PRIESTS & BROTHERS
Jesuit Vocation – Priest & Brother
Jerónimo Nadal
was an early companion of Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits. It was he who suggested that men in that new religious body, under vows of poverty, chastity and a special vow of obedience to the Pope, as head of the Church, were ‘contemplatives in action’, men steeped in prayer but always ready to be missioned anywhere, especially amongst the more marginalised.
The source of their prayer life was, and still is, the ‘Spiritual Exercises’ drawn up in the process of Ignatius’ conversion from of life of vanity to one following the person who had become the centre of his life, Jesus Christ. Jesuits were also men who were to be educated in theology and fully prepared for service of the Word, though ones who were to avoid prestigious office, such as that of bishop. This band of companions in the Lord grew very quickly. Jesuits were called for many apostolates across the world, from India and Japan to South America and all places in between.
There was also much demand for help with good education for youth in home countries. The demand necessitated Ignatius working with many lay people, some of whom entered the Society as religious brothers under vows. Their particular calling did not include ordination as priests, different from the first companions. This development was formally approved in 1550, ten years after the Society’s initial foundation.
Many years later in 1977, Pedro Arrupe, the inspirational leader of the Jesuits, post Vatican II, wrote after the martyrdom of the Jesuit Rutilio Grande in El Salvador,
‘To be able to carry out this vocation of ours the Society today must count on men and on communities imbued with the “mind of Christ,” who serve Christ without limit or reservation, who joyfully live lives of evangelical simplicity and continuing self-sacrifice, thus offering to modern man an ideal for living and to the generous youth of our day a model and way of life. This is the real secret of success in our mission in the Church." (Read the full document.)
From St Nicolas Owen, the English Jesuit brother who built hiding holes for priests in the times in the sixteenth century to Bl Rutilio Grande, mentioned above, Jesuits have been inspired to the radicality that the Jesuit vocation calls for.
This ability of a person to offer himself totally in the service of the Lord only comes after a long period of formation, both spiritual and intellectual, that is necessary for a maturity that comes with dedicated perseverance. The training of a Jesuit is needed for him to adapt to the rigours of whatever ministry he is to immerse himself in, as well as giving him a resilience to live a radical lifestyle in the different cultures around the globe.
Jesuits to be ordained to the priesthood have to do all the necessary studies for that important function.
Jesuit brothers are helped to prepare for assisting the whole body of the Society to remain active and united. That may even involve high profile roles such as Director of the Jesuit Refugee Service (Michael Schopf) or Head of the Vatican Observatory (Guy Consolmagno) or it could involve work as a teacher or as an administrator, oiling the works of the Society’s worldwide mission.
Jesuit Vocation – Priest & Brother
Jerónimo Nadal was an early companion of Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits. It was he who suggested that men in that new religious body, under vows of poverty, chastity and a special vow of obedience to the Pope, as head of the Church, were ‘contemplatives in action’, men steeped in prayer but always ready to be missioned anywhere, especially amongst the more marginalised.
The source of their prayer life was, and still is, the ‘Spiritual Exercises’ drawn up in the process of Ignatius’ conversion from of life of vanity to one following the person who had become the centre of his life, Jesus Christ. Jesuits were also men who were to be educated in theology and fully prepared for service of the Word, though ones who were to avoid prestigious office, such as that of bishop. This band of companions in the Lord grew very quickly. Jesuits were called for many apostolates across the world, from India and Japan to South America and all places in between.
There was also much demand for help with good education for youth in home countries. The demand necessitated Ignatius working with many lay people, some of whom entered the Society as religious brothers under vows. Their particular calling did not include ordination as priests, different from the first companions. This development was formally approved in 1550, ten years after the Society’s initial foundation.
Years later in 1977, Pedro Arrupe, the inspirational leader of the Jesuits, post Vatican II, wrote after the martyrdom of the Jesuit Rutilio Grande in El Salvador,
‘To be able to carry out this vocation of ours the Society today must count on men and on communities imbued with the “mind of Christ,” who serve Christ without limit or reservation, who joyfully live lives of evangelical simplicity and continuing self-sacrifice, thus offering to modern man an ideal for living and to the generous youth of our day a model and way of life. This is the real secret of success in our mission in the Church." (Read the full document.)
From St Nicolas Owen, the English Jesuit brother who built hiding holes for priests in the times in the sixteenth century to Bl Rutilio Grande, mentioned above, Jesuits have been inspired to the radicality that the Jesuit vocation calls for.
This ability of a person to offer himself totally in the service of the Lord only comes after a long period of formation, both spiritual and intellectual, that is necessary for a maturity that comes with dedicated perseverance. The training of a Jesuit is needed for him to adapt to the rigours of whatever ministry he is to immerse himself in, as well as giving him a resilience to live a radical lifestyle in the different cultures around the globe.
Jesuits to be ordained to the priesthood have to do all the necessary studies for that important function.
