The gathering of brothers in the Society of Jesus at the Curia from 3 to 10 July was a momentous event made possible because of the initiative and generosity of Father General. This meeting was initially planned to take place last year in observance of the Ignatian Year, but due to the pandemic, it was moved to a later date still within the Ignatian Year, which celebrates not only the 500 years of Ignatius’s cannonball experience, but also the 450th year celebration of St Alphonsus Rodriguez’ entry into the Society. What a great time to celebrate our vocation to the Society of Jesus!
Five brothers from JCAP represented the conference: Tran Thien Kinh SJ from Vietnam, Ian Crib SJ from Australia, Joseph Thu Khaung SJ from Myanmar, Nobuchika Muraoka SJ from Japan, and myself, Jeffrey U Pioquinto SJ from the Philippines, also serving as a member of the Steering Committee for this assembly.
The meeting started with a talk given by Father General who welcomed the Brothers by saying that the place where we were is our home. We truly felt the hospitality of the Jesuits at the Curia and we are grateful for that. He also mentioned the vision of St Ignatius in La Storta where Christ told Ignatius that he “will be favorable to you in Rome,” and that same charism was being afforded to us, brothers, who would be spending eight days in conversations, reflection, and sharing of our vocation in this least Society of Jesus in Rome. In general, the Brothers found the message of Fr Arturo Sosa SJ uplifting, consoling, and inspiring.
I feel encouraged hearing the link between our vocation and our identity to Christ’s poor and marginalised nature, and I feel inspired sharing that with brothers from all parts of the world. Coming together from different contexts, cultures, and backgrounds, we were still able to find ourselves at home with one another and sharing our consolations as brothers in the Society of Jesus.
It was also truly striking for me when Fr General Sosa reminded the brothers of our prophetic call and mission to bring Christ into the world. There was an affirmation that our vocation is a call to prophetic witnessing of the Gospel. As prophets, we get to know, be with our God and the people we serve, and be present to our God and to the people we serve through our religious identity. The brothers are seen as a bridge between God and the people, and with our own Jesuit community—a bridge of reconciliation and love through humble service in the vineyard of God. Our prophetic mission is living a joyful and loving relationship and at the same time being honest and audacious to stand for the truth and to live out truly the values of the Gospel.
If our vocation is grounded in our prophetic mission to bring Christ to the world, our vocation therefore is not about what we do or the things that we cannot. Our vocation is all about who we are as a Jesuit.
On 5 July, Fr Mark Ravizza SJ gave us a point for reflection on our Jesuit formation. Fr Ravizza stressed that St Ignatius of Loyola never talked about formation but about probation, quoting: “Those persons will be judged suited for admission to profession whose life I well known through long and thorough probations” (Conts 516). Why does talking about probation and not formation matter? It is because this conversation opens possibilities and graces in forming young Jesuits. It allows young Jesuits to discern if he is joyfully finding himself in the Society where the Spirit is sending him.
Fr Ravizza also mentioned the “integrated” and “integrating” aspects of our formation. Formation should be with and for the whole of the Society. It aims at incorporating into religious life the appropriate and unique identity of a brother. Our formation should be integrated, but also integrating. This is to help brothers focus their vocation and identity on the mission of the Society, while also allowing us brothers to discern our own vocation and identity where God is really calling us to be.
Another milestone for the brothers is the emphasis on Excellence for Mission through the intellectual formation of brothers. We have come to a 180-degree change. For now, the Society is forming brothers both spiritually and academically, offering quality education and spiritual formation to prepare us who are fully available to be sent. The brothers, too, need 1. Formation on our Charism (history of brothers in the Society, Ignatian Spirituality, Constitutions, retreat giving, philosophy, theology), 2. Human Formation (psycho-spiritual, social, etc), and 3. Formation for Mission (to develop our skills for mission in Education, Formation, Engineering, Finance, etc.)
On 7 July, Br Wenceslao Sotto shared some interesting and intriguing history about the brothers in the Society of Jesus he had discovered through research. Br Sotto emphasised that even though there were seemingly dark moments in our history, we must not judge history through our own contexts. He continued that there were actually many brothers who were happy with their vocation. The next day, Br Matt Wooters and Br Jim Boynton led the discussion on how we can improve in the area of vocation promotions.
The general consolation I got from this worldwide assembly of Jesuit brothers is the grace of gratefulness.
I am grateful for my vocation as a Jesuit brother and grateful to God for calling me towards this vocation. I am grateful to be able to travel to Rome and see, feel, discover, and rediscover our Ignatian roots. I am grateful for the presence of brothers with different nationalities, languages, and backgrounds who share in the same desire to follow Christ. I am grateful for the generosity of the Jesuits in the General Curia for welcoming us brothers into our home. I am grateful to Father General for gathering us brothers in Rome.
I am most especially grateful for the presence of Pope Francis who went to visit us at the Curia. His presence itself is a consolation. It evoked the beauty of our vocation to be a bridge leading to reconciliation and to be available for the mission, wherever the Society might lead us.
Jeffrey Pioquinto SJ is a Filipino Jesuit brother. He is the Senior High School Principal at Ateneo de Zamboanga University in Zamboanga City, Philippines. He is also the Convener of the Brothers in the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific.