Who are Oblate Youth?

U.S Oblate Youth is a national community of youth and young adults who identify with the charism of St. Eugene de Mazenod as expressed by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. They gather to grow in their faith, to serve, build community and foster a deep relationship with Christ and each other.  

U.S. Oblate Youth Structure

U.S. Oblate Mission with Youth Committee: Appointed by the Provincial of the United States Province of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Each committee member will be appointed as liaison to the representative coordinators in the Province.

Coordinators: Local youth and young adult leaders, representative of the various Oblate ministries in the U.S. Province.

Local members: All those who identify with the Oblate charism in the context of the Catholic Church and who choose to live this out by participation through U.S. Oblate Youth.

Oblates of Mary Immaculate: As living witnesses of the charism, Oblates are encouraged to participate and support all activities of U.S. Oblate Youth and to encourage the awareness of faith and Oblate charism and spirituality in a formal or informal manner.

Spiritual Pillars of Oblate Youth

Through the Oblate Youth program, the Oblates of Mary Immaculate invite youth and young adults to:

Make Jesus Christ the center of their lives. St. Eugene de Mazenod’s encounter with the love of the Savior manifested on the cross inspires young people today to experience the love of Jesus Christ in their various contexts. They are called, like the Oblates, to make the cross of Jesus Christ central in their lives (C.4). Prayer, uniting them more deeply to God, must be an essential element in their lives.

Serve the poor and most abandoned. St. Eugene de Mazenod encountered the “poor with their many faces” (C.5), people who were not aware of God’s love for them. Young people are called to make known God’s love to those who still hunger and thirst for God, especially those who are least touched by the structures of the Church (C.5), that all may discover their dignity as God’s children (C.8).

Share in Community. St. Eugene de Mazenod desired to gather his Oblates in a community of fellowship after the model of Christ’s Apostles (C.3). Young people are encouraged to create bonds of friendship and love with each other to share the faith that binds them together as Christians and thus bring about the fulfilment of God’s Kingdom.

Participate in the Mission. The Oblates of Mary Immaculate are a missionary Congregation (C.1). Young people are called to participate in the mission entrusted to St. Eugene and the Oblates, principally as missionaries in their local settings and, as opportunities arise, through foreign mission experiences. In every evangelization effort they are called to be cooperators in the mission of Christ the Savior, (C.1).

…Love the Church. St. Eugene de Mazenod’s love for the Church of Jesus Christ inspired him to “spare no effort”, leaving nothing undared for her sake. Young people are called to maintain this same love for the Church through the frequent practice of the Sacraments, constant prayer, and practice of the works of charity (C.7). Since Mary Immaculate is the first disciple of the Lord, young people are called to look upon her as their Mother (C.10) asking her intercession and modeling her love for the Church, the Body of Christ.

Process Goals

1.     Developing Leaders

a.      Providing a Youth Mission forum every two years for Coordinators and Local Members to grow in their understanding of St. Eugene’s spirituality in the context of working with youth and young adults.

b.     Resourcing at the local level by Oblates on the committee for the training of adult and youth leaders.

c.      Provide on-going formation to leaders via social media.

d.     Aid leaders to integrate the spiritual pillars of Oblate youth as well as the guidelines form the “General Directory for mission with youth” which utilizes the evangelization outline of human, Christian, and saints.

2.     Encountering Jesus

a.      Invite youth and young adults to encounter Jesus via the various youth rallies available at diocesan, national, provincial, and regional (CROCUS) levels.

b.     Provide spiritual resources via social media and a website on a weekly basis, if not more.

c.      Create and implement an “Oblate” spiritual retreat to be carried out at the local level.

d.     Promote mission experiences at local, national, and international levels,

e.      Promote a Province Pilgrimage for the International World Youth Days.

3.     Creating Friendship and Community

a.      Encourage and support faith sharing at the local level.

b.     Provide integrating resources that unite Oblates and Oblate youth in a common prayer and mission.

c.      Provide resource material to be used monthly that provides an ongoing participation in the charism of St. Eugene.

d.     Network youth and young adult leaders around the Province and encourage the creating of fraternal bonds.

4.     Celebrating Faith and Hope

a.      Promote resources that will encourage youth and young adults to participate in the sacraments of the Church as members of the Mazenodian family.

b.     Provide resources that encourage youth and young adults to celebrate Oblate Feasts.

c.      Provide a sense of belonging to the Mazenodian family in a ritualized manner.