“How can we innovate our education ministry to respond to the 21st century, while remaining faithful to our tradition?” This was the big question that 33 scholastics and brothers in formation from 11 countries in Asia Pacific tried to address during the Scholastics and Brothers Circle workshop held in Cebu, Philippines from December 18 to 28.
The participants were taken through the history and tradition of Jesuit education, including the 4 Cs (Competence, Conscience, Compassion and Commitment), and even tried using Ignatian Pedagogy as a design process. Technology was embedded in the workshop to give them an experience of learning in a technology-integrated environment.
“There’s really a lot of different experiences. Some of the brothers and scholastics have worked in Jesuit schools, others have studied there, others had no real experience of formal Jesuit education, but all of us know Ignatian Spirituality, all of us know the Jesuit mission and all of us have big dreams for the Society,” shared Fr Johnny Go SJ. As Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific (JCAP) Secretary for Basic Education, Fr Go had worked with them to design and facilitate the workshop as an exercise in imaginative common apostolic discernment in response to the call of General Congregation 36.
JCAP President Fr Antonio Moreno SJ was also with them for part of the workshop. He told them: “In the last General Congregation, Pope Francis asked us to discern. Therefore we cannot rest content in the way we run our schools and the way we do things in the classroom and even in management. There is this push to re-imagine, to be more creative in the way we run our institutions, our schools. We hope this will redound to the benefit of our future Jesuits.”
Fr Moreno spent an evening dialoguing with the participants enabling the young Jesuits in formation to see beyond their own regions and provinces. He also participated in a panel discussion along with JCAP Formation Delegate Fr Riyo Mursanto SJ and Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu President Fr Manny Uy SJ. Fr Joseph Haw SJ, President of Ateneo de Iloilo-Sta Maria Catholic School also joined the discussion via Skype. The accumulated wisdom from their collective years of experience both enlightened and inspired the participants.
“It’s been a wonderful experience,” shared Scholastic Joshua Choong SJ from Australia. “I hope that in the future I will be able to animate teachers and students in the Ignatian pedagogy.”
Scholastic Sarayuth Konsupap SJ from Thailand shared the same aspiration. “I learnt many things about Jesuit education and I hope that in the future I could apply them to the new Jesuit school in Thailand.”
The workshop was also an opportunity for the participants to meet and make friends with Jesuits from the different provinces and regions.
Fr Mursanto pointed out that one of the six dynamics in JCAP’s “Profile of a Formed Jesuit” is conversation.
“Conversation is really in practice. They meet from different cultures, different countries and they share with each other. With that they are able to build a solid foundation to be able to collaborate in the future,” he said.
Scholastic Bernard Lodewicus SJ from South Africa who is doing his regency in Taiwan affirmed this, saying that it was a wonderful opportunity to get to know the scholastics from the different regions in Asia Pacific. “I think we’ve all had a wonderful time,” he said. “What we’ve got here we will go and implement in our various ministries not just in education.”