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The Word, A Reflection and Prayer

CHRIST THE KING 2020

CHRIST THE KING 2020 (Kristong Hari), November 22, 2020

The Word

Matthew 2 1 When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.”

Matthew 25   31  “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, 32 and all the nations will be assembled before him.”

Picture4 The Word, A Reflection and Prayer

34 Then the king will say to those on his right, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.”

40 “Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.”

Picture2 The Word, A Reflection and Prayer

Matthew  21  4 This happened so that what had been spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled:

5 Say to daughter Zion, “Behold, your king comes to you, meek and riding on an ass, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.'”

John 18  36 Jesus answered [Pilate], “My kingdom does not belong to this world.”

John 19  2 And the soldiers wove a crown out of thorns and placed it on his head, and clothed him in a purple cloak, 3 and they came to him and said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck him repeatedly.

Picture3 The Word, A Reflection and Prayer

John 19    14  … [Pilate] said to the Jews, “Behold, your king!” 15 They cried out, “Take him away, take him away! Crucify him!”

19 Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read,

     “Jesus the Nazorean, the King of the Jews.”

A  REFLECTION  and  PRAYER

Brightness —  Light  —  Darkness —  Glory

A number of years ago, Father Ruben Tanseco and I were discussing themes for the Feast of Christ the King. (As you may know, Father Ruben passed to the Lord a month or so ago – may he be in peace.) We talked about the common image of Christ the King sitting on the magnificent throne crowned with gold and holding an orb and a scepter. Super glorious!

And he mentioned the image of Jesus standing there so much alone with the purple cape and a crown of thorns being presented by Pilate to the people – “This is your king!”  (You can see it on Google images.)

I have outlined a bit of this reality in the Scripture passages chosen above:

  • the Magi bringing wonderful gifts to a newborn King
  • how the great king will judge and reward
  • a king entering Jerusalem for the Passover festival – not a king riding in a chariot drawn by great horses and surrounded by well-armed soldiers –but a humble servant-king riding on a donkey
  • a dialogue with Pilate ending in a death sentence – but with the saving inscription above the lifeless victim – “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.”
  • finally, the glorious moment from the Book of Revelation as the king draws the generous of heart to himself

 =  =  = =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =  =   

As you can imagine, each of these small episodes are not for reading but for reflection and prayer.

Perhaps you can take five minutes for each text – imagining each scene in your own mind, being in the scene – by seeing, by hearing, by feeling;  participating – by speaking, by touching, by helping.

You can also pray over one episode each day this week – that would make for good daily prayer. We keep in mind that the journey of Jesus was of compassion and mercy, gentleness, healing and forgiveness.

Can we journey with Jesus? Can we do as he has done – compassion and mercy; gentleness, healing and forgiveness?

Pain and suffering are part of the journey – these we offer with the pain and suffering of Jesus.

Jesus Christ, our king, give us your grace for our lives!

Father Bill Kreutz SJ, Loyola House of Studies, Scripture from the New American Bible. (Images from Google)

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ST. IGNATIUS (4th part)

July 31, 2020

His Story

PARIS to ROME  1535- 1556

Ignatius and his companions join together to make their vows before the Lord on the feast of Our Lady’s Assumption, August 15 1534. They promised poverty and chastity and that they would make a pilgrimage and mission to the Holy Land after they had finished their studies in Paris.

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In 1535 all will be finished. It was agreed that Ignatius should return to Spain for some time to recover his health. He stayed in the small village near the Casa Loyola but he did not live there. He stayed at a hospital for the poor. There he taught catechism to the children and engaged in spiritual conversation and advice to others who would come. After some time he left for Venice to join his companions there and to prepare for the pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

It was their agreement they would stay up to one year in Venice hoping to get a ship to bring them to the Holy Land. If their pilgrimage could not be accomplished, they would go to Rome and offer themselves in the service of the Holy Father.

As they waited they continued some private theological studies and with all ordained priests and, with the exception of Ignatius, offered their first Thanksgiving Mass.

They undertook street preaching to whoever would listen and ministered to poor persons in the hospitals. For a short time they dispersed to nearby towns for mission work and then returned again together to share their experiences. It was a special habit of theirs to have regular conversations about their apostolate’s spirituality and other matters as often as possible.

This gave them great strength and insight for their present efforts and the life that would follow.

