On the occasion of the commemoration of the conversion of St Augustine, the Augustinian Federation of Africa met in the city of Lomé, Togo, as that young community informed the Assistant General for Africa, Father Eduard Daleng.
This lively event took place in the community of St Rita of the Augustinian friars, and was attended by nine congregations in total, seven female and two male: the Sisters of St Augustine (Benin), the Sisters of St Thomas of Villanova (Benin, France and Togo), the Sisters of Notre Dame de l'Eglise (Togo), the Assumptionist Sisters (Togo), the Sisters of Notre Dame de la Trinité (Togo), the Sisters of Charity of St Augustine (Togo), the Reparatory Sisters (Togo and Ivory Coast) and representatives of our own Order of Saint Augustine from Nigeria, Benin and Togo - with Togo hosting this type of meeting for the first time.
Over the course of the day, those attending had the opportunity to celebrate Holy Eucharist together and share an agape meal, during which our sisters and brothers were able to reflect in community on the topic introduced by Fr Lucas Sezouhlon OSA: “Obedience in the Rule of Saint Augustine”.
Below, thanks to the editing and note-taking work of Sisters Edith Mensah OSA, and Emilia Laetitia Amou NDE, we are able to reproduce some comments made on the day by Fr Lucas.
Deepening our understanding of obedience with our father St Augustine
Obedience is a fundamental principle guiding the life of the members of the community, as it is essential for maintaining order, discipline and spiritual life within the monastery. Obedience must be first towards God through the observance of the commandments, then towards the church authorities, the Prior and the brothers and sisters of the community.
For St Augustine, obedience concerns a man's relationship with God and with his fellow men. It is an act of voluntary submission which favours fraternity, order and peace in the community. Pride and indiscipline cannot reign when obedience is present. In this way, the Rule of St Augustine guides us towards a better understanding of the importance of obedience. Humility leads to obedience, which is the voluntary renunciation of one's own will, and obedience is valid for all of us at all times. It is not the special reserve, as is sometimes mistakenly assumed, for young people in formation. It is lifelong.
St. Augustine saw obedience as an essential pillar of the spiritual and religious life, which strengthens community communion and is the path to holiness.
It is the opposite of the misguided curiosity that insists on a sign from God without regard for Holy Scripture; it is a path to truth and is not separated from love. Christ, as a model of obedience, not only teaches us about this virtue, but is also our example. In the letter to the Philippians, Paul affirms that Jesus, being of divine nature, lowered himself as low as not just death, but death on a cross, and that obedience to God means keeping the commandments out of love.
During his presentation, Fr Lucas insisted that obedience is more than just submission to external commandments, but underpins our spiritual and moral lives. For St Augustine, obedience is an essential pillar of the spiritual and religious life, which strengthens community togetherness and is the route to holiness. To live better in it, we must take Christ as our model. Obedience is a duty and an expression of our love for God. he concluded by saying that authentic obedience is not an imposed external constraint, but the fruit of free adherence to the divine will.
This meeting is the first of its kind to be held in Lomé, and we hope that future similar gatherings will be organised, bringing the Augustinian family together again.
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