The staff of Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Asia Pacific recently took stock of their work, while discerning the way forward in view of the Universal Apostolic Preferences (UAPs).
Fr Tony Moreno SJ, President of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific, attended the two-day regional meeting on October 7 and 8 in Hua Hin, Thailand to reflect with the JRS team on the history and mission of JRS and to explain the overlap between the UAPs and JRS’ mission.
Fr Moreno reminded the participants that JRS was established by Fr Pedro Arrupe SJ as a response to the needs of people seeking asylum. Since then, it has continued to respond to where the need is greatest through the collaboration of committed religious and lay people of different faiths.
As a universal ministry of the Society of Jesus, the work of JRS is an integral part of the discernment of the UAPs, said Fr Moreno. He related that in 2003, the UAPs were decided with a more limited consultation and shorter process. At the time, five areas were identified: Africa, China, interprovincial Roman Houses, intellectual apostolate and migration. In 2016, General Congregation 36 asked Fr General Arturo Sosa to review the preferences from 2003. The new UAPs that came out this February are the result of 16 months of discernment in common involving Jesuit communities, provinces, networks and ministries. They will guide the apostolic energies and resources of the Society in the next 10 years.
According to Fr Moreno, the UAPs are not specific ministries or simply the (Jesuits’) preferences and desires of Jesuits but they are the mission of God entrusted to us by the Church. The Holy Spirit is guiding the whole process. This was notable in the convergences in the findings from each conference.
One of the goals of the UAPs is assimilating and implementing them into the lives of Jesuits and companions in mission. The process of assimilating and trying to make sense of the UAPs is what JRS is trying to do now.
“The UAPs are not a matter of ticking the boxes in the work we do. There must be conversion at all levels: personal, communal and institutional. They have to affect not only the mission of the Jesuits but also their lives. If the UAPs do not have an impact on the lives and missions of the Jesuits and companions in mission, then they were not well assimilated and implemented,” said Fr Moreno.
The four UAPs vis-à-vis the mission of JRS Asia Pacific are:
Showing the way to God: Show the way to God through the Spiritual Exercises and discernment
Fr Moreno pointed out that showing the way to God can be interpreted in different ways and can be pursued by all. They can touch people from any faith as they incarnate the mission of reconciliation and justice in their apostolic services. The promotion of reconciliation and justice is one of the priorities of the Society. In JRS, we work with people of different faiths both in our teams and in the people we serve. In Asia Pacific, for example in the Philippines, JRS emphasises projects where people from different faiths meet and work together for peace. Our different faiths motivate us to witness to God’s universal love and work together for reconciliation and justice.
Walking with the Excluded: Walk with the poor, the outcasts of the world, those whose dignity has been violated, in a mission of reconciliation and justice
This preference entails accompanying the poor, the homeless, the migrants and refugees, empowering them and listening to them. Indeed, one of JRS’ criteria of work is to continually discern where God is calling us to greater needs, where few are present and where a greater good can be achieved.
Journeying with the Youth: Accompany young people in the creation of a hope-filled future
Fr Tony reminded us of Pope Francis’ positive attitude towards the youth, telling them to “keep running the race before you, outstripping all those who are slow or fearful… And when you arrive where we have not yet reached, have the patience to wait for us.”
In JRS, we work hand in hand with refugee youth in urban areas as well as in the camps, focusing on education opportunities and activities for out-of-school children. Education gives them the opportunity to decide and shape their future as many of them are in the country of asylum primarily because of their parents’ decision. Access to education is also vital in terms of the protection of vulnerable youth.
Caring for our Common Home: Collaborate, with Gospel depth, for the protection and renewal of God’s Creation
Care for the environment is an area where JRS is learning and seeking ways to contribute. In our work in northern Thailand, the refugee camps sit in protected areas and refugees have to learn to be mindful of maintaining the balance between their use of natural resources and the rate of regeneration. Our experience of accompanying and providing psychosocial support services to people in Papua New Guinea who have moved out of their islands due to sea level rise helped us realise that JRS and refugees are important actors in caring for our common home. JRS works with partners in this global action fully recognising that everyone is a potential advocate as well as a survivor in promoting our planet’s sustainability.
Elphie Galland is the Regional Advocacy and Communications Officer of JRS Asia Pacific