From a letter of Ignatius to the Jesuits attending the Council of Trent. He gives instructions to Jesuits, so that interventions in big assembly can be more fruitful: Be slow to speak. Be considerate and kind, especially when it comes to deciding on matters under discussion, or about to be discussed in the council. Be slow to speak, and only after having first listened … [Read more...]
“You are the Curia!” Fr. Sosa meets with the lay staff of the General Curia
On Wednesday, November 2nd, in the aula of the General Congregation, Fr. Arturo Sosa wanted to meet with the lay people who work in the General Curia of the Society of Jesus. They were some fifty members of the staff who work daily, side by side, with the Jesuits in various positions: administrators, information technology professionals, secretaries, cooks, cleaners, gardeners … [Read more...]
“Underground Jesuits!” by Sylvain Cariou-Charton, SJ
Every weekend is a moment of pause for the General Congregation, with interesting proposals of visiting the city. It is in this context that I had the joy of discovering the crypt that is found under the Church of the Gesù. In these days when we remember the deceased, it is customary to open the crypt to the public for prayer. This Saturday several of us benefited from the … [Read more...]
The Near-East – The experience of its Provincial
There are many regions of the world, which are in quest of peace. However, the Jesuit Near-East Province is perhaps one, which unites a greater number of countries where tensions of diverse sorts weigh down on the life of people. The Provincial of the Near East, Dany Younès, has had the occasion to speak to the delegates about his province and its challenges. He was quite … [Read more...]
Shalom
Father Ignatius to the townspeople of Azpeitia about real peace (1540): Let me repeat that there is no desisting in my earlier desires that you continue to enjoy in this life peace and quiet of heart in the true peace of our Lord, not in the peace of the world. In the world there are many princes, great men and little men, who make truces and treaties in their external lives … [Read more...]
New Regional Superior and New Provincials
On Monday morning, November 7, Father General has announced the nomination of one Regional Superior and and four new Provincials. Here is the list. Fr. Boguslaw Steczek, 71 years old, Regional Superior of the Russian Region. He joined the Society of Jesus on July 30, 1963 and was ordained on June 21, 1972. At the moment, he is Director of the Archive and collaborator at … [Read more...]
Holiness – A Way of Incarnation
In the early church “All Saints“ was celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost. So “All Saints“ was understood as an Epiphany of Pentecost. The Saints are fruits of the Holy Spirit, of his work of incarnation which is described by Teilhard de Chardin. This can be seen as an introduction into the meditation of the Beatitudes: “You can only convert that which you love: if a … [Read more...]
Father Arturo Sosa visits the Gregorian University with GC 36 delegates
On Friday, October 28, members of GC 36 visited the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, and met with the Jesuits engaged in the consortium of universities, which include the Gregorian, the Pontifical Oriental Institute, and the Pontifical Biblical Institute. Saint Ignatius de Loyola laid the foundations of the Gregorian University when he established, in 1551, a “school … [Read more...]
“A Morning with the Pope” by John McCarthy, SJ
In my neck of the woods, we don’t see many Popes. Thus, it was with a child-like excitement that I joined my brother Jesuits from across the globe to await the arrival of Pope Francis and his address to the 36th General Congregation of the Society of Jesus. What would he say to us? Would he ask something special of us? Some of us may have been looking for a peg upon which to … [Read more...]
Jesuits – Servants of Joy
Pope Francis said to us at the beginning of this week: “The Jesuit is a servant of the joy of the Gospel.” and “The Good News ought not to be given with a sad face, but rather, with joy!” Furthermore he said: “Joy is not only decorative, it is also a clear indicator of grace, it shows that love is active, working and present.” But how do we find this deep Joy? Pope Francis … [Read more...]
“…allow us to feel compassion for the excluded from history…” by Francisco Iznardo, SJ
Pope Francis visited us during the morning of October 24th. We received him with hope, joy and concern. We wanted to know how his words would reverberate in our hearts. His talk came first, then the questions, and finally a personal greeting from each one of us. At the end of the morning the Pope’s visit had aroused in me this sentiment: “…with the poor of the earth I want to … [Read more...]
