EXTRAORDINARY
Our Charism & Spirituality
To do the ordinary in an extraordinary way is often cited as the hallmark of the charism and spirituality of St. Joseph Marello and of the Oblates of St. Joseph.
In addition, Oblate life is characterized by a phrase often repeated by the founder, St. Joseph Marello: “Be Carthusians indoors, and Apostles outdoors” meaning that we strive to live a rich interior life that leads us to apostolic service in the Church.
We do all this in the model of St. Joseph, in the spirituality of St. Joseph Marello, living in community life informed by the Holy Family, with Jesus at the center, especially with a focus towards care for children and youth.
Explore Components of Our Charism & Spirituality
Doing the Ordinary in an Extraordinary Way
To do the ordinary in an extraordinary way is often cited as the hallmark of the charism and spirituality of St. Joseph Marello and of the Oblates of St. Joseph.
The first biographer of St. Joseph Marello, Fr. John Baptist Cortona, himself attests to Marello exhorting the first Oblates to “be extraordinary in ordinary things,” and it is precisely in this way that Marello is remembered by the witnesses in the proceedings of his canonization.
Carthusians Indoors, Apostles Outdoors
The life of the Oblate of St. Joseph is characterized by a phrase often repeated by the founder, St. Joseph Marello: “Be Carthusians indoors, and apostles outdoors.”
It is a phrase that most succinctly sums up the charism and spirituality of the Oblates, in that we strive to live a rich interior life that also leads us to apostolic service in the Church.
Living in the Imitation of St. Joseph
In order to understand the person of St. Joseph in the life and spirituality of the Oblates of St. Joseph, it is necessary to first understand how St. Joseph Marello, our founder, was devoted to St. Joseph.
It is through the spirituality of St. Joseph Marello that we can in turn understand more about the spirituality of the Oblates of St. Joseph.
Community Life and Family Spirit
A unique element of the religious life and spirituality of the Oblates of St. Joseph is the way we live together as a community. It is not that living in community is itself unique–religious orders and congregations throughout history have been doing this in innumerably different ways since Jesus began his preaching. Rather, it is the way the Oblates live in community that makes their community life a particularly important part of their charism.