For more than three weeks now, Fr Adolfo Nicolás SJ has been in the hospital, receiving good medical treatment, and enjoying the close care of our brethren of the Japan Province. His condition is now stable. The Jesuits in Japan, the Conference of Major Superiors of Asia Pacific and the General Curia of the Society of Jesus request all Jesuits, partners in mission, and friends for prayers.
~Statement released by Fr Antoine Kerhuel SJ, Secretary of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Communications (JesCom) Philippines has published an anthology of the homilies of Fr Arnel Aquino SJ entitled, Empty boats…full nets. All proceeds of the book will go toward the education and training of Jesuit scholastics in Arrupe International Residence, an international work of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific (JCAP).
The book contains 58 homilies arranged by evangelist and a few of them are homilies on feast days and vows. All of them draw from Fr Aquino’s life experiences throughout his nearly 30-year journey with the Society of Jesus as a musician, theologian and priest. The book aims to communicate the poignant message of a deep, personal encounter of Christ himself.
“Fr Arnel Aquino SJ demonstrates the point on preaching raised by Pope Francis… [He] elegantly writes these reflections about Jesus, faith, life and human experience using Gospel passages ‘to encourage the practice of good,’” writes JCAP Fr Tony Moreno SJ in his foreword to the book.
Fr Aquino was initially hesitant to publish a book of his homilies but finally agreed because of the cause behind its publication.
“My friends had been urging me to compile them into a book. In my head, homilies are for free. Then, we found a worthy cause for the sales of the book,” Fr Aquino, who is part of the Arrupe International Residence community, told JesCom Philippines.
The book’s sales will benefit young Jesuits from Asia Pacific, South Asia, Africa and Europe studying at Loyola School of Theology and Ateneo de Manila University, a good number of whom are on scholarship.
“It is often said that the future of the Church comes from Asia and Africa where there is growth in vocation, emerging leadership and vibrancy in the way the faith is lived,” writes Fr Moreno. “Readers of this anthology will be part of the mission to assist and accompany future church ministries in this part of the globe.”
Empty boats…full nets: an anthology of homilies is available on Jescom Philippines and at the Tanging Yaman store located on the campus of Ateneo de Manila University.
This year’s gathering of treasurers and assistant treasurers from the 12 Jesuit governance units across Asia Pacific began with a day of prayer on the Society’s Universal Apostolic Preferences. Fr Tony Moreno SJ, JCAP President, led the recollection on August 26, at Manresa Retreat Center in Changhua, Taiwan. All the participants were grateful for the opportunity to assimilate the UAPs into their life-mission to “administer the goods of the Society” for promoting the mission of reconciliation and justice. The Spirit’s invitation to renewal was palpably felt as participants shared the fruits of their prayer.
Solidarity
A heightened sense of solidarity was a fruit of the treasurers’ shared prayer. Sessions on personal and professional sharing were marked by openness and transparency, as each participant candidly disclosed both professional struggles and best practices. Four new treasurers from Indonesia, Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam were particularly grateful for the sharing sessions. This appreciation was expressed through comments such as: “I feel welcome here”, “Professional sharing is very helpful and inspiring“, “Inter-connected; Union of minds and hearts” and “We have become friends so we can move together in mission”. The treasurers unquestionably prized their emerging identity as companions-in-mission.
Sustainability
Another fruit of the gathering was a renewed concern for the sustainability of young missions like Myanmar, East Timor, Thailand, and Cambodia. Commitment to contribute to the JCAP Solidarity in Formation Fund was reaffirmed–even treasurers from financially struggling units committed to share, according to capacity, for solidarity’s sake.
By year 2020, the Asia Pacific Treasurers agreed to come up with guidelines and suggested practices that formation delegates can use in promoting an appreciation of both the Society’s Statutes on Religious Poverty as well as financial literacy skills. These guidelines and practices will comply with both the Code of Canon Law and Instruction on the Animation of Goods (IAG) standards. Hopefully, this common project can help in the promotion of a culture of stewardship and prepare our young men to become treasurers someday.
