“All the virtues of the rigorous exercise of the intellect are required: ‘learning and intelligence, imagination and ingenuity, solid studies and rigorous analysis.’ And yet, it is always ministry or apostolate: in the service of the faith, of the Church, of the human family and the created world that God wants to draw more and more into the realm of his Kingdom of life and love. It is always research that is aimed at making a difference in people’s lives, rather than simply a recondite conversation among members of a closed elite group.”—Fr. Adolfo Nicolas, SJ, Former Superior General of the Society of Jesus, Remarks for Networking Jesuit Higher Education: Shaping the Future for a Humane, Just, Sustainable Globe, Mexico City – April 23, 2010
I first heard the phrase “learned ministry” in my second year of theology, around 2014, when then Father Provincial, Jojo Magadia, was explaining to us formands why we need to invest in intellectual formation. I remember thinking about learned ministry only as special studies: a ministry of a few Jesuits who devote much of their lives to research and teaching in the different disciplines of human knowledge. It was only after a year or so when Father Nicolas, the former Superior General, talked in length about the indispensability of the intellectual formation of Jesuits that I began to reflect deeply on what the intellectual ministry is and entails. For Father Nicolas, as for Father Magadia, intellectual ministry is not only the mission of a few bright Jesuits. It is an indispensable element of every mission of a Jesuit because the work for the Kingdom of God demands it. Whether one is a parish priest, a chaplain of the hospital, or even a minister of the house, a Jesuit is expected to approach his mission with the appropriate knowledge, skills, and critical reflection to make it credible and fruitful. In other words, sharing in the evangelizing mission of the Church requires each Jesuit the right formation so he can use his intellectual gifts to help people (ayudar las animas) in their search for God, expressed in various stages of human life and societies. Combined with deep faith and discernment, Jesuits can use cultural, technological, and other human values and means to respond to critical issues and questions raised by the human heart.
Learned
Jesuits are often described as “intellectuals” which intimidate a lot of people and even make them appear smug to some of their peers. But one goes beyond this impression when we understand Jesuits as learned. Following the thoughts of Father. Nicolas, being learned is not about the accumulation of knowledge for its own sake or to advance one’s career, power, or even social standing. Learned requires critical thinking, prayerful reflection, and, with sharp eyes and mind, naming the patterns of consolations and desolations in the present signs of the times. In other words, it is not knowledge production for the sake of the economy or academic aims alone. Moved by the aim of finding God in all things, Jesuits form and use their intellectual resources and gifts to dive deep into various human disciplines that raise questions that are facets of God’s truth. Jesuits as learned, in my view, are men who grow in a faith-seeking understanding (fides quarens intellectum), constantly pursuing God’s truth and communicating it to peoples wherever they are missioned.
Whether it is a homily, painting, recollection, laboratory work, counseling session, farming, vocation promotion, or fighting for human rights, these activities demand deep thinking. They require a serious level of imagination, professionalism, and critical analysis. In addition, the Jesuit pours all the gathered information, data, dialogue, and reflection into the quiet time and space of discernment. Identifying the patterns of consolations and desolations in specific human contexts requires intellectual gifts and resources so God’s will may be realized. From my perspective, Jesuits are learned as a result and demand Ignatian discernment.
Being learned is a different kind of suffering. It is often solitary work, very demanding, and can be isolating. It is not simply to know something but to devote one’s time and effort to do research, wrestle with the pertinent questions repeatedly, and struggle to examine various answers offered by the different voices and sectors in society to critical issues. It is also humbling—to know that one does not have the right answers, and even if one believes so, to receive criticism and sometimes anger and ridicule from those who hold opposing views. Being learned is not so much to gain an acceptable social standing as a way of following Christ’s suffering. This is not to exalt or spiritualize the status of a learned person but to point out that the aim of learning and intellectual formation of a Jesuit is always at the service of the Gospel and the Church which is not always well received and, in history, faced persecution and rejection.
Ministry
That is why learned is always mentioned together with ministry. For a Jesuit, as Father Nicolas mentioned, it is “research that is aimed at making a difference in people’s lives”. It is the use of knowledge and the formation of knowledge circles and societies that “draws more and more” the life of God closer to the created world. It is the tireless seeking for truth and its demand to seek it with all one’s intellectual gifts and capacity so a Jesuit can lend his voice to the voiceless and fight for the rights of the poor. Part of learned ministry is to scrutinize various ways of thinking (e.g. populism, secularism, fundamentalism) that have wrought division and factions among different peoples instead of uniting them toward working for the common good.
One of the Jesuit saints I admire is Fr. Alberto Hurtado, SJ. He is a Chilean lawyer who entered the Society of Jesus and ended up serving the homeless through Hogar de Cristo (House of Christ). It was said that during his recreation breaks, which were far and few, he would have a book in hand. He reasoned that one should not stop learning, whether from a novelist, poet, researcher, or artist; it does not matter so long as one continues to be curious and learn in life. One can argue convincingly against Father Alberto that not all books contribute to learning! Of course, one must discern what books to read! But even that—discerning what books to read—requires a level of reason and understanding! This supports what I have been arguing for all along as learned ministry: the formation and use of intellectual resources and gifts in the service of faith and the common good. Father Hurtado, a man of faith seeking understanding, tells us how important it is to continue learning because it even determines what books we should pay attention to!
Here, learning is not only for ministry but a habit for a Jesuit. It is an indispensable part of our way of life. The spirituality of discernment demands it. And we find consolation in it. We grow as men who seek God’s truth—wrestling and understanding it deeply as expressed in human questions, communicating it as clearly and courageously as possible, and humbly rising from our mistakes, knowing we do not have all the answers but are only servants of God’s truth.