Bread is often the basic element of any meal. Fr. Joseph Dickan, SJ, reflects on how when Jesus says he is the “bread of life,” he is reminding us that he is the fundamental necessity of our lives.
Real Presence: The Ministry of a Sports Chaplain
As he concludes his regency mission at Loyola High School of Detroit, Eddie Wesonga, SJ, reflects on his ministry as a sports chaplain and the ways it invited him into authentic encounter and a deeper relationship with his students.
Inside Jesuit Life at Bellarmine House of Studies
What is life like for a Jesuit during First Studies? Chris Kinkor, SJ, offers an inside view of life for a Jesuit scholastic at Bellarmine House of Studies at Saint Louis University and reflects on the ways God has been at work in this period of his formation.
A Meditation with a Contemporary Our Lady of Sorrows
Using the aesthetics of pop art, Nick Leeper guides a meditation, asking us to gaze at Our Lady of Sorrows with new eyes.
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?
Racism and Colorblindness | Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat
Race is a social construct originally framed to create hard boundaries that could not be crossed by people of different skin color and for the purpose of segregation. Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) are still discriminated against and abused because of the color of their skin. Although race as a social construct was abusively imposed as a biological determinant of skin color, our society must not fall into the tarp of colorblindness as it prevents one from seeing the suffering of “BIPOC” members. Armel Setubi asks us to imagine a society without race, while warning us about the common mistake of thinking that colorblindness is the solution to racism. Inspired by St. Ignatius, Armel asks us to ponder God’s call to be anti-racist with three important questions: what have we done to fight the sin of racism, what are we doing now, and what will we do in the future.
Mundane Racism | Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat
Racism is not just violence and big displays of oppression. It manifests in everyday situations and in the mundanity of our lives. Jorge Roque shares some instances where the idea of white superiority affects how white people are racist toward minorities in a covert and harming way. Deciding to work against these harming habits require conversion. Jorge asks to allow ourselves to be scandalized and to pray with Jesus’s lament over Jerusalem.
When COVID Cancelled My Plans, God Showed Up in A Scarf
On a bitterly cold Thursday night in February of 2019, I was sitting on the ground hanging out with a group of folks experiencing homelessness down by the Chicago Art Institute. I spent most Thursdays this way, as chaplain to the student-run Labre Homeless ministry. Despite the bitter cold, we laughed a lot. After a particularly icy burst of wind rushed through, one of the men, named Wiz, looked at me and said “Gimme a scarf.” Jake Braithwaite, SJ, offers us a compelling parable about death and resurrection.