Fr Eric G Velandria SJ is the JCAP Treasurer and Socius.
Community life is inseparable from religious life. The document on Fraternal life in community: Congregavit nos in unum Christi amor by the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life describes community as “Schola Amoris,” a School of Love, “in which all learn to love God, to love the brothers and sisters with whom they live and to love humanity, which is in great need of God’s mercy and of fraternal solidarity”.
This aspect of religious life was the topic of the recent Formation for Formators workshop. Sixteen Jesuit formators from 11 countries across the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific (JCAP) addressed what it means to build a formative community, to reflect on their experiences of community living and to plan ways to develop their communities.
The last in a three-part series, the workshop was held on August 19 to 30 at the Seven Fountains Jesuit Retreat House in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The first workshop held in 2017 centred on “Psycho-spiritual Formation” and the second in 2018 delved on “Ignatian Spirituality in Spiritual Direction”.
This year, the discussion revolved around four areas, namely: the nature of Jesuit communities, the diversity of the members, factors that influence community dynamics and the qualities of a good formative community.
The facilitators and speakers included Fr Silvino Borres SJ, Formation Delegate of the Philippine Province, Fr Riyo Mursanto SJ, JCAP Delegate for Formation, Fr James Gascon SJ of the Center for Family Ministries, Eva Galvey and Marie Buhain of the Emmaus Center for Psycho-Spiritual Formation, Fr Mark Raper SJ, Superior of Myanmar Mission, and Fr Sugiyo Pitoyo SJ, Superior of Thailand Region.
A good part of the workshop involved discussions on how to deal with different personalities, inter-generational dynamics and multi-cultural interaction.
“We learned a new perspective of looking at self-identity and self-concept, to see others in the community in a new way. We learned to accompany the formands, who are very diverse”, shared Fr Mursanto.
During one of the days, the group took time off from the workshop to explore Chiang Mai together. Some of them went to the local temple while others went to see the beautiful sights in the city. Unforgettable was a dinner one evening with Thai cultural performances. It was a special moment of fraternal sharing and solidarity.
Contributed by Fr Oliver Dy SJ
“We grieve with the earth and the poor. We feel strongly that change and conversion will not take place without a real encounter with God, which also means encountering the poor,” expressed members of the social ministries network of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific (JCAP).
The group comprising 24 participants from the Jesuit provinces and regions, JCAP social ministries, and regional and global networks gathered at the Formation House of Syantikara in Yogyakarta, Indonesia from August 19 to 21 for a meeting themed, “Celebrating 50 years’ journey of God’s faithfulness and discerning roadmaps for the next 10 years”.
The three-day programme was packaged in the form of workshops, individual reflections, group sharing and plenary discussions. It aimed to respond to Fr General Arturo Sosa’s call on the implementation and assimilation of the Universal Apostolic Preferences (UAPs), as well as to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the Social Justice and Ecology Secretariat (SJES).
JCAP President Fr Tony Moreno SJ presented extensively on the UAPs. He said: “The Preferences are not about specific ministries, but about giving orientations, guidelines to lead us into the frontier of the mission.” He also said that the UAPs do not stress on a priority, for example education, but instead are “orientations that call out to what stimulates or burns our heart or passion”. In this way the UAPs are not just about the Society’s mission, but they concern the Society’s life. “The UAPs should help our heart to burn in doing God’s mission,” said Fr Moreno.
After reflecting on and discussing the UAPs as orientations for the social apostolate, the participants shared their past and current social ministries, their graces, their challenges, new opportunities in light of the UAPs and possibilities for collaboration. Limited personnel and resources are the common challenges that surfaced. The participants feel strongly that ecology and the climate crisis are the burning issues that need to be addressed fearing a wave of migration that can ensue from the problem.
