41 bond. Such a person is, in fact, alone, just as the figure from the painting by Caravaggio who keeps looking into his own reflection until he is exhausted. Mature relations are a challenge, work on the character, facing up to obstacles, sometimes to an uncertain future, risking by undertaking unexpected tasks without sufficient safeguards or adequate data to trustfully accept the often uncomfortable otherness of situations and people coming along. To carry out such a life project requires a lot of effort, commitment and work blessed by God’s grace. In the sacrificial mentality of Father Stanislaus, we find a readiness to laboriously shape himself in the image of Jesus Christ. The Founder of the Marian Fathers, when saying, “I sacrifice and offer”, clearly stated the goals to be achieved. He knows well that on this road, one needs an uncompromised commitment in order to better know and imitate Christ. The example of his life shows the path to developing the virtue of hard work which is often insufficient not only in the realm of shaping one’s own personality, but also when undertaking necessary new tasks. A lack of readiness to make an effort is a symptom of the illness consisting in the vanishing of the virtue of bravery in favour of narcissistic self-admiration. The Oblatio of St. Stanislaus is a program of mental and pastoral renewal based on bravery capable of standing up to difficult challenges. In the first paragraph, we can see the self-awareness of a man who totally entrusts himself to one God in the Holy Trinity and to the Mother of God; his heart, his soul, intellect, memory, will, emotions, his whole mind, his whole spirit, internal and external senses, and his body. This act is total: leaving absolutely nothing for myself. The goal of this total entrustment is equally total - becoming a servant of God and Mary – a lover of the Church. The virtue of bravery is supported by faithfulness and perseverance. These are personal qualities which constitute the foundation of the life of a community. The Oblatio is total also in this respect, because there is no way to avoid being a servant in the Society of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception where resolutions and rites fundamentally shape us and the specific way of engaging in pastoral work which God intended for us as a community. The rule and way of life of the Society are effective tools against the narcissistic tendencies of individual visions, self-centeredness, disrespect for community and even escaping from it. In the third paragraph of the Oblatio, we can see two elements dedicated to the formation and life of the Marian Society. These are reasonable obedience to the will of the superior power, to His Holiness, the Vicar of Jesus Christ and to his delegated power, as well as to all my mediate and
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