October O-BOC Gathering: An Opportunity for Connecting and Sharing!

During our second Online Basic Oblate Community this fall, we gathered together from Vancouver Island to Ottawa and in between. Over the past months, since March, as many as 35 Oblates and Oblate Associates gathered online. We continue to share, knowing our love for the charism of St. Eugene is what binds us together, along with our own desire to be in community.

Our ongoing formation focus for October was Constitution #4: The cross of Jesus Christ is central to our mission. Like the apostle Paul, we “preach Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor 2:2). If we bear in our body the death of Jesus, it is with the hope that the life of Jesus, too, may be seen in our body (cf. 2 Cor 4:10). Through the eyes of our crucified Saviour we see the world which he redeemed with his blood, desiring that those in whom he continues to suffer will know also the power of his resurrection (cf. Phil 3:10).

Personal sharing ensued as we reflected on the question: Does failure, frustration, my own suffering or that of others invite me to seek hope and strength in the cross of Christ?

Thank you to all who participated this month. A number of Oblates and Oblate Associates sent their regrets, and we look forward to coming together on November 4, 2025, as the temperatures drop. Blessings to all during this month of October, celebrating Mary and the Rosary.