Fr Fernando Azpiroz SJ and Julie Edwards guided the participants on how to do spiritual discernment in the daily affairs of their social ministries. Fr Azpiroz presented the methodology which involved asking “who, why, what and how”, while Edwards presented a framework for internalising discernment. The framework consists of human spirit, practice framework and business process rooted in Ignatian tradition and Catholic Social Teaching.
“Discernment is an application of finding God in all things,” said Edwards. Explaining the framework, she said: “In terms of human spirit, we can look back on experiences that can influence discernment in our context. We can also consider what we have done and what have happened in the last decade that disturb our heart and help us to think about how to reconcile them. In the light of Ignatian tradition, we look at all these issues and how they are part of our life. Business process is about figuring out our resources, including how we communicate with people.”
SJES Secretary Fr Xavier Jeyaraj SJ graced the meeting with his presentation on the spirit of the 50th anniversary of SJES. Referring to Leviticus 25, Fr Jeyaraj reflected on what a golden jubilee means. “Fifty years mean we have to renew our commitment to the challenge of the mission of our vocation in order to be with God, where we want to go,” said Fr Jeyaraj. He shared about the goal, objectives and desired outcomes of the jubilee year celebration themed, “A journey of justice and reconciliation: 50 years and beyond”.
The meeting culminated with the formulation of the Conference Statement and Call to Action, and plans to commemorate the 50th Golden Jubilee at the province/region and conference levels. All the participants felt called to conversion arising from the Universal Apostolic Preferences and the 50th Anniversary of the Social Justice and Ecology Secretariat.
Click here to read the complete statement of the JCAP Secretariat for Social Ministries.
Jesuit Communications Foundation (JesCom), the media arm of the Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus, conducted a training workshop on documentary scriptwriting and financial management for the staff of Casa de Produção Audiovisual (CPA), the Jesuit film production studio in Timor-Leste.
Executive Director Fr Emmanuel Alfonso SJ said that an integral part of JesCom Philippines’ responsibility as Secretariat for Social Communications of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific (JCAP) is to assist its affiliate organisations in the conference.
The five-day workshop, held from August 12 to 16 at Ateneo de Manila University, took CPA’s new producers, graphic illustrators and treasurer, headed by Scholastic Rui Nunes Muakandala SJ, through the ropes of documentary scriptwriting, financial management, Quickbooks and Adobe Premier operations.
JesCom Finance and Administrative Manager Jennifer Chua said that a step-by-step approach proved beneficial in helping the East Timorese staff improve their working knowledge of accounting and finance, especially the use of relevant software.
“I gave them an overview of financial management, its importance, understanding accounts, financial planning, financial monitoring and internal controls. I was able to share with them some of the best practices that they can apply to their organisation,” said Chua.
“It was important to show them one by one all the features and functions of Quickbooks and how they are applicable to their day-to-day operations,” she added.
Meanwhile, JesCom Creative Director Pauline Mangilog-Saltarin’s objective was to teach the participants scriptwriting techniques for documentaries, which the CPA staff could immediately put to use in writing and producing their own films during their Manila visit, and upon returning home.
“The staff were all very receptive. I could tell that they really wanted to learn and expand their knowledge in scriptwriting and production,” said Mangilog-Saltarin.
The opportunity to help in the development and growth of its partner organisations in the JesCom network in Asia Pacific reflects JesCom Philippines’ leadership and commitment to its ministry of media evangelisation.
“For the past few years JesCom Philippines has been at the forefront of training JCAP members,” shared Mangilog-Saltarin. “I think sharing our knowledge and best practices to other countries is indicative of how JesCom, as a Jesuit institution, is fulfilling its mandate and vision.”
By Anthony Perez, JesCom Philippines
“Choosing life in a context filled with fear and anger and insecurity seems like a daunting task. But it is not impossible – not for followers of Christ.” This was Fr General Arturo Sosa’s message in his homily for the advance celebration of the Feast of St Ignatius in Taipei.
