Jesuit Regent reflects upon his mission to Jesuit Social Research Institute and prison education

St. Ignatius was never too afraid or too proud to do something new. When the Inquisition asked him to study theology or stop preaching, he went back to class and learned among children. When a cannonball shattered his leg and his dreams of courtly prestige, he went on pilgrimage to seek God’s will for his life, limp and all. Most incredibly, toward the end of his life, when the Society of Jesus had grown to over 1,000 members, and after decades of work and struggle faithful to God’s call for him, Ignatius said he would need just fifteen minutes of prayer to pick himself up and move on if the whole project came tumbling down.

Starting my regency at the Jesuit Social Research Institute (JSRI) at Loyola University New Orleans has been an experience of something new and full of possibility. As a Jesuit in formation, after professing my religious vows and some years of initial studies in philosophy and humanities, I received a mission to work for a few years full-time in the apostolate (the period called “regency”). This time is intended for me to integrate myself into the works the Society of Jesus is involved in, contribute meaningfully to them, and be formed by them and by my community. The hope is that at the end of this time, I will have some concrete experience confirming that living and serving as a Jesuit is the “right fit” for me, for the Society of Jesus, for the Church and for the world.

I am happy and honored to be spending this period of my formation supporting the work of JSRI. This semester, that means co-teaching a course for first-year students on the history and complexities of mass incarceration in our country, and offering classes and conversation for English language learners at a parish through our Café con Inglés program. In the future, this will also mean teaching ethics and philosophy courses to Loyola students both on our main campus and in Rayburn, the men’s correctional facility hosting Loyola’s prison education program. But there was a time when each of these particular commitments was uncertain, and so I anticipate even these might grow or change.

Whatever becomes of them, I want to keep making myself available for “something new”, because the work of JSRI and its prison education program are such a clear outgrowth of our commitment to Catholic social teaching and the Jesuit mission: in each of our incarcerated siblings, we see the face of Christ, poor and humble and we see the profound dignity with which God has endowed every human person. I have seen this already in the men who are our students at Rayburn, whose personality and commitment to their study challenge the stereotypes and difficult conditions they face as incarcerated people. We stand with them in solidarity and care for their well-being and right to participate in society.

These students, along with my colleagues at JSRI, my Jesuit community, and the people I meet at Loyola and in New Orleans, are the people who will shape and test my vocation during this period of my formation. Who better to do it? I look forward to what I will learn from them and how I will be changed. Let the adventure begin!

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