Final vows and diaconate ordination in Vietnam
7 Feb 2017

Final vows and diaconate ordination in Vietnam

by | posted in: Formation, Province News | 0

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.”

Providing villagers with access to clean water
19 Jan 2017

Providing villagers with access to clean water

by | posted in: Province News, Social Justice | 0

In the two years since it was set up, Jesuit Social Service (JSS) in Timor-Leste has embarked on several projects to promote community development and empower the poor to become self-sufficient.  Water and sanitation is one of four priority areas and a key project aims to provide communities with access to clean water.

New book tells story of the Jesuits at Sevenhill
16 Jan 2017

New book tells story of the Jesuits at Sevenhill

by | posted in: Province News | 0

The struggles and legacy of the pioneering Jesuits in Australia have been chronicled in a handsome 200-page coffee table book. “The Vine and the Branches: The Fruits of the Sevenhill Mission” tells of the establishment and development of Sevenhill, which is considered the birthplace of the Jesuits in Australia and the start of winemaking in South Australia’s Clare Valley.

New provincial for Jesuits in Vietnam
13 Dec 2016

New provincial for Jesuits in Vietnam

by | posted in: Province News | 0

The new provincial of the Vietnam Jesuit Province was formally installed on December 8.  Fr Vincent Pham Van Mam (Fr Mam) SJ succeeded Fr Joseph Pham Thanh Liem (Fr Liem) SJ who served as Vietnamese Provincial for the last six years.

Members of the province, guests and collaborators joined the Mass celebrated by the new provincial in the chapel of St Joseph Jesuit Scholasticate in Ho Chi Minh City.  In his homily, Fr Mam focussed on four important elements that he wants the Jesuits in Vietnam to pay attention to: participation, dialogue, collaboration and discernment.

Puskat Film Festival gains momentum with environment theme
13 Dec 2016

Puskat Film Festival gains momentum with environment theme

by | posted in: Province News, Social Communications | 0

This year’s Puskat Film Festival received five times more entries than last year, when it was launched by Studio Audio Visual (SAV) Puskat, the Jesuit audio-visual centre in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.  SAV Puskat attributes the increase to aggressive promotion of the awards and the relevance of the theme, which is “Environment”.  Also known as the Ruedi Hofmann Media Awards, the inaugural Puskat Film Festival in 2015 received 20 entries. The theme was “Faith versus Corruption”.

Fr Franz Magnis-Suseno SJ bestowed Matteo Ricci Award
13 Dec 2016

Fr Franz Magnis-Suseno SJ bestowed Matteo Ricci Award

by | posted in: Interreligious Dialogue, Province News | 0

Religious extremism has been on the rise in Indonesia. Recently, Muslim hardliners have been staging massive protests in Jakarta demanding the arrest of the city’s governor, a Christian standing for re-election, for allegedly insulting the Koran. These protests can be viewed in part as a test of religious tolerance for Indonesia, a land of diverse cultures and religious plurality. In this context, dialogue is all the more important, and here Fr Franz Magnis-Suseno, an 80-year old Jesuit missionary, excels.  

Directing greater energies to the poor and the peripheries
20 Nov 2016

Directing greater energies to the poor and the peripheries

by | posted in: Province News, Social Justice | 0

When Pope Francis visited the Philippines in January 2015, his message to the Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus was clear: to go to the poor and the peripheries.  It shone a light on what then Fr General Adolfo Nicolás had asked of the whole Society when he convoked General Congregation 36 in December 2014, which was to reflect prayerfully on what more the Eternal King is calling the Jesuits to do.

The ordeal of a foreign spouse in Japan
14 Nov 2016

The ordeal of a foreign spouse in Japan

by | posted in: Migration, Province News, Social Justice | 0

Anastasia* is from Latin America. A few years ago, she married a Japanese man in her country and in April 2015, they took their toddler son to Japan to visit his grandparents. While they were in Japan, they took their son for a general medical check-up and found out that he had a heart problem. They went to the United States and Latin America for second and third opinions, but could not decide on the best treatment for their son.