Louis Lougen, OMI (born 1952 in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

) was elected

Superior General A superior general or general superior is the leader or head of a religious institute in the Catholic Church and some other Christian denominations. The superior general usually holds supreme executive authority in the religious community, while t ...

of the

Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) is a missionary religious congregation in the Catholic Church. It was founded on January 25, 1816, by Eugène de Mazenod, a French priest born in Aix-en-Provence in the south of France on August 1, ...

in 2010., and re-elected in 2016, the year of their 200th anniversary. Founded in 1815 by

Saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

Eugene de Mazenod Eugene may refer to: People and fictional characters * Eugene (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Eugene (actress) (born 1981), Kim Yoo-jin, South Korean actress and former member of the sin ...

, the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate number approximately 3,800 male missionaries worldwide. Their primary goal, or

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, is the

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of the poor to

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. The

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is notable for its historic missionary work in Canada, including administering 57 residential schools., and its ongoing controversies over its administration, including deaths of students in its care. Lougen is the twelfth Superior General since Mazenod's term began in 1816. He succeeds Heinz Wilhelm Steckling. The congregation has declined in recent years, with Lougen presiding over the diminishing presence of Oblates in parish churches in order to fulfill their missionary charism in other areas. Lougen made his perpetual vows in

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, in 1976 and was ordained in 1979. Serving 17 years as missionary in the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of São Paulo The Archdiocese of São Paulo ( la, Archidioecesis Sancti Pauli in Brasilia) is a Latin Metropolitan Archbishopric of the Roman Catholic Church in Brazil. The Archdiocese is currently headed by Odilo Scherer since his appointment by Pope Benedi ...

., he also worked in

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, and

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. On March 15, 2016, OMI-run

Saint Paul University Saint Paul University (french: Université Saint-Paul) is a bilingual Catholic Pontifical university federated with the University of Ottawa since 1965. It is located on Main Street in Canada's capital city, Ottawa, Ontario. Fully bilingual, it ...

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, presented Lougen with an honorary doctorate (

doctorate honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

) as part of the 200th anniversary celebrations of the OMI. Lougen is currently based in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

as he fulfils his duties as Superior General of the OMI.

References

External links

Oblate Communications, the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
American Roman Catholic missionaries Roman Catholic missionaries in Brazil Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate Religious leaders from Buffalo, New York 1952 births Living people American expatriates in Brazil {{US-reli-bio-stub