That year there was no pilgrim ship to Jerusalem. And so in 1537 as agreed, they set out for Rome to be in the service of the Pope. At the small village of La Storta quite near Rome, Ignatius entered a small chapel.  While in prayer he had another great vision much determining the future of the companions. He saw God the Father together with his Son Jesus who was carrying his cross. Ignatius experienced that God commended him and his companions to the service of Jesus. And Jesus spoke to Ignatius saying that he would be favorable to him in Rome. What this meant was not clear, but Ignatius was at peace and the event would later influence  the choice of the name that they would give to their  companionship.

When they arrived in Rome they presented themselves to Pope Paul III. The Pope was pleased with Ignatius and his companions. But there were others who had heard of events in Spain and Paris and so were wary of them. An investigation was carried out and all was settled to the benefit of the companions.

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After prayer, discernment and conversation , the companions petitioned the Pope that they be a new order in theChurch. A number in the popes circle opposed this, but in September 1540, Paul III issued a papal bull approving of the Society of Jesus.

Previous to the above, on Christmas 1538 Ignatius offered his first Holy Mass at the Bethlehem Chapel of the church of St. Mary Major in Rome. Also, noteworthy to mention, before the papal bull was issued, Francis Xavier was sent to the Far East and India for missionary work in March 1540. He would be the first of the early Jesuits to go to foreign lands.4th-IGNATIUS-2020-pic-6.docx ST. IGNATIUS (4th part)

During his early years in Rome, Ignatius offered the spiritual exercises to a number of people in important positions in Church governance. He and the companions undertook much charitable work among the poor and those in hospitals. They also set up a residence for women who needed protection or desired to lead a new life. Teaching catechism to children was an important part of their early ministry. Many laypersons were part of these apostolates for others.

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It was early in the societies existence that it was asked to take care of the church of Madonna de la Strada.

Over the years to follow, Ignatius would spend much time in writing the constitutions of this new society. He was also engaged in much written communications with others especially concerning the governance of Jesuits and general spiritual advice for others. He was often in dialogue with Church leaders.The constitutions were finished in 1551, but Ignatius had already been chosen to be the superior of the order as early is 1541. In the early 1550s he was persuaded to write his autobiography. He did this with hesitation. Aided by his secretary, he was able to complete the task over the next few years.

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Ignatius died peacefully on the morning of July 31, 1556. His was a life of great strength –originally for himself and his personal glory –and then fully spent for the greater glory Of God. Amen!

Reflection  and  Prayer

For this St. Ignatius Feast Day –

I offer for prayer a beautiful Novena to St. Ignatius.

4th-IGNATIUS-2020-pic-10 ST. IGNATIUS (4th part)

Prayers for yourself and for the Jesuits.

Thank You –

Father Bill Kreutz, SJ                                                  

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THE WORD, A REFLECTION, MY PRAYER

by Father Bill Kreutz, SJ, Loyola House of Studies.

13th Sunday 2020

The Word, Paul’s Letter to Romans 6.3-4,8-11

hands-up-1024x768 THE WORD, A REFLECTION, MY PRAYER
Dead to Sin; Life for God in Christ Jesus. Image from Google.

3 Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
4 We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life.

8 If, then, we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.
9 We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him.

10 As to his death, he died to sin once and for all; as to his life, he lives for God.
11 Consequently, you too must think of yourselves as [being] dead to sin and living for God in Christ Jesus.

A Reflection and My Prayer

“New Life, New Life, You came to bring us New Life”

This is the theme for our prayer and reflection today; words from a song about God’s gift of life. (See below for Youtube link).
St. Paul puts it so clearly – death for sin; life for us in Christ Jesus!

Read the passage over again. Pray to understand; to internalize the words, ” . . . living for God in Christ Jesus.”

Well, we ask, what does it mean for my daily life? Does that Baptism of so many years ago make any difference?

In the early centuries of the Church, most baptism was done by immersion. And so going into the water was like dying and coming up was resurrection – death and resurrection like Christ. (For various practical reasons, immersion was no longer the standard; pouring or sprinkling with water became the practice.) A key element in this is to know, to remember that we are all God’s children and for this reason we are to live in the spirit of his Son, Jesus the Christ.

Reminder: Jesus is a man for others – a man of compassion and mercy for others. We, the children of God are born again in the style of Jesus – also to be men and women for others. Take time and pray on this – Jesus, ourselves, for others.

