It is a curious coincidence, perhaps, that the ship on which Frs Allard, Sabon and the others left the port of Marseille and from which they took a final look at Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde on November 13, 1851, bore the name “La Providence”.
 The second element of the story is the willingness of those who were sent out to respond to grace. Not all were ready for a total self-giving; of the first five, two left only a few months later, others were to leave afterwards. But there were those who responded fully, like Fr Sabon and Fr Gerard. They allowed God's power to act through them in ways the second reading points out: Far from relying on any power of my own ... in my speeches and the sermons that I gave there was only a demonstration of the power of the Spirit. And I did this so that your faith should depend on the power of God. Personally, I greatly admire the perseverance of Fr. Gerard who worked in Natal for seven years without any visible success. It was only later, through the admirable work of the Marianhill missionaries, that the Zulus would accept the faith.
I will pass over the 100 years between the founders and the present, and I shall ask the question: can this history find its continuation today, in us? Has God’s mercy new plans today? Can there be a similar fruitfulness? A new generation of saints?
There are some indications that things are still happening, not only in Natal, but all over Africa. We could see and feel them at our Joint session with the Africa-Madagascar Region where almost all our 17 Oblate Units were represented.
Compassion for the poor is one of the indicators. This compassion was something to be felt in our meeting. When the reports mentioned again and again unemployment, Aids, starvation - God's own merciful Spirit invaded our hearts. The motto of the Oblates was once again being verified: The Spirit of the Lord has been given to me, for the Lord has anointed me. He has sent me to bring good news to the poor, to bind up hearts that are broken, to proclaim liberty to captives, freedom to those in prison. (With Archbishop Hurley present among us, who does not think of him when he hears these words?)
A visible fruit of this compassion that caught my attention only after the all-Africa meeting was over is the growing of the small missions: Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Angola and Kenya. All of that looked quite different only a few years ago! There is even a new foundation now envisaged: Guinea Bissau.
On the other hand, we recognize that we are not fully responding yet. Our answer is not yet decisive enough. Our integrity is not complete. There are scandals - we need purification. The media point the finger at us, we just have to change. I also mention one particular challenge that was pointed out to us: the challenge to lead a simple life. Let us follow the example of our forefathers. In his book on “Old Durban” written in the year 1852, an eyewitness has this to say: This year saw the arrival from France of Bishop Allard and Fr J.B. Sabon. They were members of the Congregation of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate and literally followed in the footsteps of the Apostles, traveling without purse and without scrip. Following the apostles' footsteps has always been the Oblate ideal.
Integrity of life, holiness in other words, will be the other chief indicator for a fruitful continuation of our great history. A striking example of today are the Oblates who risk their lives for Christ in the countries where there is war; in Angola, in Congo, all over the planet. During the last years several Oblates have suffered violent death; I mention: Bishop Ben de Jesus (1997) and Fr Benjamin Innocencio (2000) (both in Jolo, Philippines) and Fr Henry Dejneka (2001, Cameroon.)
Let them be an inspiration for us. Not everybody is called to become a martyr but we are all called to become saints. Archbishop Augustine Dontenwill, a former Superior General wrote: "Noblesse oblige, as sons and brothers of saints, we must work at becoming saints ourselves".
When celebrating our two saints, two generations of saints, on this feast day, we cannot forget Mary Immaculate. In Mary we see God’s complete victory over evil, as C 10 points out: the Immaculate Virgin ... prefigures God's final victory over all evil. May she lead us into the coming years. There is no doubt that God envisages in his mercy a new generation of saintly Oblates in Africa who will follow in the footsteps of St. Eugene and Bl. Joseph Gerard and so many others. With them and Mary as intercessors, the fire of Pentecost will invade us again and make us enter into the footsteps of the apostles. The sheep will not remain without a shepherd. God's immense mercy will reach them again as it did 150 years ago. Are we ready to be part of it? Amen.
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