive the benediction of the most Blessed Sacrament.
Once the Blessed Sacrament has been replaced in the tabernacle, the missionaries will go in front of the superior’s choir stall, and kneeling they receive from him their first mission, which he gives in these words:
“Beloved brothers, go to the lost sheep from the house of Israel; they have been purchased at a great price. May the powers of hell give way; may the angel of the Lord accompany you on your way, so that with peace, health, and joy you may return to your own. To the invisible and immortal God alone be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. May the blessing of almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, descend upon you and remain forever.”
The missionaries will bow profoundly while the superior pronounces these last words. Then together they will rise and go and prostrate themselves at the foot of the altar, and, after having kissed the ground, they will depart in the Savior’s peace.
1818 Rule Chapter Two §2
Today the Missionary Oblates express this reality thus in Constitution 11: We fulfil this mission in community; and our communities are a sign that, in Jesus, God is everything for us
This past weekend at St. Joseph’s Parish in Ottawa we welcomed Fr. Andy Boyer, OMI as our new pastor. Fr. Andy’s first homily was about community, about being Oblate and a missionary sent to us, ministering in community and joining with us, becoming a part of us on our faith journey.
We welcomed him with prayers and a blessing – we shared with him our excitment and joy that he will be walking with us. And just as we celebrated the previous weekend how our former pastor, Fr. Richard C Kelly, OMI had journey with us we now celebrate the newest member of our parish community and we look forward to walking with him. IT is together that we are all a part of the Body of Christ
LJC et MI
As I look at todays reflection it is clear that it reflected the 19th Century and the traditions of the day. Yet what it did was to bring to consciousness the daily mission at hand. How often, most often I leave the house and head off to the centre without prayer or thought of what I am doing. As long as I have the laptop in hand I am ready to go.
For me, this passage from our life story, calls me to be more aware of the mission before me. Is there a prayer/a ritual that can ground me in the moment before I run out of the house. And can this prayer once again unite me to Christ through the corporate works of my Oblate Brothers and Sisters?
I offer what little I can, how I start my day when stepping out the door.
For me, that moment of stepping out the door becomes a moment in time of expectant joy and I find each morning that I look so forward to this moment – I am walking with/being with my God – just He and I. I begin with Our Lady and ask for her guidance, with the Hail Mary and prayers for , for my community, for family and colleagues and for those I will meet today. I ask that my day become a living prayer – that all that I do be in itself a prayer of praise and love. Most days I am able to recite the Rosary, but sometimes not. I have made it part of my daily ritual and find often that if for some reason I miss it, a small part of me is also missing and my day is just not quite right. Not sure if that is what you are talking about Jack, but I offer it for what it is worth.