The Jesus’ reality is seen by the following:

  • Do we think kindly of others – pray for blessings on them?
  • How do we speak of others – with good words that build people up?
  • How do we act toward others – with kindness, generosity, with justice?
  • And what yet is still to be done for others? What can I do for others?

Go now to quiet prayer. Ask for the grace, for the spirit of Jesus to be in you, to possess you that you might be “for others” as Jesus was for others. End with the Prayer for Generosity.

Musical Prayer: New Life – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjH759VffKQ

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Fund for Apostolic Works

Pangantucan Community High School

PCHS was established as a response to the need for a high school in Pangantucan in the late 1960s.  The Land Authority Office of the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources donated 32 has. of land with the sole intention of developing an agricultural school. 

For the last 50 years, the school has served its purpose of providing a high school program with agricultural electives especially for the children of farmers and tenants who cannot afford to send their children outside of Pangantucan. 

Fr-Bros-Flores-Pangantucan-Community-High-School-2020 Pangantucan Community High School
Fr. Ambrosio Flores, SJ, School President 2020. Jesuit Mission School
Kinilayan Village, Poblacion, Pangantucan, Bukidnon, Phils.

PCHS relies solely on government subsidy for students who cannot sustain the increasing cost of high school education.  The school deems it imperative to advance and promote agriculture as a stable career among the youth by utilizing the available land as a Demo Farm and Laboratory for students and converting the idle land as a social enterprise. 

For more information, please visit PCHS’ website https://bit.ly/3hCClCX made through the generosity of our partner in mission, Joe de Jesus.

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Feast of the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ

20200614-pope-francis-corpus-christi-afp-s Feast of the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ
Photo lifted from the web.

CORPUS CHRISTI 2020, by Fr. Bill Kreutz, SJ

THE WORD

St. Paul’s First Letter to the Christians in Corinth 10.16-17

One Bread-One Body

16 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?

17 Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.

REFLECTION AND PRAYER

A little background:

The earliest mention of the Holy Eucharist in the New Testament is found in St. Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians written in the early 50s of the first century. It is assumed that there were already traditions about what happened at the Last Supper circulating among the early Christians, but the Gospels were compiled and written and circulated only at a later time.

In Chapter 11, verses 23-26, St. Paul says that he received personally from the Lord what had happened in the Last Supper in regards to the Eucharist. He does this to establish authority to guide the Corinthians in their celebration of the Eucharist. It was noted that there were strong distinctions made among various members of the community. This did not match well. The sense of unity that should come from sharing one bread. He spends much time on how people ought to act at Eucharist with a strong sense of sharing.

These verses and many other verses in that first letter of Paul to the Corinthians talk about the Eucharist and its central role in the early church in Corinth. But, he had found many abuses –  and so he had to tell the people, remind people, remind Christians what they had received from Jesus.

Our reading from today’s Holy Mass focuses on the unity that should be in the Church. Since all share of the one Body and Blood of Jesus.

As possible, take time, make time, to read that first letter to the Corinthians; it tells us much about styles and customs in the early church as perceived by Paul and it reminds us, even today, the sharing that should be going on.

A further note:

Those words: he took the bread, said the blessing, broke the bread and gave it to those gathered around. These words must have been very sacred for the early Christians. These words show up in the feeding of the 5000, and 4000, the meal of the men at Emmaus, and, of course, the very words of Jesus at the Last Supper. And now, 2000 years later we still use the same words. These are the words that the freest repeat over the bread and the wine. 2000 years of continuity with Jesus – we still believe!

 Take some time to pray; to offer thanks Jesus’ life for our lives, everyday, for us.

CORPUS-CHRISTI-1024x576 Feast of the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ
Picture lifted from Google

I chose the image above because it showed not a loaf to be broken and shared, but small hosts already on the dish to be shared among all the faithful.

With such great numbers of believers of Catholics, it is just about impossible to “break bread” in the common use of the term.

We accept the limitations of very simple bread made into the hosts that, by God’s power, become the Body and Blood of Jesus.

 A prayer of thanks for this gift, this power given to the Church.

To be able to receive Holy Communion is a bond of unity – or should be – it is a moment to reach out to others. Our thoughts and our prayers

  • all in the church gathered with us
  • all on the line to receive Holy Communion
  • all we will encounter during our day – family, friends, partners at work, even strangers along the street or on the bus

In that one bread, we reach out to a whole world – that is what we pray – like Jesus, who offered himself for all.

