Young Jesuit Educator's Training at Kathmandu (6-12 Oct. 2018)

TOGETHER WE CAN BE MORE AND BETTER:-

Young Jesuits Educators meet at Godavari Ashram, Katmandu on 6-12th of October- 2018 was organized by JEASA and ICAJE in a way to encourage spirited collaboration and networking among the young Jesuits who are pursuing Education in South Asia. There were about 21 delegates from South Asian Assistancy participated in the conference. The resourcepersons were Fr. José Mesa SJ Secretary for Education, Roman Curia, Fr. Sunny Jacob SJ, JEA South Asian Secretary of Jesuit Education, Fr. Keith Abranches  SJ (Socius to POSA) and Fr. John Ravi SJ, PCE (Delhi). 

It was an unpretentious effort to elucidate the prominence of ‘Being Global and Having a Global citizenship mind set to answer all the global concerns in an Ignatianway. Welcome address by Fr. AmritRai SJ, Regional Superior, Nepal, he clearly stated that “we are for others and only because of others we Jesuits carry out our given mission”, which set the conference  to move ahead with clear precision, and as the conference got outspreaded it had some 5-crowning moments for the participants.

1. Enriching Moment: - “Who you learn from is as important as what you learn” 

The Enriching learning came from Fr. Jose Mesa SJ, who animated the seminar constantly emphasized the prerequisite to be ‘An Global Jesuit ’ to do that he asked us to be more networking, collaborating, connecting and communicating our Ignatain way with all. He went on to elucidate during the seminar is that we are all invited to have a transformed experience, by knowing the contemporary path to Jesuit education and constantly renewing it as a living tradition of the Society of Jesus.

In a way to do that Fr. Mesa quantifiedand enumerated the phase and sequence of educational colloquium starting from the time Our Founder Father Ignatius with First companions to till the contemporary education symposiums , He indicated that the first Phase from the ‘The Ratio Studiorum’ (The Plan, System and method of studies) 1599, the First  document on education which focused on the ‘Student Oriented Approach’, and then as a Second phase the Secretariat for education (1967) called for a ‘Renewal of Education’, As a Third Phase Fr. Arrupe(1973),  interposition on education ‘for men and women for the others’, and as the fourth phase ICAJE (1980)which called for ‘a precision and excellence in our approach to Jesuit Education’ ,the Fifth phase emphasized ‘the Characteristics of Jesuit education’ (1986), which always blend with the true Ignatian Charisma and the Seventh Phase was the ‘Ignatian Pedagogical paradigm’IPP(1993) wherein Fr. Kolvenbach detailed the importance of being ‘the men and women for and with others’ by consolidating the inkling of Fr. Arrupe’s and added the 4Cs, to build a Humane Society  of  Men and Women of ‘ Conscience, Competence, Compassion and Commitment’.The Eighth Phase has got a 3-Cycle Programme which was born in a way to discover our ‘Apostolic legacy Apostolic Potential and Apostolic Aggressiveness’, in that as first Cycle was the International Colloquium for Jesuit Secondary Education (ICJSE) in Boston, Massachusetts - USA (2012), where they confessed ‘ the requisite and desire to build a global network among Jesuit schools’. The Second Cycle is SIPEI (2014) Manresa, Spain where they‘deliberated on the renewal of the pedagogy’, and Educate Magis (2015) was a result of it, it was a great venture to communicate and connect everyone by technology, The Third Cycle is JESEDU -Rio2017, the colloquium decide ‘to work together to endorse constant renewal and innovation in our educational projects’. And the as the Fourth Cycle II- JESEDU (2020) at Indonesia which is envisioned to consolidate all the above three cycles.

Fr. Jose Mesa SJ after presenting the historicand heroic preview on Jesuit Education and Global context he went on to urge us to create a new- pioneering approach in our education methods, he went on to say that “our institutionsshould not be a museum or a heritage buildings, and it is not a Poor School for Poor People or An Old School in New Buildings, but he invited us to repetitively renew – recreate –reshape with Ignatian Values and Characters. And unassumingly suggested us to face the contextual challenges with HOLY BOLDNESS by connecting oneself as a Global citizen.

