Living de Sales

Jan 28

Blessed Louis Brisson, OSFS, founder of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, preached:

“We strive to imitate the life of St. Francis de Sales; his sentiments, his ideas, his way of acting, to grasp his entire soul and give it form through us. That is our task: that is our duty” (Chapter 1896: 2-7).

Being only one week after celebrating the Feast of St. Francis de Sales, these words serve as a good reminder about what it takes to follow our patron’s lesson/challenge to “Live+Jesus.”

We don’t just reflect on Francis de Sales’ words to feel good about ourselves. We learn from them so they can help us know how to live his words. As my mother used to say: “Paulie, don’t tell me you love me, clean the toilet, do the dishes, say you’re sorry and show me you mean it.” In other words, talk is cheap. Our lives reveal whether or not de Sales’ words make a difference. Actions speak louder than words. Do our actions show others that we follow St. Francis de Sales? That is our task, as Fr. Brisson said, to show de Sales to others.

Last week, in his Salesian Reflection, Mr. Bill Grebe, one of our postulants, did just that. He told us how the lives and witness of the students and faculty at Salesianum School lived de Sales so clearly that it made a major difference in his life. Now he is discerning whether God is calling him to be an Oblate and show Jesus and St. Francis de Sales to others.

I had a similar experience when I lived as a boarder at De Sales Hall in Washington, DC. I had been a Dominican friar for nearly twenty years from the time that I entered the Dominicans as a novice. I had been a Dominican priest for twelve years at that point. But living among the Oblates and being surrounded by the words of St. Francis de Sales, thanks to the artwork of Bro. Mickey McGrath, OSFS, I felt God tugging on my heart in a new way. The goal of any Christian preaching is to “Live+Jesus” and it was clear that the wisdom of St. Francis de Sales and the lives of his followers in the Oblates, did just that.

The more I lived with the Oblates the stronger the tug at my heart and soul became. I found myself at home with the members of the Oblate Community. The teachings of St. Francis de Sales became a stronger influence in my life. Now what do I do? I loved, and still do love, my Dominican identity, but I was also sensing God calling me to explore this spirituality and the community who lived it. I began the process of formal exploration, which led me, after the three-year process, to petition the Dominicans and the Oblates to transfer communities, at that point, having been a Dominican for twenty-seven years. At the end of that process, I professed vows as a member of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales. The rest is history.

The best way to honor someone is to live their vision, their values. My living of the values of St. Francis de Sales led me to take my Dominican foundation into a new relationship with the Church and with all of life, as an Oblate of St. Francis de Sales. We read about Mr. Bill Grebe’s journey last week. We don’t all need to become an Oblate sister, brother, or priest to do that. We need to take Fr. Brisson’s words seriously and “strive to imitate the life of St. Francis de Sales… and give it form through us.”

How can you honor St. Francis de Sales by the way you live your precious life? May God be praised.