The Superior General of the Society of Jesus visited Taiwan from July 27 to 29 accompanied by his Regional Assistants Fr Jojo Magadia SJ for Asia Pacific and Fr Vernon D’Cunha SJ for South Asia, as well as Fr Pierre Bélanger SJ of the Jesuit Communication team in Rome and Fr Stephen Chow SJ, the Chinese Provincial.
Fr Sosa’s message to never lose faith, despite the difficulties was the main takeaway of his entire trip to the country. “Deuteronomy mentions two actions”, he shared. “‘Choose life’, it says, and then right after that, you are told, first, ‘to love the Lord your God’ and second, ‘to walk in his ways’.”
In his meeting with the Magis youth in the Tien Educational Center, Fr Sosa encouraged the young people not to be afraid to face the world, even to change it, to keep walking ahead because God would be always be with them as a beacon to guide them.
The Superior General was able to see how this courageous faith is being lived out in the social apostolates of the Jesuits in Taiwan. On his first day in Taipei he went to the Rerum Novarum Social Service Center founded by Fr José Ellacuría SJ in 1971. Over the years as society has changed, Rerum Novarum’s services have expanded from low-paid, overworked labourers to migrant workers in Taiwan and migrant workers on fishing boats subject to unequal treatment. The centre manifests the Gospel in action. Fr Sosa showed particular concern for the migrant fishermen.
In Chutung, an hour-and-a-half’s drive from Taipei where Jesuits have served the indigenous populations since the 1950s, Fr General experienced the culture of aboriginal Christians. He concelebrated the Sunday Mass which was a showcase of multiculturality with parishioners who are Han Chinese, Hakka people, Atayal and Saisiyat indigenous peoples, and migrants from Vietnam and the Philippines. Next to the church, there was a display of indigenous hunting and other tools. Fr Sosa wore an aboriginal jacket and tried to draw a bow.
Many other meetings were held to enable Fr Sosa to get to know the Jesuits and partners involved with the work of the Society of Jesus in Taiwan. His audience with lay collaborators included no less than the Vice President of Taiwan, Chen Chien-jen. They shared with Fr General how they live out and promote the Universal Apostolic Preferences. In his address to the teachers and students of Fu Jen Faculty of Theology of St Robert Bellarmine, Fr Sosa praised the theologate for nurturing men and women able to take on a variety of responsibilities within the Church. He also had an opportunity to meet the apostolic mission collaborators of the Jesuits at Fu Jen Catholic University and got to know their work.
Fr General’s visitations are of course opportunities to strengthen Jesuit brotherhood. Before he ended his trip, Fr Sosa paid a visit to the elderly Jesuits in St Joseph’s Province Infirmary. Then he spoke to the Jesuits in Taiwan and presided at a Mass with them.
As part of Fr General Arturo Sosa’s trip to the Chinese Province, he visited Macau on July 18 to 19. Macau is an autonomous region on the south coast of China, across the Pearl River Delta from Hong Kong. With a population of 700,000 and an area of 32.9 sq km (12.7 sq mi), it is the most densely populated region in the world. Originally a sparsely populated collection of coastal islands, the territory has become a major resort city and the top destination for gambling tourism. It is the ninth-highest recipient of tourism revenue and its gaming industry is seven times larger than that of Las Vegas.
The Society of Jesus has been present in Macau from the very beginning of its own history (having been formally established in Rome in 1540), and equally from the beginning of the historical role played by the small city of Macau. St Paul’s College founded by the Jesuits in 1594 and was operative for 168 years until 1762 when the Jesuits were expelled in Macau, extended the Society’s influence beyond the city walls inside China and farther afield. During these years, 665 young Jesuits completed their formation in the College.