Lastly, this is a most difficult time for all who want to receive the holy Eucharist – we just can’t – but we do have that wonderful custom of “Spiritual Communion” which helps us as we watch Mass on television or on our mobile phone.

We pray for one another even though so far apart; Jesus is with us – and we with him – and with all believers.

The church has two very special possessions (among many); the Holy Bible and the Holy Eucharist. These are our precious possessions. Again, a deep, warm prayer of Thanksgiving.

Extra!    

Below are two wonderful music pieces celebrating the Holy Eucharist:

A wonderful and comfortable: Ave Verum — True Body — music by Amadeus Mozart

(You can find a translation into English on Google)

A mantra for the week: Your Body and Blood – Thank You Lord!

                       

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Fund for Apostolic Works

Helping the Bukidnon Mission District

Francis of Assisi, Pangian

BMD-JRH-PJAA-Profile-8-19-page-2-1-300x401 Helping the Bukidnon Mission District

Please support the mission works of the Jesuits in Mindanao.  To learn more, click the link below.  Donations in the Philippines can be coursed through the Philippine Jesuit Aid Association (PJAA).

Helping the Bukidnon Mission District

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A Letter from Fr. Harvey Mateo, SJ

Top 6 lumad scholars- consistent honor students

Dear Friends of SIHS:

I wish to share with you some updates regarding our mission.

This is certainly not complete but it’s just to give you an idea about some of the things going on in Zamboanguita:

1. Parish- a new chapel is being constructed for the community in Purok 6, Silae- one of our most vibrant and active parish communities. They have taken turns to assist the paid laborers and feed them. They have raised a substantial amount to supplement what was raised for the construction. The foundations and walls have been laid down, the next step is to put the roofing so that they could now have their services there instead of the makeshift structure they have been using for the past two years.

IMG_9232-300x225 A Letter from Fr. Harvey Mateo, SJ
Chapel construction, Purok 6

Meanwhile, the rest of the parish is preparing for the beginning of Lent on Wednesday (March 6, 2019). There is a proposal to initiate a Sunday school for the little children in the parish. We could mobilize the older youth and share with them Fr. Martin Licup’s new book Sunday Gospel for Kids as a resource. This would be a good Year of the Youth activity.

A donor has donated a new bell for the parish. We have reinforced our bell tower to accommodate this wonderful addition to our church. We are hoping to hear it ring for the first time soon.

2. St. Isidore HS- The school will be celebrating its 28th foundation day on March 12 by holding alternative classes on that day. We have invited several speakers to give talks on topics such as Disaster Risk Reduction, Barangay Governance, What Really Happens at Mass, HIV/AIDS awareness, and many more, including a showing of Ditsi Carolino’s Bunso (with no less than the director leading the discussion afterwards). During the Mass on that day, we will specifically praying for all our benefactors.

SIHS recently participated in two inter-school sports competitions. The G12 students completed their required 80 hour work immersion in Xavier University as student assistants in the various offices and feedback has been very good from both ends.

The G10 students completed the retreat in the Jesuit Retreat House in Malaybalay. Both G10 and G12 students are excited for the coming Junior Senior Promenade, with prom gowns flown-in from donors from Manila. Barangay Zamboanguita has asked the school to represent it in the coming street dance competition for Malaybalay’s Charter Day celebration on March 16. We also held our Parents Day on the same day as our Third Convocation. Instead of inviting a guest speaker, we showed the film Magnifico which everyone enjoyed. We also held a Family Got Talent competition.

Graduation and Completion ceremonies will be held on March 29. Our guest speaker will be Jason Menaling, an alumnus who has had the good fortune of meeting Pope Francis in Rome because of this work in Environmental Science for Social Change.

IMG_9212-300x225 A Letter from Fr. Harvey Mateo, SJ
School wall nearing completion

We are finally close to completing the cementing of the school walls, thanks to the PTA funds. We got inspected by the fire department and some violations were pointed out. We shall be working on them within the month. Meanwhile, the book collection of SIHS is growing fast with donations of old and new books. Usage has also been very encouraging. We will have to create a new space for our library soon and look for more training opportunities for our lone paraprofessional librarian.

We are hoping to do some major renovation projects in the school during the summer.

