We have already been reminded many times by the Holy Father of the needs at the frontiers, and of an education that serves the long term. As Jesuits, our spirituality prepares us for the long haul and so we face the challenge of being inserted in the world and to go heal the wounds, especially at the margins where people are so compromised, insecure, and subject to all forms of violence.
Rain poured down on the Jesuits as they walked to St Peter’s Basilica for Mass. It was early on the morning of the fifth day of General Congregation 36. Some might say it was a blessing from heaven as they headed, as many pilgrims have already done this year, to the Holy Door for the Jubilee Year of Mercy.
SAV Puskat, the audio-visual centre of the Indonesian Jesuit Province, has re-released a video to enrich prayers for the Society of Jesus and the success of General Congregation 36. The video entitled “Tak lelah bersinar” (“Never stop shining” in English) features the theme song and images from “Bethlehem van Java”, SAV Puskat’s award-wining film on the life of Fr Franciscus van Lith SJ, a Jesuit missionary from the Netherlands, who pioneered the Catholic mission in Java and is fondly called the Father of Javanese Catholic
The Jesuit Journey of Adolfo Nicolás
Fr Adolfo Nicolás SJ has served as superior general of the Society of Jesus since 2008. He will formally step down next month as Jesuit electors gather in Rome to choose a new leader and deliberate on the future of the order.
A Jesuit General Congregation is a rare event. This month, the 36th General Congregation to be held since the Society of Jesus was founded 475 years ago begins with the first meeting of Electors in the six Jesuit Conferences across the world. For the Jesuits in Asia Pacific, this meeting was held in Manila from October 19 to 22.
With General Congregation 36 commencing this month with meetings of Electors in their six respective Conferences, there is much curiosity about what a new Superior General will bring to the Society.
Recently I was called to Rome for two meetings, the first was a two-week meeting of the Coetus Praevius (Preparatory Committee) for General Congregation 36, and immediately following that, the six Conference Presidents stayed on for our annual meeting with Fr General. The backdrop to our time in Rome could not have been more apt – Syrian refugees were arriving in Europe by the tens of thousands. What I heard from JRS Syria director, Fr Nawras Sammour, about the conditions in Aleppo, Homs and Damascus remains with me still today.
The Preparatory Commission (Coetus Praevius) for GC 36 met in Rome from Monday, August 31 to Saturday, September 12. The task of the group, which included Fr General Adolfo Nicolás SJ and the Conference Presidents, was to draw up an agenda for the upcoming General Congregation.
Postulates
The group examined the 146 postulates that had come in from all over the Society of Jesus. Topics included the renewal of our community and individual lives, our mission, and governance of the Society.
All Jesuit communities and collaborators in the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific are asked to pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit for the forthcoming General Congregation. In Asia Pacific, our first meeting of General Congregation 36 begins on October 19, 2015 in Manila.