On the first day, Fr General Sosa accompanied by his Regional Assistants Fr Vernon D’Cunha SJ for South Asia and Fr Jojo Magadia SJ for Asia Pacific, and Fr Pierre Bélanger SJ of the Jesuit Communication team in Rome had a meeting with lay collaborators in Colegio Estrela do Mar, one of the two Jesuit schools in Macau. Around 60 people came from different social apostolates: Christian Life Community, Magis youth ministry, Macau Ricci Institute, Casa Ricci Social Services and representatives of the two schools, Colegio Estrela do Mar and Colegio Mateus Ricci. Fr General shared with them the Universal Apostolic Preferences.
The next day, Fr General visited the other Jesuit school in Macau. He addressed the primary and secondary students of Colegio Mateus Ricci at their graduation ceremonies. “You are still so young, but you carry in you the future of this world”, he said. “As you come to the end of this academic year, and begin your vacation, I invite you to think about how you can help others in new ways that you have not yet tried before.” Fr Sosa prayed for the children to have “the strength to be daring and hopeful, not for yourselves, but for the world, and for the future”.
After his brief commencement address, Fr General blessed two statues of St Ignatius in the school’s complex and visited St Anthony Church, the oldest church in Macau built by the Jesuits around 1560. Nowadays the church is served by the Korean Martyrs Congregation.
Fr General also met and greeted the staff of Casa Ricci Social Services and Macau Ricci Institute. He also had an opportunity to meet the Jesuit community in Macau. The short trip was closed by the Thanksgiving Mass for 70 years in the Society of Jesus of Fr Yves Camus SJ and 50 years in the Society of Fr Luis Sequeira SJ and Gregory Koay SJ.
The experience of Fr General’s visit, albeit only brief, remains in the hearts of the many lay collaborators and Jesuits in Macau. His message in his homily during the thanksgiving Mass resonated not just with the three jubilarians but with each of us. “They have taught many young people; they have preached many homilies and touched many lives; they have accompanied searchers for the will of God through the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius. They have lived as missionaries, offering themselves faithfully as Jesuits”, said Fr General.
“Yet, today’s thanksgiving Mass is not just about them. It is first and foremost about a God who started it all, a God who loved first and called these three Jesuits to follow him, a God who has given them the grace to respond to His call with great zeal. This is the same God that invites each of us today. He offers his life freely, to show us what it means to love the way god loves – without counting the cost, without heeding the wounds, without seeking for any reward.”
One can associate St Ignatius with many things. He is known for his bravery and courage in the battle of Pamplona (1521). Others see him as the principal founder of the Jesuits, the first Superior General of the Order. He is also credited for initiating a brand of spirituality that is apostolic, discerning and engaged in the world. Arguably, however, it can be said that discernment of spirits is the single most important contribution of St Ignatius to the Church. Through the Spiritual Exercises, he writes the guidelines for discernment leading to one’s discovery of God’s will. Discernment is not about choosing between good and evil since the choice is clear. When one discerns what can lead more (magis) to God, then discernment of spirits becomes a crucial exercise. This discernment is not only between me and my God (vertical). It also is done in the context of the community searching for the will of God (horizontal). The second one is now increasingly known as discernment in common following the experience of the founding fathers in Venice in 1537 as they pursued the will of God for them. We are very familiar with personal discernment, but only recently started to rediscover the import of the communal mode of discernment.
The Universal Apostolic Preferences (UAPs), launched on February 19, 2019, are a result of 16 months of prayerful discernment in common at all levels of the Society of Jesus including the companions in mission. The UAPs after receiving approval and blessing from Pope Francis are in effect missions entrusted by the Church to the Society. These preferences hope to structure and orient our life and mission in the next 10 years. The preferences are the following: to show the way to God through the Spiritual Exercises and discernment; to walk with the poor, the outcasts of the world, those whose dignity has been violated in a mission of reconciliation and justice; to accompany the young people in the creation of a hope-filled future; and to collaborate in the care of our Common Home. If assimilated and implemented fully, the preferences could engender a conversion experience for the Society, a profound renewal that could be a refounding moment of Jesuits and companions in mission.