3. Lumad Scholars- During the last convocation period, 16 out of 28 scholars received some academic recognition. As a reward, our top 6 awardees received hand-painted bags made by a child being treated for cancer in PGH while the 10 with honorable mention received a blanket each donated by MTQ parish.

53220382_2525952310765784_7770400242888867840_n-300x225 A Letter from Fr. Harvey Mateo, SJ
Top 6 lumad scholars- consistent honor students

This summer we hope to begin construction of the lumad dormitory that will help address key formation and management issues. Plans are also on the way to have a gathering of dorm managers and prefects from the other mission areas- a sharing of best practices and an aligning of formation goals and admin policies.

One of our live-out scholars qualified for the Xavier University ALGCIT tech-voc program. It is 100% free quality education and the qualifying exam was highly competitive. We are proud of JM Luranza for being the third Isidorian in the program (two made it last year).

IMG_9256-300x225 A Letter from Fr. Harvey Mateo, SJ
January birthday celebrants at the lumad dorm

Thank you again for all that you have done and continue to do to support the mission here in Zamboanguita.
God bless you all.

Harvey Mateo SJ
Director, SIHS
Asst. Parish Priest, Parish of Our Lady Mary Mediatrix

February 28, 2019

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Our Lady of Mediatrix of All Grace Parish, Bukidnon

Nativity of Mary, Purok 6 Silae

There are 5 chapels under the Our Lady of Mediatrix of All Grace Parish , Bukidnon, which need help in repair and improvement:

 Jesus Nazareno, Nabag-o
 San Lorenzo Ruiz, Nalumusan
 Santo Nino, Mahawan
 St. Francis of Assisi, Pangian
 The Nativity of Mary, Purok 6 Silae

The chapels in Purok 6 Silae and Nabag-o  all need renovations which consist of making parts of the chapel concrete.
The communities of Nalumusan and Nabag-o are among the least accessible (cannot be reached by four wheel vehicle) and the poorest of the 29 chapels we serve.
To donate, click here
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Fund for Apostolic Works

The Bukidnon Mission District: St. Therese of the Child Jesus Parish

St. Therese School of Miarayon
Fr. Noel "Weng" Bava, SJ with Talaandig youth, Miarayon, Bukidnon

St. Therese of the Child Jesus was established by Jesuit missionaries thirty (30) years ago.  It subsists largely due to the generosity of the foreign and local benefactors, mostly friends and relatives of missionaries assigned in Miarayon, who see the wisdom in educating the youth of the mission area alongside delivering spiritual nourishment of the people.

When the pioneer missionaries get transferred to other assignments, benefactors and donors of the school stop supporting the school or transfer their support to other projects of the previous missionaries.  Often, the school is left operating on a shoe-string budget and on many occasions,  borrows funds from the Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus for the needed upgrade and upkeep of its facilities.

The passage of  The  Enhanced Basic Education Act (R.A. 10533) in 2013, which seeks to increase and improve compulsory education from 11 to 12 years, adds to the burden because of the need to accommodate a greater number of students.

Miarayon is a barangay of the fourth class municipality of Talakag, Bukidnon. It is a community of tribal minorities: Talaandigs (80%),  Dumagats (15%), Maranaw Moslems (4%) and Igorots (1%) comprising about 5,000 families. The local dialect is Binukid but most could speak the Visayan language.  The area has limited access to water and electricity and the roads may be accessed mainly by motorcycle (habal-habal), horse-riding or walking. There is no reliable signal for telecommunication yet.

Map-289x150 The Bukidnon Mission District: St. Therese of the Child Jesus Parish

Miarayon-_old-woman_FB-232x150 The Bukidnon Mission District: St. Therese of the Child Jesus Parish

 THE TALAANDIGS

The Talaandigs are friendly people.  They are deeply religious and value family and social kinship.  They are reliable    and industrious.  Despite these traits, many remain poor because of the lack of opportunity to get proper education.  To know more about the Talaandigs, view the full video made by Symantec Tooth and Gum Care here.

ST. THERESE SCHOOL OF MIARAYON

St. Therese School of Miarayon is the only High School operating in the area covering about five (5) barangays or villages with about seven (7) or so public elementary schools.  The next available High Schools are some sixty  (60) or so kilometers away from the centro.  In 2015,  there are approximately 320 students. However, this figure dips radically due to  students who drop out within the first quarter of the school year.  Of the students who continued, approximately 500 students have graduated and a good number have gone on to college and earned their degrees.

