The Society of Jesus in Korea celebrates six new Jesuit priests: Fr Park Soo-young Theodore, Fr Choi Jun-yeol Damianus, Fr Lee Chang-hyon Pius, Fr Cho Chang-mo Simon, Fr Jeon Chan-yong John Bosco and Fr Park Kyoung-woong Peter. They were ordained to the priesthood on June 28 at Myung-dong Cathedral in Seoul, South Korea.
Four Jesuits from the Philippine Province were ordained on June 3 at the Oratory of St Ignatius of Loyola, Loyola House of Studies. Fr Roseller L Atilano SJ, Fr Martin A Licup SJ, Fr Harvey C Mateo SJ and Fr Felipe B Yohan Jr SJ were ordained by His Eminence Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, Archbishop of Manila.
General Congregation 36 (GC 36) dominated Jesuit life during 2016. The theme, “Row into the deep”, was derived from a message of Pope Francis to the Society of Jesus in 2014, echoing Jesus’ call to his disciples to “put out into the deep”. In the Congregation logo, the IHS represents the Society’s boat in the Church; the waves are the troubled seas of our times into which Jesuits are invited to row with faith.
The Vietnam Jesuit Province recently celebrated the profession of final vows of Br Vincent Phạm Đức Tuấn SJ and the ordination to the diaconate of four Jesuits.
Br Vincent pronounced his final vows on January 18 in the chapel of Saint Joseph Jesuit Scholasticate in Saigon, Vietnam. He entered the Society of Jesus on September 9, 1997 and will be celebrating his 20th year as a Jesuit this year. At the end of the ceremony, Br Vincent asked those present to pray for him. “Pray that God grant me a lot of love and grace to live my vocation as a Jesuit filled with happiness.”
The Asia Pacific Tertianship programme includes a two-week Christmas exposure programme during which the tertians spend two weeks with various communities. They offer this joint reflection on the experience.
On December 3, the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) concluded its nine-month celebration of 50 years of being faithful to its original purpose and mission – to form pastoral workers to go back to their local churches and “set the world on fire” with new attitudes, knowledge and skills to effect transformation.
“We have accomplished this in unique ways, especially with the participatory multicultural community living,” said EAPI Director Fr Arthur Leger SJ.
Eleven Jesuits were ordained to the Order of Deacons on October 29 in the Church of the Gesu, Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines. The new deacons are Soo Young Park, Changmo Cho, Chang-hyon Lee, Kyoung-Woong Peter Park, Anthony Ochen, Leslie Joseph Bingkasan, Stephanus Advent Novianto, Harvey Mateo, Martin Licup, Felipe Yohan Jr and Roseller Atilano Jr.
“There are a lot of stories we can tell about these two institutions, but they are a whole story of gratitude, renewal and hope”.
The two institutions are Loyola House of Studies (LHS) and the Loyola School of Theology (LST) which this month concluded their yearlong golden jubilee celebration. At the closing dinner on September 11, Fr Antonio Moreno SJ, Philippine Jesuit Provincial and Loyola School of Theology Vice-Chancellor, described the story of LHS and LST as a tale of appreciation and optimism.
The Vietnam Jesuit Province has eight new Vietnamese priests. The new Jesuit priests, who were ordained on August 25 at the Saint Joseph Jesuit Scholasticate in Thu Duc, Ho Chi Minh City, are Fr Anthony Pham Ba Hoc, Fr Dominic Nguyen Quoc Kinh, Fr Joseph Nguyen Tuan Phuc, Fr Thaddeus Nguyen Van Yen, Fr Francis Xavier Nguyen Thanh Vu, Fr Anthony Tran Thanh Tan, Fr Vincent Nguyen Minh Phuc and Fr Peter Nguyen Van Tang.
Ladislas Nsengiyumva SJ was ordained to the priesthood in Holy Family Catholic Church in Taipei, Taiwan. The ordination on July 30 was presided by Most Rev John B Hung Shan-Chuan, Archbishop of Taipei, with Fr John Lee Hua SJ, Provincial of the Jesuit Chinese Province concelebrating the Mass.