What is the face of the Apostleship of Prayer in Asia? This was the main question delegates at the 5th Apostleship of Prayer Asian Conference had to address as they gathered to discuss how to re-create the apostolate.
“Four years ago, Father General, who is our Apostleship of Prayer Director General, asked us to re-create this Church service that had declined worldwide and seemed no longer attractive to Jesuits and middle aged or young Catholics,” said Fr Claudio Barriga SJ, Director General Delegate, who convened the meeting held in Cebu City, Philippines from October 11 to 15, 2013.
The question was a difficult one for the 18 delegates from seven countries – India, Indonesia, Timor-Leste, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan and the Philippines. This is because there is not one, but many, vastly different faces of the Apostleship of Prayer in Asia, as vastly diverse as one culture is from another.
In a highly secularized country as Japan, for example, where approximately less than 0.3% of the population is Catholic, the Apostleship of Prayer is not an association but a school of prayer propagated to all the members of the Church through the use of weekly publications and calendars. In multicultural countries like India (where 2% of the population is Catholic) and Indonesia (where 3% of the population is Catholic), the Apostleship of Prayer is characterized by its openness to dialogue with other religious traditions and interfaith collaboration. Contrast this picture with that of East Timor where 92% of the population is Catholic and where the Apostleship of Prayer has been entrenched for generations, with a clear diocesan structure. Similarly, in the Philippines, where 80% of the population is Catholic, and where the Apostleship of Prayer organization is monolithic. Clearly, then, it is very difficult to paint a single picture of the Apostleship of Prayer in Asia.
In light of this, the delegates had to consider what could be the common basis for the “re-creation” of the Apostleship of Prayer.
It was clear to them that the common basis lies in the spiritual content of the Apostleship of Prayer. They were presented with a document titled A Way of the Heart, the “spiritual roadmap” of the Apostleship of Prayer. The delegates studied the document, prayed with it and reflected on it. Then, they were introduced to the Three Moments of Prayer aimed at making them aware of the enduring presence of Jesus throughout the day. Both A Way of the Heart and the Three Moments of Prayer set their hearts on fire, giving them new inspiration and meaning in their work with the Apostleship of Prayer.
It was agreed that the “heart” resonates well across all cultures. Fr Gabriel Sindhunata SJ stated that the “heart” is central to the Javanese culture and that it would become the root of the mission in Indonesia. Fr Manuel Amoros SJ said that we have to first experience the Heart of Jesus before we can share His compassion with a broken world and, in the context of Japan, give meaning to the lives of young people and combat the growing social sickness that is suicide.
An important guideline for this re-creation is the fact the Apostleship of Prayer wants to be above all a pathway for apostolic readiness, in the tradition of the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius.
Recognising that the re-created Apostleship of Prayer is a global network of prayer, the Asian Conference agreed to create a common email group and web page with a link to the website in Rome. The re-created Apostleship of Prayer will have a strong youth component in the Eucharistic Youth Movement, such as those in the Philippines and Taiwan.
Fr Manuel Flores SJ of the Philippines was chosen as the Asian Coordinator, a four-year nomination confirmed by the President of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific. The next meeting will be held in October 2015 in Jakarta, Indonesia.
On the last day of the meeting, in a moment of prayer, after asking what the Holy Spirit had to say to them, a strong earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 struck, literally shaking the delegates. For many of them, the tremors they felt were like the strong rushing wind that shook the apostles at Pentecost. They took the earthquake to mean a new commissioning: “Go and spread the compassion of God, through the way of the heart, through the way of the Eucharist.” Thus begins the re-creation of the Apostleship of Prayer in Asia.
The Apostleship of Prayer is an association of the faithful under the Pope with its international office in Rome. The Jesuits have promoted the apostolate throughout the world since the founding of the Society of Jesus. Pope Benedict XVI reaffirmed the will of the Vatican that Jesuits continue their role in the Apostleship of Prayer. For more on the Apostleship of Prayer, go to www.apostleshipofprayer.net.