Life Goes On for Father Lombardi
As one of the Assistants ad providentiam, Father Federico Lombardi is the one who thanked Fr. Adolfo Nicolás, in the Congregation and in the name of the whole Society of Jesus, for having directed the Society in the course of the last eight years. Our bulletin reported last Tuesday on this important moment of the Congregation. But Fr. Lombardi is a well-known man who is … [Read more...]
For Vocations
Pedro Arrupe said to a young man who wished to join the Society of Jesus: Stay at home if the idea of becoming a jesuit makes you unsettled or nervous. Do not come to us if you love the Church like a stepmother rather than a mother. Do not come if you think that in so doing you will be doing the Society of Jesus a favour. Come if serving Christ is at the very centre of your … [Read more...]
“Pope Francis among His Own” by Paulin Manwelo, SJ
All the Delegates at the 36th General Congregation were awaiting, with beating hearts, the day of October 24: the visit of a Pope with his confreres, reunited in a General Congregation at the Curia, at a stone’s throw from the Vatican. This Monday, at 9:05 AM, Pope Francis makes his entrance in the Aula where the works of the General Congregation are held. He does so without … [Read more...]
“A historic event: Francis at the General Congregation” by Antonio Spadaro, SJ
The petrine ministry of a Jesuit: a positive challenge for the Society The Pope entered naturally like a Jesuit father among others. But his white cassock marked a visible difference. But it did not take away the perception that there is a deep bond between us and him. We began by praying. A historic event: this was the encounter of General Congregation of the Jesuits … [Read more...]
For our Superiors
El sentido comunitario ha sido esencial en la Compañía desde el mismo momento de su nacimiento. El grupo inicial de Ignacio y de sus “amigos” en el Señor se amplió de inmediato con otros que quisieron seguir el camino que ellos habían tomado. Pidamos para nosotros, sus sucesores en la llamada de Dios, el sentido verdadero y la estima profunda de la vida comunitaria en … [Read more...]
Prayers and support for the new General of the Jesuits
The subscribers to our newsletter, those who visit our website or are followers of GC36 on the social media will remember the solidarity in prayer that was created during the days before the days of the election of Fr. Arturo Sosa as Superior General of the Society of Jesus. The prayer “wave” did not stop with the publication of the result of the election. In fact, the … [Read more...]
Arrupe’s Heritage
After his resignation was accepted Fr. Arrupe gave a final message to the Society. Let us listen to those concluding words, expressed by Fr. Pedro before he entered into the silence of his personal surrender to God. "To each one of you in particular I would love to say – tantas cosas: so much, really. From our young people I ask that they live in the presence of God and grow … [Read more...]
A Legal Expert in the Service of the Society…and of the Congregation
An Encounter with Benoit Malvaux, Procurator General of the Society of Jesus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AHlf-A3qv0&t=9s Laws and regulations govern an international organization like the Society of Jesus. As a Catholic religious order, the Society has its own legal rules. Additionally, the Society must also follow the rules of the Catholic Church, that is, Canon Law. … [Read more...]
Ite, inflammate omnia
Legend has it that Saint Ignatius, when he sent Saint Francis Xavier to the East, told him: “go, set the world alight”. With the birth of the Society of Jesus, a new fire was lit in a changing world. A novel form of religious life came about, not through human enterprise but as a divine initiative. The fire that was set alight then continues to burn in our Jesuit life today, … [Read more...]
An instrument of the Lord
The joy of the gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness. With Christ joy is constantly born anew. I dream of a “missionary option”, that is, a missionary impulse capable of transforming everything, so that the Church’s customs, ways of doing things, … [Read more...]
In the rooms of St. Ignatius
On Saturday morning, before the first Eucharist presided over by the new Superior General of the Jesuits, Fr. Arturo Sosa, a short and discrete ceremony took place at the Gesù, in the chapel of the rooms of St. Ignatius, the Camerette. The New Superior General was accompanied by a member of the General Council, Fr. Joaquín Barrero, by the archivist of the Society, Fr. Brian Mac … [Read more...]
Imprint our hearts with your name
Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Ignatius, bishop of Antioch. Traditional iconography depicts him holding a heart, which is inscribed with the golden letters “IHS.” Iñigo got to know the martyr bishop during his convalescence in Loyola while reading the lives of the Saints. One legend about this bishop that Iñigo was bound to have come across would have been when … [Read more...]