Jesuit brothers are helped to prepare for assisting the whole body of the Society to remain active and united. That may even involve high profile roles such as Director of the Jesuit Refugee Service (Michael Schopf) or Head of the Vatican Observatory (Guy Consolmagno) or it could involve work as a teacher or as an administrator, oiling the works of the Society’s worldwide mission.
Vocation Stories
My Vocation as a Jesuit Brother
Br Stephen Power SJ
Looking back, it is a bit mysterious how one is called to certain commitments in life and it seems to get more mysterious with age!
I would certainly credit my parents for the chance of a family background and education that was imbued with Christian teaching and practice. Knowledge of the Bible stories stayed in my mind from early on.
It was only later after a time at university that I had the strong need for a process of healing and reconciliation, which through the influence of others became much more apparent to me in the Catholic Church. An awareness of Christ alive today eventually broke through a stubbornness to be more aware of his immediate presence and availability in the Church.
The calling to a life more closely following the Lord also involved a concern for social justice, beautifully expressed at the Second Vatican Council in its document, ‘Gaudium et Spes’. Having been involved in the anti-apartheid movement at university, this Church teaching was a firmer foundation from an ethical point of view. After further study at LSE, the attraction of Catholic Social teaching came into view by dint of a Jesuit’s course on such at Mount Street, advertised in my local parish. That was the time when I also came across details on the life and work of Fr. Pedro Arrupe, then Head of the Jesuits; his time in Japan, including in Hiroshima, and his reflections on the work of Jesuits around the world, following their newly defined mission as ‘the Service of Faith and the Promotion of Justice’.
A sense of gratitude for the healing work of the Church’s pastoral ministry encouraged me to consider religious life, a way of offering service through that vocation. While respecting the vocation also to priesthood, in prayer and after reflection, I did not feel that this was part of my vocation. However, the apostolates of the Society of Jesus, as highlighted by Fr. Arrupe were very relevant to a way in which I could offer service. The whole body of the Society is involved in priestly work, in the sense that Jesuits understand it, even if not all Jesuits are priests or studying to be such. The choice of such a vocation, as priest or brother, is tested in the noviciate and especially during the long retreat and in annual retreats every year since. In such times of prayer, I have never been led to question my call and choice as a brother several decades later. My mission as a Jesuit have taken me to many other parts of the world with Jesuit Refugee Service, as well as working here at home as the province treasurer. How I arrived at where I am today is somewhat mysterious, but I am most grateful for the calling!
My Vocation as a Jesuit Brother
Br Stephen Power SJ
Looking back, it is a bit mysterious how one is called to certain commitments in life and it seems to get more mysterious with age!
I would certainly credit my parents for the chance of a family background and education that was imbued with Christian teaching and practice. Knowledge of the Bible stories stayed in my mind from early on.
It was only later after a time at university that I had the strong need for a process of healing and reconciliation, which through the influence of others became much more apparent to me in the Catholic Church. An awareness of Christ alive today eventually broke through a stubbornness to be more aware of his immediate presence and availability in the Church.
The calling to a life more closely following the Lord also involved a concern for social justice, beautifully expressed at the Second Vatican Council in its document, ‘Gaudium et Spes’. Having been involved in the anti-apartheid movement at university, this Church teaching was a firmer foundation from an ethical point of view. After further study at LSE, the attraction of Catholic Social teaching came into view by dint of a Jesuit’s course on such at Mount Street, advertised in my local parish. That was the time when I also came across details on the life and work of Fr. Pedro Arrupe, then Head of the Jesuits; his time in Japan, including in Hiroshima, and his reflections on the work of Jesuits around the world, following their newly defined mission as ‘the Service of Faith and the Promotion of Justice’.
A sense of gratitude for the healing work of the Church’s pastoral ministry encouraged me to consider religious life, a way of offering service through that vocation. While respecting the vocation also to priesthood, in prayer and after reflection, I did not feel that this was part of my vocation. However, the apostolates of the Society of Jesus, as highlighted by Fr. Arrupe were very relevant to a way in which I could offer service. The whole body of the Society is involved in priestly work, in the sense that Jesuits understand it, even if not all Jesuits are priests or studying to be such. The choice of such a vocation, as priest or brother, is tested in the noviciate and especially during the long retreat and in annual retreats every year since. In such times of prayer, I have never been led to question my call and choice as a brother several decades later. My mission as a Jesuit have taken me to many other parts of the world with Jesuit Refugee Service, as well as working here at home as the province treasurer. How I arrived at where I am today is somewhat mysterious, but I am most grateful for the calling!
