Jesus wants us to love him first and foremost. What about other people in our lives? William Manaker, SJ, reminds us that putting Jesus first helps us to love others better.
Being Creative Enough: Lessons from a Mexican Jesuit Parish on Vibrant Youth Ministry
In today’s environment, cultivating a vibrant youth ministry can feel like an uphill battle. Beto Guzmán, SJ shares insights from his work at a Mexican Jesuit parish, offering creative, hope-filled ways to make the Church a home for young people.
Sitting Down with My Dad to Talk About Synodality: Part Two
What is at the heart of the Synod on Synodality? Dan Finucane, SJ, sits down with his father, theologian Dr. Dan Finucane, to discuss Dan SJ’s experience at the Synod on Synodality.
Sitting Down with My Dad to Talk About Synodality: Part One
What is at the heart of the Synod on Synodality? Dan Finucane, SJ, sits down with his father, theologian Dr. Dan Finucane, to discuss Dan SJ’s experience at the Synod on Synodality.
Lament Must Precede Solidarity | Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat
Some realities in life can only be known through tears. The participation of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) members in antiracism is not a hobby or an optional venture: it’s a matter of survival.They do not have the luxury that White people have to retire from the conversation of racism and flee from its painful realities. Matt Briand, SJ, invites us to put aside our fear to weep with those who weep because of racism, for true Christian love suffers along the beloved, and commits to justice.
Sometimes I Wonder, What If the Bread Changes but We Don’t?
It happened when I served as a Eucharistic minister at a large suburban hospital over five years ago. When I walked into his room, he looked like anybody’s grandpa. I can still see him lying there: a 90-some-year-old man with smallish frame nestled into the middle of the recliner bed, a tuft of white hair atop a wrinkled but happy-go-lucky face, the flimsy-knit, standard issue hospital blanket pulled up just under his chin. Read as Christopher Alt, S.J. reflects on the Eucharist and our everyday life.
Bear Witness to Suffering | Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat
Feeling grief for the suffering of others is one of the first steps toward a commitment to serve them. It helps us to have a greater sense of urgency for justice, as well as a deeper understanding of what is at stake. When we accompany those who suffer from racism in their mourning, we walk with our neighbors and bear witness to our Christian vocation. River Simpson, SJ, introduces us to the third week of our “Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat,” and invites us to remain faithfully present to the agonizing Jesus, through our accompaniment of the victims of racism.
Humility and Anti-Racism | Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat
Humility plays a vital role in anti-racism work. Intellectual and moral humility allows individuals to admit complicity in a culture of racism and commit themselves to the ongoing struggle of anti-racism. By looking at the Call of Simon Peter, contemplating the story of Martha and Mary, and meditating on what it means to be “childlike,” Sullivan McCormick invites us to reflect on where in our lives we might need more humility as anti-racists.
Accountability and the Oppressed Jesus | Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat
When I speak about racism, am I generally more worried about how white people will feel, react, or think of me than I am about how people of color will? Does my Church, my workplace, my classroom consider mainly the sensitives, comfort and concerns of white people? Billy Critchley-Menor points the anti-racism conversation in the right direction when he explains that it is about white people being held accountable to People of Color. White supremacy has shaped society around the accountability of white people. Anti-racism refocuses our attention so we are held accountable by the oppressed in our society; those in whom Jesus lives according to the Gospels.
Solidarity and Anti-Racism | Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat
Although solidarity is one of the values of Catholic Social Teaching, it is easily forgotten that it is not just a feeling of sympathy with those who suffer. Solidarity is a constant effort to create a society centered on equity and justice. Kevin Kuehl gives us four characteristics of true solidarity and asks us to consider with whom do we practice solidarity in our following of Jesus: with those who are fighting for justice or with those who are perpetuating oppression?