Currently, Fr General Arturo Sosa is visiting Asia Pacific, particularly the Korean, Chinese and Japanese provinces. In his address to the major superiors assembly in Hong Kong on July 22, Fr General speaks of a “moment of transition”. He challenges us against being “accustomed” or even “proud” of our current style of life-mission. The UAPs are a call to radical changes in that “these are new wineskins to which we are called to pour the Good News of Jesus Christ through our life-mission profoundly transformed by the experience of encounter with the Lord”.
As we celebrate the feast of St Ignatius of Loyola, we give thanks to the Lord for his many gifts to the Church, particularly his method of finding God in all things, his discernment of spirits as a pathway to God. May we not only grow in our relationship with the same Lord who called Ignatius, but in our familiarity with God through personal and communal discernment to accomplish with courage and zeal the missions entrusted to us.
Happy feast day to one and all!
Tony Moreno SJ
President, Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific
Superior General of the Society of Jesus Fr General Arturo Sosa SJ is set to visit Korea, Macau, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan in the next three weeks. This is Fr Sosa’s third official trip to the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific after visiting Vietnam and the Philippines last year, and Indonesia and Cambodia in 2017.
A big part of Fr General’s visits to the different conferences is to learn more about the Jesuits and their commitments in their places of work. In Asia Pacific where only three per cent of the population is Catholic, the call is clear for dialogue with religious traditions and various cultures.
In Korea, where he begins his trip on July 15, Fr Sosa will not only be meeting with the Korean Jesuits to animate and inspire them with the Universal Apostolic Preferences but also to understand the various contexts in which they work. One of these is in their mission of reconciliation. On July 16, Fr Sosa will visit Panmunjom, a small village located in the Korean Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) on the border of North Korea. The DMZ was established after the Korean War to serve as buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea.
Throughout his three days’ stay, Fr General will also learn of the intellectual apostolate and the youth ministry of the province from meetings with collaborators, staff and students of Sogang University, Jesuits in formation and young people.
Fr Sosa will next visit the Chinese Province where he will make stops in Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan. His activities will centre around the theme, “Ignatian bridge building” and will thus include many meetings with Jesuits and lay collaborators.
From July 18 to 19, Fr Sosa will meet with lay collaborators from the two schools in Macau, Colegio Estrela do Mar and Colegio Mateus Ricci, where he will take part in the graduation ceremonies. He will also meet with the staff of Macau Ricci Institute, a study and research institution dedicated to fostering better mutual understanding between China and the rest of the world, and Casa Ricci Social Services, which helps poor and marginalised communities in China.
In Hong Kong, from July 19 to 21, Fr General will meet with Jesuits and collaborators for a sharing on the Universal Apostolic Preferences. He will also celebrate Mass for the 60th anniversary of St Ignatius Chapel in Wah Yan College Kowloon, as well as preside over the Final Vows of two Jesuit priests in Wah Yan College Hong Kong. Then on July 22, Fr Sosa will join the JCAP major superiors in their five-day assembly.
On July 27, he flies to Taipei where he will spend the next three days. He will get to know the lay partners, speak to leaders of Ignatian families on how they can be closer collaborators in living out and promoting the Universal Apostolic Preferences, and visit Jesuit parishes and the Fu Jen Faculty of Theology of St Robert Bellarmine. He will also join an advance celebration of the Feast of St Ignatius.
Fr General will conclude his visit to Asia Pacific in Japan. On August 1, he is scheduled to meet with his predecessor Fr Adolfo Nicolás SJ and later with the Japanese scholastics. He will also be going to Hiroshima for a gathering with collaborators and to talk about Servant of God Fr Pedro Arrupe SJ who was a missionary in Japan during the Second World War. One of his stops will be the Atomic Bomb Dome and the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum on August 3.
He returns home to Rome on August 4.
