With St Eugene in prayer

There are two litanies here:

1/ Saint Eugene de Mazenod intercessor for families that face various difficulties and challenges in family life – used by the MAMI in Sri Lanka.
2/ With St Eugene to the Saviour: a litany for those in need – a long meditative litany with many petitions, that can easily be abbreviated for particular needs

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SAINT EUGENE DE MAZENOD INTERCESSOR FOR FAMILIES THAT FACE VARIOUS DIFFICULTIES AND CHALLENGES IN FAMILY LIFE

• He experienced riches as well as poverty in his own life.
  

  He experienced the love of his parents as well as depression after the separation of the parents.
  He is a saint who knows the happiness as well as the difficulties of family life.
  He experienced the struggle faced by family members in different social situation.
  He experienced a change social status in his family itself.
  He realized by experience the futility of worldly pleasure.
  He discerned God’s plan for his life in the midst of various difficulties and challenges in life.He changed his life pattern according to the will of God.
  The deep experience of Christ made him mature in life.
  He dedicated his life to preach the love of the crucified Christ to the whole world.

LITANY:

Response: St. Eugene de Mazenod, lead us to Jesus through the trials of life.

1.   You who were rich and content at birth but afflicted by poverty and suffering very early in life. R/

2.   You were in exile for the safety of life in face of the terrors of the French Revolution. R/

3.   You lost everything in exile but were miraculously sustained by God’s providence. R/

4.   You were deprived of education in exile but God sent you Fr. Bartolo Zinelli in Venice to guide your path. R/

5.   When your parents were separated, you lost the warmth and love of your mother at a tender age but you were blessed with the loving presence of our Heavenly Mother. R/

6.   Having failed in all your attempts to reconcile your parents, you experienced utter helplessness. R/

7.   You were lonely and had no hope of a bright future in the prime of your youth and thus, you experienced the depression of the idle youth. R/

8.   When you returned to your motherland at the age of twenty you were showered with all the pleasures of worldly life and you were quick to discern their vanity. R/

9.   You encountered the crucified Christ on a Good Friday and were awakened to the immeasurable love of the Saviour. R/

10. At the foot of the cross, on that Good Friday, you realized God’s wonderful plan for you. R/

11. You gave yourself to the service of the Church and dedicated your priestly life to serve the young and the most abandoned. R/

12. In your passionate love for the poor you founded the Congregation of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. R/

13. With your generous heart embracing the whole world, you sent your missionaries to the ends of the world. R/

14. Called to serve as the Bishop of Marseille, you touched the hearts of God’s people. R/

15. You instructed the members of your Congregation before your death to show each other charity and to work with zeal for the salvation of people. R/

16. You were proclaimed a saint of the Church for the welfare of those in difficulties. R/

17. You mediate before our heavenly Father on behalf of the families that undergo trials and difficulties and you are quick to come to their aid. R/

Let us pray.

Almighty and loving God, you led St. Eugene dc Mazenod through the sufferings and challenges of a dysfunctional family to a life of holiness. Through his constant intercession bless the children and the youth of broken families. Strengthen the spouses to strive for unity. Grant them the gifts of understanding, patience, love and courage to overcome the problems of life. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Saviour and Lord. Amen.

MAMI, Colombo, Sri Lanka

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WITH SAINT EUGENE TO CHRIST THE SAVIOUR – A LITANY

A SAINT WHO BRINGS US LIGHT

When the name Eugene de Mazenod is mentioned, people immediately think of the dynamic and faith-filled priest who founded the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate and then became Bishop of Marseilles. At the basis of this saintly man and his very successful ministry was the secret of his life, which is not always recalled: he knew Christ the Saviour intimately. It was not a knowledge of ideas, but a familiarity and love which developed because he had experienced difficulties and sufferings in his life and was able to recognise that it was a sharing in the sufferings of his Saviour.

What is a saint? A good image is of the sun shining through a magnificent stained glass window in a cathedral. It is the light of God’s love shining through a person and filling us with a particular colour and aspect of God’s light. St. Eugene can be seen as this stained glass window who shows us the beauty of the love of God as Saviour. This is the invitation to which our devotion invites each of us: to see in Eugene the beauty of God’s love. In this way Eugene becomes for us a model of how to live in the Light, an intercessor who leads us to the Light, and a loving friend who accompanies us on the journey.

