JRS Cambodia celebrates World Interfaith Harmony Week
27 Mar 2014

JRS Cambodia celebrates World Interfaith Harmony Week

by | posted in: Interreligious Dialogue, Social Justice | 0

Jesuit Refugee Service Cambodia marked World Interfaith Harmony Week with an interfaith event at Mindol Metta Karuna on February 8. The event gathered people of different faiths who want to work together for justice, peace and a development that sustains all especially the poorest and most excluded. 

During the event, participants were asked to think about what they could do for a world of justice and peace, and make a promise by choosing one of the following and placing it in the Interfaith circle.

Building back after Typhoon Haiyan
25 Feb 2014

Building back after Typhoon Haiyan

by | posted in: Social Justice | 0

Three months after Typhoon Haiyan struck, thousands of people in the islands of Visayas continue to reel from the devastation it wreaked.  Debris from wrecked houses still litters the shores of many islands. Makeshift homes made of the same rubble have mushroomed amidst the chaos despite the numerous tents and bunks provided by both local and international aid.  Many people in the largely fishing and farming communities still cannot earn a living because they have not been able to replace the boats, crops and equipment destroyed by the typhoon.

Pope Francis’ call to be eco-revolutionaries
25 Feb 2014

Pope Francis’ call to be eco-revolutionaries

by | posted in: Reconciliation with Creation, Spirituality | 0

Being a Christian involves obedience. It’s easier to obey a superior we like unless he makes the likeable somewhat difficult. Jesuits, with our special vow, think this affable Pope is easy to follow when he asks us to be revolutionaries; but, when we put “eco-” in front, is it easy? Personally, I share with Francis being a Jesuit, chemist, activist, and Facebook friend; however, he encourages me to do more: extraordinary dedication, intensive focus, and community/team cooperation. We are called to heal our wounded Earth at this time of anthropogenic climate change.

Celebrating 400 years since the Jesuits first arrived in Vietnam
31 Jan 2014

Celebrating 400 years since the Jesuits first arrived in Vietnam

by | posted in: Social Justice, Spirituality | 0

The Society of Jesus in Vietnam has begun a year of celebrations leading up to the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the Jesuits in the country.  On January 18, 1615, the first Jesuits arrived at the port of Hoi An – Italian Jesuit Fr Francesco Buzomi and Portuguese Jesuits Fr Diogo Carvalho and Br Antonios Dias with some other 70 Jesuits expelled from Japan. They took refuge with the Japanese Catholic community taking asylum in Hoi An, after fleeing the furious persecutions of Christians in Japan.

First Myanmar Jesuit gathering
31 Jan 2014

First Myanmar Jesuit gathering

by | posted in: Education, Social Justice | 0

All members of the Myanmar Jesuit Mission residing in the country gathered for the first time to share their thoughts and experiences of the Mission.  The three-day gathering in late December provided the group with an opportunity to meet and share their experience as Jesuits, deepen their understanding of the mission, and explore the future needs of the Church in Myanmar and the role of the Society of Jesus in that future. The rapid changes taking place in the country make this a matter of urgency for the Church and the Society.

The Francis Effect
20 Dec 2013

The Francis Effect

by | posted in: Education, Indigenous Ministry, Social Justice | 0

From Australia has come a new online book, The Francis Effect: Living the Joy of the Gospel, which offers insights from Catholic leaders in the country on the challenges and inspiration needed to fully live the joy of the Gospel in varied ministries.  Jointly published by Catholic Mission and Catholic Religious Australia, The Francis Effect is an opportunity to engage with Evangelii Gaudium in an active and practical way.    

The role of structure and infrastructure in disaster reduction
10 Dec 2013

The role of structure and infrastructure in disaster reduction

by | posted in: Social Justice | 0

There is now an awareness that after typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) hit central Philippines on November 8, infrastructure broke down, and not just roads and bridges, but also communication channels, power, water, transportation. Economic structures where subsistence co-exists with poverty also broke down, and there is now the immediate challenge for people to build livable structures as their housing. Structuring a whole response of sustainable cities and villages as a reality, beyond an architectural print-out, is the challenge the country faces.

Rebuilding after Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda)
28 Nov 2013

Rebuilding after Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda)

by | posted in: Social Justice | 0

Three weeks after Typhoon Haiyan (“Yolanda” in the Philippines) wreaked widespread devastation on the Philippines, the survivors are slowly beginning to pick up the pieces.

The official death toll of 5,500 as of November 27 makes the typhoon the deadliest storm in the country’s history – and the number of dead is expected to increase.