Growing the Jesuits’ faith dimension

In a letter to members of the Society of Jesus, Superior General Fr Adolfo Nicolas SJ has urged all Jesuits in this Year of Faith to give renewed attention to the service of faith as a key element of Jesuit identity and mission. To foster a renewal of faith in the Society and animate the faith dimension of mission, Fr Nicolas has also established the Secretariat for the Service of Faith.

‘Our mission as companions of Jesus has always been the service of faith’, said Fr Nicolas. ‘Ourdeepest desire is—to use the words of Pope Benedict XVI—to help humanity “rediscover the way of faith and the joy of the encounter with Christ.” I wish to invite the whole Society to take to heart the call of the Holy Father and to seek ways of participating meaningfully and with greater personal and communal engagement in this special year for the Church.’

Fr Nicolas said it was his hope that every Jesuit would spend some time – perhaps even his annual retreat – in prayer and reflection on the meaning, implications and calls of this year.

The Year of Faith was announced by Pope Benedict in his apostolic letter Porta Fidei. He declared the period from 11October 2012 to 24 November 2013, as ‘a summons to an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord’, steering the Church into a time of reflection and rediscovery of faith.

In his own letter, Fr Nicolas reaffirmed the need for a renewal of faith, echoing the Pope’s concerns on ‘a profound crisis of faith that has affected many people’. The Society, according to Fr Nicolas, is also affected by this crisis. He alluded to concerns and challenges that emerged from Procurators’ reports and those he mentioned in his de Statu Societatis Jesu, the State of the Society of Jesus address, given on the 70th Congregation of Procurators in Nairobi, Kenya in July 2012.

One suggestion on the service of faith that came out of the meeting in Nairobi was an assessment orexamen on faith life, conducted as an individual or institution. It is hoped that these reflections will help the Society support all those in Jesuit schools, institutions and parishes to cultivate a joyful and profound relationship with Jesus in the service of the Church, and in the context of cultural and interreligious dialogue.

Fr Nicolas offered some questions in the letter to guide Jesuits in their reflection and assessment, and asked Provincials to gather the summary discussions and submit them in a year’s time. These discussions, along with those from Jesuit apostolates and institutions which will be canvassed in 2013, will help discern the future direction of the Society in regard to the faith dimension of Jesuit mission.