SAINT EUGENE IS A HUMAN WITH FAULTS WHO STRUGGLED TO BECOME A SAINT

Eugene’s life shows him to be anything but a plaster saint who floated through life in a cloud of holiness. The events of his life and the many sufferings from his childhood until his death show this to us. He was exiled from his country from the age of 9 until 20. He suffered many hardships during this time, but certainly the most painful blow during this time was that his mother and sister left him and returned to France to try to recover some of the family possessions that the Revolution had taken away from them. In order to recover their property, his mother had to undergo a civil divorce. Eugene considered this as a temporary legal necessity and for many years he longed for the day when his parents would be re-united. It was never to happen. What had begun as a separation for material reasons, developed into a divorce which never led to reconciliation. Eugene, who intensely loved both his parents, tried by all means to bring them together again, but to no avail.

He had a strong personality and he struggled with himself and his imperfections. He was a man who knew how much he needed to love people and to be loved by them, and yet he was also a figure who knew rejection and loneliness. He was a man who suffered because of the situations in which he found himself – but throughout his life we find a deep sense of peace and single-mindedness that never left him. Why? Because since he had met and accepted the Crucified Jesus as his Saviour, Eugene was able to see every event through the eyes of his Saviour. In each event he was able to discern and recognise the presence of his loving Saviour.

Here is the first reason why people are attracted to St. Eugene as a saint: he is very human and therefore becomes a MODEL for us. He teaches us how to recognise God’s love in every situation. Thousands of persons throughout the world have learnt of God’s love through the ministry of his sons.

SAINT EUGENE IS CLOSE TO GOD AND PRAYS FOR US

Not only does St. Eugene show us how to live in God’s love, how to turn to the Saviour in our brokenness, but he intercedes for us that we may do so. This is the meaning of his canonization: the Church recognizes that Eugene is part of the communion of saints and is close to God in the fullness of the Kingdom. Now he prays for us and INTERCEDES for us in our needs from that situation of closeness to God.

Throughout the world we constantly encounter people who testify to the power of his intercession. People turn to Eugene in prayer because he experienced the break-up of his family, he knew what it was to be an exiled immigrant, he experienced persecution, wealth and what it means to lose it all, loneliness, failure of plans and many other forms of suffering. People approach him because he knows and understands the difficulties of our human existence. More and more churches throughout the world are now being dedicated to him as people discover the power of his intercession.

SAINT EUGENE IS A FATHER AND FRIEND WHO JOURNEYS WITH US

As a person, Eugene knew the meaning of friendship. He always needed to have close friendships. He treasured the people he was really close to and knew that he could not live without friends. For this reason he was able to understand how Jesus was calling him to a relationship of special friendship with Him. Eugene and his Saviour were deep friends, with Eugene wanting to live in intimacy with him and always in his presence. Eugene not only teaches us how to follow Jesus but he also accompanies us on the journey by offering us his friendship. As Founder of the Oblates and as Pastor of Marseilles Diocese Eugene understood himself and acted as a father. Particularly when he was older, he would often exclaim, “Never has a father loved his children as much as I do!” Today that continues to be true and we can hear those sentiments echoing in our hearts as he accompanies us on the journey of coming to know and love the Saviour in a deeper way.

I conclude this brief reflection on Saint Eugene as model, intercessor and father and friend by sharing with you the following litany. As you pray it, may you experience in your own life the presence of St. Eugene who leads you to the Saviour in your time of need.

Frank Santucci OMI

WITH SAINT EUGENE TO CHRIST THE SAVIOUR – A LITANY FOR THOSE IN NEED

Response to each invocation: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

1           Born into a rich upper-class family, you experienced what it meant to lose everything, your comfort, social position, and friends. Yet you experienced that God our Saviour did not abandon you.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

2           At the age of 7 you experienced revolution, persecution and fear and what it meant to have to run away to save your life. The Saviour was with you, and you were protected.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

3          In exile you experienced living away from your country, culture, language and    environment. The Saviour helped you to adapt, learn and grow from every event.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

4           In Venice you did not have the possibility to go to school. The Saviour sent you a wonderful personal teacher in Father Bartolo Zinelli who cared for you and gave you the human and religious foundations you needed.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

5           As a teenager you suffered the break-up of your family and lived without your mother and sister for many years. The Saviour comforted you by giving you the understanding of the motherhood of Mary.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

6           As an adolescent and young man you longed to reconcile your parents, but suffered from the pain of the irreparable separation of your parents and your wish for them never being realised.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

7           In Naples you experienced the joyless existence of poverty, boredom and lack of hope for the future. The Saviour formed you through this so that you could feel with others who suffered in the same situation.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

