Having good formators is vital in preparing young Jesuits to respond to the various challenges and needs of the world today. Hence the preparation of formators is a crucial aspect of the Jesuit mission, said JCAP Formation Delegate Fr Riyo Mursanto … Continued
What is the context of Jesuit schools in Asia Pacific? How are they addressing the challenges in their local context? How can, for example, Xavier Jesuit School in Cambodia learn from the experience of Colégio de Santo Inácio de Loiola in Timor-Leste, and vice versa? These questions and more accounted for a large part of the discussion between the education delegates of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific (JCAP) during their recent meeting in Singapore.
Radicalism was a central theme in the meeting of the Jesuits Among Muslims (JAM) group held in Mojokerto near Surabaya, Indonesia. About 20 people including Jesuits from Indonesia, Philippines, Japan, Pakistan, India, Nigeria, Italy, Spain, Germany, Turkey and Algeria came together from August 7 to 11 to experience and learn about the Muslims living in an Islamic context that is different from the Arab.
Jesuits from different parts of the world gathered in Cambodia recently to dialogue with Buddhist monks, engaging them on three levels – academic, spiritual and practical. This holistic approach to inter-religious dialogue is one that has prevailed in the regular Christian-Buddhist Workshop of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific for many years.
In 2014, the major superiors of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific decided that the youth had to be a priority for the Jesuit Conference. They saw a clear need to accompany young people in the way of St Ignatius, which is marked by cura personalis (personal care), discernment and magis (more).
“You name it – we have it. Jade, gold, gas, rivers, teak … But this nation is like a blind beggar begging with a golden plate.” With these words, Charles Cardinal Bo, Archbishop of Yangon, set the stage for the four-day Social Apostolate meeting of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific.
The picture drawn by Cardinal Bo in his keynote address was eye-opening for many of the 38 delegates and it made clear the need for reconciliation and justice in natural resource management, the theme of the meeting.
Fr Arturo Sosa SJ has sparked renewed vigour in the Jesuits and their collaborators in Asia Pacific with his first visit as Superior General to Indonesia, Cambodia and Singapore. In each country, he met with Jesuits and collaborators, learning from them about their context and giving them much food for thought with his reflections on the world today and the response of the Society of Jesus from the 36th General Congregation. In Singapore, he also joined the Major Superiors of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific in their bi-annual assembly from July 18 to 21.
Landing in Siem Seap on the second leg of his first trip to Asia Pacific, Fr General Arturo Sosa quickly found himself in completely different setting. From Indonesia, a predominantly Muslim country with about 350 Jesuits and many institutions and collaborators, he was now in a largely Buddhist country, with a small cohort of 26 Jesuits working with a modest number of collaborators.
The Society of Jesus welcomed six new priests from the Indonesia Province with the ordination of Fathers Antonius Dhimas Hardjuna SJ, Ferdinandus Tuhu Jati Setya Adi SJ, Gerardus Hadian Panamokta SJ, Stephanus Advent Novianto SJ, Thomas Septi Widhiyudana SJ and Thomas Surya Awangga Budiono SJ.
Fr Arturo Sosa SJ kicked off his first official trip to Asia Pacific as Superior General of the Society of Jesus with a visit to the world’s most populous Muslim nation – Indonesia. Fr Sosa, who spent most of his three-day visit from July 11 to 13 in Yogyakarta, stressed that he was there “to learn and not to teach”.