2. Enabling Moment: - “Problem can come from anywhere but we bring the solution”

Frs. Keith Abranches SJ, who presented the South Asian perspective by posing the Context and challenges and also lead us with a recollection. He principally stressed to say that the Context where we live is mostly lop-sided with unpredictable events.The challenges and concern of today iscoming from both within the system and the context out, he asked us to go to the roots, to answer the challenges by saying that ‘If You have a Why, You will find a how ’.

3. Empowering Moment: -‘The Questions can deepen us but the answers can expand us”

Fr. John Ravi SJ, presentations were very intensifying and disquieting. He gave us a glimpse on Jesuit education and its characters, by presenting the (PEACE) Political- Ethical And cultural- Economical Socio –context in the avaricious world. He gave us the questions of today’s world in the field of education to deepen ourselves and the answers to expand our wisdom. He made us to feel precisely we are all inadequate, underperformers and the insufficient in our Jesuit educational institutions, in a way to strengthen ourselves and the institutions he proposed a paradigm shift for the Jesuit educators to be animators, seekers and efficacious.  He also asked to propose ways and means to inculcate the Jesuit values and principles among the staff and students, and also asked to become an inspiration to achieve the goals and objectives of Jesuit education.

Fr. Vernon D’cuna SJ, General Assistant to Rome Curia for SA, also fired his seven ammos to challenge us so that we could embrace the true Ignatian spirit, he invited us to be contributors, transformers, inspirers, collaborators, networkers, co-travelers and spiritual in the field of educations.

4. Encouraging Moment: -“Impossible can become possible and the Improbable can become probable if it is the will of the Lord”

Fr. Sunny Jacob SJ, JEA secretary of South Asia made us to profoundly reflect and balance oneself to connect, network and communicate with the people of good will, asking us to find the sole purpose of educational institutions. He also presented the great work which has been done in the south Asian context, he was very satisfied to know the mandatory given by the society is being carried out in some Provinces namely, The imparting of the Ignatain Legacy on ‘THE EXAMEN’, in our schools and the urgency to have the cosmic reconciliations to heal the broken world, and the need to be always working as a TEAM (Together Everyone can Achieve More). He was always encouraging us to march forward with hope and gratitude trusting in the Lord.

5. Enacting Moment: -“The Problem with Jesuits is not what they don’t know, it is all about what they don’t do”.

The Action Plan was made to continue the legacy of this experience.  There were 4-Action pans were made with its when and How? The first one was to start or strengthen “THE EXAMEN” in our schools, The Second one was to from and consolidate the “THE ALUMNI” in our educational zones, the third was to impart the “THE IGNATIAN LEGACY’ to all our collaborators by sharing the spirituality that underpins our Schools. Fourthly to build a global perspective by “NETWORKING” by registering in to the Jesuit website, that is educate Magis. All these are planned and will be executed on a time bound manner.

As a Group of Young Jesuits Educators we vouch to carry a deep felt gratitude to Almighty Father and to the Society of Jesus in the form of ICAJE AND JEASA for giving us this opportunity, and very special thanks to our Provinces who trusted in their men. And we will surely continue to carry forward this transforming experience by becoming the witness of excellence, by imbibing and imparting  the Ignatian legacy and by reading the contextual need to renew-reinvent- renovate- reimagineand reshape of educational system by keeping all the nuances of Igantain legacy.

6. Educate Magis; a platform for us to be truely global

  We had a very fruitful and enriching interaction with Educate Magis, Ciara was online with us explaining us all the recent initiatives by the Global network and the possibilities for us to be part of the global network. She explained us all the features of the network and clarified the questions raised by the participants. We decided to be part of it by contributing the web site and also connecting our class rooms globally. Thank you Ciara for the wonderful online session with us. 

For JEASA

Fr. Ananad SJ (GUJ)

12 October 2018

Go to Gallery for more photos of the Training programme.