Oblate Vocations Novena 21-29 May 2026

Day Seven, Wednesday May 27th: Oblate Madonna

Pray with Fr Irvin, Vocations Director, for an increase in Oblate Vocations!
 
May 27th: Oblate MADONNA
 
Reflection: We are Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Mary is our model and our Mother. In her we see Christ, we see God. In her “fiat”, she shows us how to cooperate with the Will of God, and to live the death of Jesus, so that we share in His resurrection. We Oblates live our mission with her. As stated by Pope Leo XI, our mission as Oblates, is to “bring to the womb of the Mother of Mercy those children whom Christ from the cross wanted to give her.” That is why when Eugene contemplates Mary, he calls her “Mother of the Mission.”
 
Join us tomorrow for Day Eight! #prayer #priest #catholicchurch #vocations

Day Six - Oblate Mission - Novena for Oblate Vocations 21-29 May

Pray with Fr Irvin, Vocations Director, for an increase in Oblate Vocations!
 
May 26: Oblate COMMUNITY
 
Reflection: “We fulfil our mission in and through the community to which we belong. “Our communities, therefore, are apostolic in character… By growing in unity of heart and mind, we bear witness before the world that Jesus lives in our midst and unites us in order to send us out to proclaim God’s reign.” (OMI CCRR37) “Our communities seek to radiate the warmth of the Gospel to those around us.” (OMI C41)
 
Together in community, we dedicate our lives to build up the family of God’s children – and thus they help realise the prayer of Jesus: “That all may be one.”
 
Join us tomorrow for Day Seven! #prayer #priest #catholicchurch #vocations
 

Day Five - Novena for Oblate Vocations 21-29 May

Pray with Fr Irvin for an increase in Oblate Vocations!
 
May 25: Oblate MISSION
 
Reflection: “The call of Jesus Christ, heard within the Church through people’s need for salvation, draws us together as Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Christ thus invites us to follow him and to share in his mission through word and work.” (OMI C1).
 
“Wherever we work, our mission is especially to those people whose condition cries out for salvation and for the hope which only Jesus Christ can fully bring. These are the poor with their many faces; we give them our preference.” (OMI C5)
 
“Pray, therefore, to the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his vineyard.” (Matthew 9:38 ESV)
 
Join us tomorrow for Day Six! #prayer #priest #catholicchurch #vocations

Day Four: Oblate Vocation - Novena of Prayer for Oblate Vocations 21-29 May

Pray with Fr Irvin for an increase in Oblate Vocations! 
Day 5: Oblate Charism
“Charism” is a gratuitous gift or grace bestowed by the Holy Spirit upon an individual or group to build up the Church and serve others.  Our charism originates from a story; it is the story of a young man, Eugene de Mazenod.  Throughout his life, he experienced in himself the merciful love of God, manifested in Jesus Christ, the Crucified Saviour.  We, too, inspired by our Founder, recognise the power of Christ in us, and we want to evangelise.  “We preach the Gospel among people who have not yet received it and help them see their own values in this light.  Where the Church is already established, our commitment is to those groups it touches least.” (OMI C5) 
“Pray, therefore, to the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his vineyard.” (Matthew 9:38 ESV)
Join us tomorrow for Day Five! #prayer #priest #catholicchurch #vocations

Day Three: Oblate Vocation - Novena of Prayer for Oblate Vocations 21-29 May

Pray with Fr Irvin for an increase in Oblate Vocations! 
We are “set apart for the Gospel” (Rom 1:1), ready to leave everything to be disciples of Jesus.  The desire to cooperate with him draws us to know him more deeply, to identify with him, to let him live in us.  We strive to reproduce in ourselves the pattern of his life.  Thus, we give ourselves to the Father in obedience even unto death and dedicate ourselves to God’s people in unselfish love.  Our apostolic zeal is sustained by the unreserved gift we make of ourselves in our oblation, an offering constantly renewed by the challenges of our mission. (OMI C2)
“Pray, therefore, to the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his vineyard.” (Matthew 9:38 ESV)
Join us tomorrow for Day Four! #prayer #priest #catholicchurch #vocations

