In late June, Singapore suffered from the worst ever haze in its history. The haze came from forest fires in Sumatra, across the Malacca Strait. A row broke out between some government officials in Singapore and Indonesia.
On World Refugee Day in 2013, JRS Asia Pacific calls for renewed hospitality by host governments towards refugees and asylum seekers in order to respect refugee rights to sanctuary, sustenance, and education.
This issue of Promotio Iustitiae (PI 111, 2013/2) aims to help us find in Ignatian spirituality, and in Christian theology more generally, the inspiration we need to develop new and better ways of relating to the natural world so that we are able to love, respect, and protect its integrity more effectively. Five perspectives that explore the spiritual roots of our commitment to the environment are presented. This exploration will hopefully stimulate us to become more decisively involved in the human task of “reconciliation with creation.”
Energised and inspired by its first experience of MAGIS in Madrid in 2011, the Korean Province is deep into preparations for MAGIS-World Youth Day (WYD) 2013 in Brazil. Fr Joseph Songyong Choe SJ shares their preparations with us.
A new resource book is available for those interested in learning more about the ecological dimension of the Jesuit mission. Produced by the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific and Environmental Science for Social Change (ESSC) in the Philippines, Reconciling with Creation contains documents that will help people reflect on and engage in Reconciliation with Creation.
Jesuits in Southeast Asia will be taking a more active role in the fight against human trafficking, which Pope Francis recently called “a despicable activity, a disgrace for our societies, which describe themselves as civilized”.
In a piece of land measuring 5m x 11m, we began building late last year a simple structure of wooden posts and a nylon mesh roof for the purpose of growing seedlings of hardwood trees native to Cambodia. Located within Banteay Prieb, the Jesuit-run vocational school for people with disabilities, the tree nursery is a collaborative effort of the agriculture students of the centre and their teacher Mr Mam Sony.
Redfern Jarjum College, a Jesuit primary school for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, was officially opened on April 13, with a number of dignitaries giving the school and its students their blessing.
Since 2011, we have held during Water Week the annual Lane Cove River Catchment Day, a combined project of the schools of the Lane Cove river catchment team where whole group and small group activities are held based around local catchment issues. The Lane Cove river catchment is 95.4 square kilometres and contains 12,600 megalitres of water.
The UN refugee agency and the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), through its partner Jesuit Commons: Higher Education at the Margins initiative (JC:HEM), signed in April an agreement to enhance higher education opportunities for refugees and other forcibly displaced people through online and on-site courses.