8           In Sicily you lived the life of a nobleman again, and pampered yourself, even in making up a noble title and calling yourself “Count de Mazenod”. Yet the Saviour sent you a guide in the Duchess of Cannizaro who taught you to become aware of the needs of the poor.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

9           Returning to France at the age of 20, you gave yourself to a life of frivolity and pleasure. But the Saviour led you to understand how empty this was.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

10         One Good Friday, standing at the foot of the Cross, you experienced the unconditional love of the Saviour for you and your life was transformed for ever by His love.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

11         On that Good Friday, standing at the foot of the Cross, the Saviour led you to understand that despite all your sins and guilt, you had been liberated and forgiven and healed.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

12         On that Good Friday, standing at the foot of the Cross, you were led to understand your vocation to give yourself to the service of your Saviour through the gift of your whole life as a priest.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

13         In a country which had been ravaged by the Revolution, and which had forgotten about God, you were helped by the Saviour to understand that your vocation was to live only for God and to bring others to God’s love.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

14         After your ordination you returned to Aix en Provence and became aware of the cry of the poor. The Saviour responded to their suffering through your preaching and service to the poorest classes, to the youth and prisoners.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

15         Your ministry to the abandoned and dying Austrian prisoners of war led you to the point of death through typhus. Through the fervent and constant prayers of the youth you ministered to, the Saviour healed you.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

16         Impelled by your passionate love for the Saviour you invited others to join you in your ministry of preaching to the most abandoned. The Saviour used you to bring to birth the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

17         In order to be “all for God,” the Saviour invited you and your companions to bind yourselves to Him through religious life, living the vows in apostolic community.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

18         When you mourned the death of your young Oblate companions, the Saviour showed you that they were part of the Oblate community in heaven, and that through their prayers they were fully involved in your mission preaching.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

19         When the small group of Oblates was endangered by forces threatening to destroy it, you turned in prayer to Mary Immaculate, and in front of her statue you received the assurance that you were doing the will of the Saviour.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

20         At a time when the Church was not recognizing any new religious congregations, the Pope recognised the work of the Saviour in what you and the young Oblates were doing, and gave official approved the Oblate Congregation.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

21         Fully committed to the welfare of the Church, you sacrificed yourself and your personal wishes to serve wherever the Saviour was calling you. You accepted to be Vicar General of Marseilles and then Bishop so as to better serve the most abandoned.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

22         The anti-religious activities of the French government caused them to attack you and inflict much suffering on you. You never wavered in the cause of justice and were strengthened in your defence of the Church by the constant grace of the Saviour.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

23         As Bishop of Marseilles you dedicated all your energies to being a loving father to your flock, with a special insistence on mirroring the Saviour’s love for the poor and most abandoned.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

24         During the various deadly cholera epidemics you risked your life to minister to the sick and dying, being prepared to die as a martyr of love in imitation of the Saviour.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

25         You experienced the intimate love and closeness of the Saviour’s presence in the Word of God, you nourished yourself on it each day and led others to the same source of nourishment.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

26         You experienced the intimate love and closeness of the Saviour’s presence in the Eucharist, and taught and encouraged all those you ministered to, to have a strong Eucharistic devotion.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

27         When you became aware of the cry of the poor in distant countries because they did not know the Saviour, you sent your Oblate sons to bring them the good news of the Saviour’s unconditional love for them.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

28         Your last testament to your Oblate sons was what the Saviour had taught you throughout your life: “charity, charity, charity among yourselves, and outside, zeal for the salvation of souls.”
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

29         You always made Mary Immaculate known and loved as a mother who leads those in need to the Saviour. The Saviour crowned your life by calling you to Himself during the praying of the Salve Regina
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

30         In your canonization the Church recognised your sanctity and proclaimed you to be a model for others to follow in their search for Christ the Saviour. As a saint you are a powerful intercessor for all in our poverty and abandonment.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

31         Today you continue to be present through the ministry of your Oblate missionaries and their associates throughout the world. Make them fearless and generous in their ministry to all who search for the meaning in their lives that only the Saviour can bring.
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

32        Let us pause in silence to think of our own personal intentions and requests …. (silent time)
R/: St. Eugene, guide us to the Saviour in our time of need

Let us pray,

Loving Saviour, we thank you for the life and intercession of Saint Eugene de Mazenod. Accompanied by his prayers we bring to you all our personal intentions and those of our loved ones, especially the sick and suffering. We ask also that you will inspire many generous persons to follow St. Eugene’s missionary example by dedicating their lives to being the Saviour’s co-operators like you were. We ask all this with loving confidence. Amen.