My Vocation as a Jesuit Priest
Fr Dushan Croos SJ
The Jesuits I first encountered in books worked in seemingly neglected fields of the Church’s life. From the twentieth century, they were the French Jesuit palaeontologist, Teilhard de Chardin who also reflected on how his scientific understanding was woven into his faith and his experience of God; Cardinal Augustin Bea, who helped Pope John XXIII develop the Church’s ecumenical dialogue to renew our friendship with Christians separated from the Catholic Church; Rutilio Grande, martyred by the rich families and the military in San Salvador because he was an advocate for the rights of the poor among whom he ministered the sacraments and who was instrumental in the conversion of Archbishop Oscar Romero. Before them in the 17th and 18th century, the Jesuits in the Paraguay Reductions protected the indigenous Guarani from the greed and tyranny of the Spanish and Portuguese Colonists. They all showed me that our witness to our faith must be engaged with the needs of the world because God himself had done that when He became human among us. They also showed that one cannot live or witness to Christ on one’s own – it is only possible in communion with others. My Jesuit life shows me that likewise, I can try to live the Gospel only in community and with the support of my brother Jesuits and I can minister as a priest only through the prayers and work of many lay people who also work in the Lord’s vineyard.
The first live Jesuits I met, outside the captivity of books or films, were Chaplains to the University of Manchester. They spoke about God not as “an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person” Jesus Christ, as Pope Benedict would put it twenty years later. They spoke about God as a friend they knew intimately. I learned from them a way of praying which introduced me directly to that deep personal encounter with the Lord, not just telling me that I ought to pray. Although one Jesuit is very different from another (we say that where there are three Jesuits, there will be four or five opinions), and Jesuits more readily identify ourselves as “redeemed sinners” than as plaster saints, all the Jesuits I know have a deep trust that God is at work in the lives of all, usually in hidden and unexpected ways, revealing God’s sense of humour.
When I first heard of St Ignatius of Loyola, at the end of Sunday evening Mass in Manchester’s Holy Name Church, what inspired me was that despite the manifest and admitted vanity of Inigo de Loyola, God had been able to straighten out not just his leg, but his whole person so that Ignatius lived “for the Greater Glory of God and the salvation of the world”: presumably God could do the same for me. My life has turned almost a full circle and I hope that I can hand on something of that deep personal encounter with the Lord’s mercy and friendship.
I am immensely grateful that God did not leave me to follow my superficial desires, which were fairly good and normal, and instead drew me against my superficial desires to serve him and follow him in the Society of Jesus. It reflects my experience of Jesuit obedience through which I have found deep joy in missions which I would not have chosen for myself.
My Vocation as a Jesuit Priest
Fr Dushan Croos SJ
The Jesuits I first encountered in books worked in seemingly neglected fields of the Church’s life. From the twentieth century, they were the French Jesuit palaeontologist, Teilhard de Chardin who also reflected on how his scientific understanding was woven into his faith and his experience of God; Cardinal Augustin Bea, who helped Pope John XXIII develop the Church’s ecumenical dialogue to renew our friendship with Christians separated from the Catholic Church; Rutilio Grande, martyred by the rich families and the military in San Salvador because he was an advocate for the rights of the poor among whom he ministered the sacraments and who was instrumental in the conversion of Archbishop Oscar Romero. Before them in the 17th and 18th century, the Jesuits in the Paraguay Reductions protected the indigenous Guarani from the greed and tyranny of the Spanish and Portuguese Colonists. They all showed me that our witness to our faith must be engaged with the needs of the world because God himself had done that when He became human among us. They also showed that one cannot live or witness to Christ on one’s own – it is only possible in communion with others. My Jesuit life shows me that likewise, I can try to live the Gospel only in community and with the support of my brother Jesuits and I can minister as a priest only through the prayers and work of many lay people who also work in the Lord’s vineyard.
The first live Jesuits I met, outside the captivity of books or films, were Chaplains to the University of Manchester. They spoke about God not as “an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person” Jesus Christ, as Pope Benedict would put it twenty years later. They spoke about God as a friend they knew intimately. I learned from them a way of praying which introduced me directly to that deep personal encounter with the Lord, not just telling me that I ought to pray. Although one Jesuit is very different from another (we say that where there are three Jesuits, there will be four or five opinions), and Jesuits more readily identify ourselves as “redeemed sinners” than as plaster saints, all the Jesuits I know have a deep trust that God is at work in the lives of all, usually in hidden and unexpected ways, revealing God’s sense of humour.
When I first heard of St Ignatius of Loyola, at the end of Sunday evening Mass in Manchester’s Holy Name Church, what inspired me was that despite the manifest and admitted vanity of Inigo de Loyola, God had been able to straighten out not just his leg, but his whole person so that Ignatius lived “for the Greater Glory of God and the salvation of the world”: presumably God could do the same for me. My life has turned almost a full circle and I hope that I can hand on something of that deep personal encounter with the Lord’s mercy and friendship.
I am immensely grateful that God did not leave me to follow my superficial desires, which were fairly good and normal, and instead drew me against my superficial desires to serve him and follow him in the Society of Jesus. It reflects my experience of Jesuit obedience through which I have found deep joy in missions which I would not have chosen for myself.