Fr.-Weng-Bava-225x150 The Bukidnon Mission District: St. Therese of the Child Jesus Parish
Fr. Noel “Weng” Bava, SJ Parish Priest

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Formation Fund

Preparing Jesuits for Mission

Photos by Jun Bugtas, Ro Atilano, and Ritz Arandia. From the Windhover.

By Fr. Olivier Lardinois SJ, Assistant for Formation, Chinese Jesuit Province

This article was originally published in Jesuits in Asia Pacific 2015, the annual report of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific.  It can also be found in their website.

Jesuit Commitment

At the very heart of the Jesuit vocation lies a personal commitment to follow the call of Jesus to work through him, with him and in him at the service of the Kingdom of God, which grows anywhere love and justice flourish: “Follow me and I will make you into fishers of men” (Mark 1:17) This is

Hello-and-Goodbye_Entrance-day-2015-200x150 Preparing Jesuits for Mission
Entrance Day 2015. Photos by Jun Bugtas, Ro Atilano, and Ritz Arandia. From the Windhover.

why several documents on Jesuit formation claim that God is the educator par excellence and why training for mission cannot succeed without helping the young Jesuit foster his friendship with Jesus.  Through a solid and regular prayer life, the young Jesuit in formation cultivates his intimacy with Christ, which slowly teaches him how to better discern, teach, behave and love as Jesus himself would do.  In fact, without an ability to convert himself daily in front of the Gospel and a deep desire to grow as a disciple of Jesus, a young man is unfit to enter or to stay in the Society of Jesus.

Gaining a freedom of heart

Another crucial dimension of Jesuit formation is to learn how to gain an ever-growing freedom of heart in front of all those things that can become a real obstacle to serving the mission well.  Some examples of obstacles are over-dependence on the affection of our family or good friends, too great an attachment to material comfort, a recurrent desire to feel 100 percent secure, our own ideas or prejudices regarding other persons or social classes or cultures or religions, our inner fears and anxieties, a lack of faith in God’s actions, having too strong a need to have our achievements seen and praised by others, and giving too much attention to our own self-respect and face.  This is why Jesuit formation endeavors to provide not just solid training in spiritual life towards conversion, but also a few psychological tools to help the future priest or brother to know his own personality better-his talents and limits, the inner wounds brought by early childhood, his patterns for leadership and the maintaining of relationships, his own  gree, sexual impulse, anger or blues, etc.  The more a man learns about how to cope well with his own imperfect character and psychology, the better he can serve others.

Empowering Priests and Brothers

Another important challenge of Jesuit formation is to empower future priests and brothers so that they can serve, accompany and/or train people, with enough joy, abnegation, intelligence, discernment, common sense, discretion, flexibility, humility and creativity.  Without possessing at least a few of these abilities, it will not be easy for them to pursue the main aims of the Jesuit mission: to inseparably promote faith and justice, to train men and women at the service of a more attractive Church and/or a better world, to do mission works at the frontiers i.e. where other priests usually do not go to serve, and to dialogue and cooperate with people of other cultures and/or religious faiths.  This is why even as the young Jesuit studies philosophy or theology, he is asked to serve with confreres and collaborators in different kinds of challenging works to teach him how to work as part of a team and help him become a more mature, wise and loving human being.  These works include service to the sick or to prisoners, teaching in a high school or university, social works at the service of the poor, intellectual research, preaching in front of an audience, youth training or pastoral leadership, media work, and spiritual guidance.

Last but not least, the main characteristic of Jesuit formation is the Magis Spirit.  It means to learn how to reflect and to work at a deep level, so that the result of one’s efforts in mission work can produce many good and long-term fruit. Jesuit formation insists much on the high quality of intellectual Ignatius6-224x150 Preparing Jesuits for Missionstudies, which should not only include a solid introduction to the human sciences such as philosophy, social analysis and anthropology and/or psychology, but also good training on how to reflect,write or speak on various subjects in depth, with a sharp, critical spirit in front of the sources of knowledge which man uses, and with the realization that any reality if often quite complex to understand and judge.  In this spirit, the young Jesuit is encouraged to experience at every stage of his formation various mission contexts, which will help him work effectively in today’s global and multi-cultural world.