The month of November has been a month of blessings for the Arrupe International Residence Community in many ways.
In the first week of the month the Rector, Fr Matsumoto (JPN), and Fr Jimmy Meehan (PHI) made their annual retreat. In the absence of Fr. Matsumoto, Fr Bill Currie (JPN) led the community as an acting rector.
On November 12 we started our classes and life began to move as usual.
After a thorough evaluation and much reflection, JCEAO and the South Asia Conference decided that the inter-assistancy tertianship program, based in Sri Lanka, would resume on September 2008. Fr John Joseph Amalados (AND) would be the Director, and Fr Laurentius Priyo Poedjiono (IDO), Co-director. As of date, Fr Vinai Boonlue (TAI) and Fr Petro Young-min Choi (KOR) have signed up.
Fr General has officially appointed Fr Desmond Dwyer the new treasurer of the Australian Province. Fr Des is the parish priest of Hawthorn (Melbourne, Victoria). He is 65 years old, and has been a long-standing member of the Province Finance and Building Committee. Fr Des has been on the Consult of a number of Provincials. He has a special interest in business ethics, and advises a number of significant entities about ethical principles.
Fr. Richard Leonard (ASL), Director of the Australian Catholic Film Office and the Catholic Church Television, came to Hong Kong on November 12-18 and conducted a one-week program on Mass Media and Ignatian Spirituality.
A new Web page “BibliaClerus” presents in Web format, a service which had made its appearance two years ago in CD Rom format, containing a multilingual presentation of the Bible (Hebrew, Greek, Latín, Italian, Spanish, English, French, German, and Portuguese), enriched with the interpretation – verse-by-verse – of Tradition and the Magisterium, with fruits and anthologies of theology, spirituality, and liturgy.
Officers of the international programs of the different schools under the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU) umbrella met on December 7 at the Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines. They shared their respective international programs and discussed possible partnerships such as student and faculty exchange. This activity was one of the results of the AJCU meeting held last August 21-22, 2007.
On November 7, there was a consultation on the campus ministry apostolate, in view of integrating this apostolate under the Secretariat for Higher Education (AJCU-EAO). It was chaired by Fr Joel Tabora and was attended by two Jesuits from Thailand, Frs Maharsono Probho and Vinai Boonlue, together with Jesuits and lay partners from the High School and the Loyola Campus Ministry Office of Ateneo de Manila University and from Ateneo de Naga University.
Nine Jesuits, together with sixteen lay partners, attended the weeklong gathering of Jesuits working with indigenous peoples in Asia. It was held from October 29 – November 5 at the Dominican Retreat House, Shrine Hills, Matina, Davao City, Philippines. The Jesuit participants were Bro Dominic Tran Van Tan (VIE), Sch Francis Lim (MAS) and Frs Yves Nalet (CHN), Jojo M.
A consultation was held at the office of the JCEAO on November 16. Eight Jesuits participated: Frs Adolfo Nicolas (President), Danny Huang (Philippines Provincial), Roberto Yap (PHI), David Holdcroft (ASL), Tom Steinbugler (JCEAO Treasurer), Fernando Azpiroz (CHN), Pham Minh-Uoc (Socius), and the newly-appointed Secretary for Social Apostolate Fr Denis Kim (KOR).