Day Two: Oblate CROSS - Novena of Prayer for Oblate Vocations 21-29 May

Day Two: Oblate CROSS
Reflection: “Can I ever forget those bitter tears at the sight of the Cross caused to stream from my eyes one Good Friday?” Eugene wrote in his diary.  “I was in mortal sin, and it was this that caused my sorrow… despite my grief, or better, by reason of it, my soul leapt towards God, it’s only good, whose loss it felt so keenly.” The gift of tears has less to do with sentimentality and more with the Holy Spirit.  Indeed, it is grace that makes one physically feel the immense gap between God’s love and forgiveness, and one’s own response to that love.
It was that profound grace of conversion Eugene received one Good Friday that paved the way for everything. “The cross of Jesus Christ is central to our mission.  Like the apostle Paul, we “preach Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor 2:2) OMI C4
Prayer for Oblate Vocations
Loving God, you called St Eugene de Mazenod to send forth missionaries to proclaim and live the Gospel among the poor. 
Increase our love, we pray, for those who are the most abandoned.  Extend Your loving call to many young people in our community and grant them the desire to give of themselves, their lives and their talents to the service of Jesus Christ and the Church.
May our young people answer your call as Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate to serve those who are most in need.
This we ask through Christ, our Lord.  Amen.
1 Our Father    1 Hail Mary     1 Glory Be
Mary Immaculate, pray for us.
St. Eugene de Mazenod, pray for us.
Blessed Joeph Gerard, pray for us.
Blessed Joseph Cebula, pray for us.
Blessed Oblate Martyrs of Spain, pray for us.
Blessed Oblate Martyrs of Laos, pray for us.

Day One: Oblate Saints - Novena of Prayer for Oblate Vocations 21-29 May

Novena of Prayer for Oblate Vocations
21-29 May, 2026
 
“Pray, therefore, to the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his vineyard.” (Matthew 9:38 ESV)
 
 
Foreword:       Our Lord Jesus Christ, when the appointed time came, was sent by the Father and filled with the Spirit “to bring the good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives and to the blind new sight, to set the downtrodden free, to proclaim the Lord’s favour” (Lk 4:18-19).  He called people to become disciples and share in his mission; in the Church, he continues to call others to follow him.
 
St Eugene de Mazenod heard that call.  Burning with love for Jesus and his Church, he suffered deeply on seeing how God’s people were abandoned.  He chose to become the “servant and priest of the poor” and to give his life wholly to them.
 
Faced with an overwhelming task, he gathered a few priests around him, men who shared his impassioned zeal for the most abandoned.
 
As missionary Oblates, we remain committed to God through the mission entrusted to us.
 
We invite you to join us in imploring the Lord of the harvest to inspire and send courageous, generous young people to share in our missionary life and vocation.
 
PRAYER FOR OBLATE VOCATIONS (Prayer for Everyday)
 
Loving God, you called St Eugene de Mazenod to send forth missionaries to proclaim and live the Gospel among the poor. 
 
Increase our love, we pray, for those who are the most abandoned.  Extend Your loving call to many young people in our community and grant them the desire to give of themselves, their lives and their talents to the service of Jesus Christ and the Church.
 
May our young people answer your call as Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate to serve those who are most in need.
 
This we ask through Christ, our Lord.  Amen.
 
May 21:           Oblate SAINTS
 
Reflection:       Eugene de Mazenod, founder of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate wrote to all the members of his missionary family: “In the name of God, let us be saints.” (18 February 1826, EO VII, n. 226). 
 
Today, we rejoice with the whole Church and the whole Oblate de Mazenodian family as we celebrate the Feast of St Eugene de Mazenod! By his inspiration and example, many Oblates with him and after him were elevated to be beatified: Blessed Joseph Gerard (Lesotho), Blessed Joseph Cebula (Poland), Blessed Oblate Martyrs of Spain and Laos.  In the same way, by virtue of our baptism, we are all called to the same life of holiness. Let us, therefore, strive to be saints.
 
Prayer for Oblate Vocations
 
1 Our Father    1 Hail Mary     1 Glory Be
 
Mary Immaculate, pray for us.
St. Eugene de Mazenod, pray for us.
Blessed Joeph Gerard, pray for us.
Blessed Joseph Cebula, pray for us.
Blessed Oblate Martyrs of Spain, pray for us.
Blessed Oblate Martyrs of Laos, pray for us.