Rain poured down on the Jesuits as they walked to St Peter’s Basilica for Mass. It was early on the morning of the fifth day of General Congregation 36. Some might say it was a blessing from heaven as they headed, as many pilgrims have already done this year, to the Holy Door for the Jubilee Year of Mercy.
Before they left for Rome, some delegates from the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific spoke of their hopes for General Congregation 36.
A close encounter with the Tboli communities in Lake Sebu in the Philippines reveals their great love and pride for their cultural identity. This can be felt in the way they assert and protect their rights and in their local governance. A spirit of unity, collaboration and openness manifests not only during festivities but also in the daily rigours of life.
Indonesian scholastic Tiro Daenuwy SJ shares what he learnt from his immersion experience in an Islamic boarding house in Garut, West Java, Indonesia. The five-day immersion held from July 29 to August 2 is a vital part of the Asia Pacific Theological Encounter Programme, a formation programme in contextual theology with a focus on Islam that is conducted annually by the Jesuits in Indonesia. Part 2.
Seeing divided families is a painful sight and this is often the case in immigration detention centres where women and men are held in separate detention cells. For 25 years, the Jesuits have been working closely with the Immigration Detention Centre (IDC) in Bangkok to facilitate the release of detainees and help them return to a life of dignity and freedom with their families. Two years ago, Jesuit Refugee Service Asia Pacific handed over responsibility for this work to the Jesuit Foundation – Prison Ministry Thailand.
SAV Puskat, the audio-visual centre of the Indonesian Jesuit Province, has re-released a video to enrich prayers for the Society of Jesus and the success of General Congregation 36. The video entitled “Tak lelah bersinar” (“Never stop shining” in English) features the theme song and images from “Bethlehem van Java”, SAV Puskat’s award-wining film on the life of Fr Franciscus van Lith SJ, a Jesuit missionary from the Netherlands, who pioneered the Catholic mission in Java and is fondly called the Father of Javanese Catholic
The resignation of Fr General Adolfo Nicolás on the first day of the 36th General Congregation was a profoundly moving event for all who witnessed this historic moment.
August is a symbolic month dedicated to peace movements in Japan. Seventy-one years have passed since the defeat of Japan in the Second World War, but the dropping of the first two nuclear bombs on Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (August 9, 1945) are still vividly remembered.
A group of 34 Jesuits, half of them from Korea and the rest from Japan gathered in Shimonoseki, in the west of Japan from August 23 to 26 to heal wounds occasioned by the worst historical relationship between both countries and to search for closer cooperation.
“There are a lot of stories we can tell about these two institutions, but they are a whole story of gratitude, renewal and hope”.
The two institutions are Loyola House of Studies (LHS) and the Loyola School of Theology (LST) which this month concluded their yearlong golden jubilee celebration. At the closing dinner on September 11, Fr Antonio Moreno SJ, Philippine Jesuit Provincial and Loyola School of Theology Vice-Chancellor, described the story of LHS and LST as a tale of appreciation and optimism.
Indonesian scholastic Tiro Daenuwy SJ shares what he learnt from his immersion experience in an Islamic boarding house in Garut, West Java, Indonesia. The five-day immersion held from July 29 to August 2 is a vital part of the Asia Pacific Theological Encounter Programme, a formation programme in contextual theology with a focus on Islam that is conducted annually by the Jesuits in Indonesia. Part 1.