Coming to Terms with the Mission: The Catholic and Jesuit University in America
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COMING TO TERMS WITH THE MISSION:
ձᷡ䴡ձ᰿AND UNIVERSITY IN AMERICA
A STUDY IN JESUIT EDUCATION
JOHN J. CALLAHAN, S.J.
This monograph is based on an address originally given October 4, 1996,at the Fall Faculty Conference atRegisUniversity, Denver, Colorado. Part II on the nature of the Catholic university hasbeen considerablyaugmented to incorporate a more complete presentation of Ex corde ecclesiae.
© Copyright 1998, 2002
John J. Callahan, S.J.
PART I: THE AMERICAN CATHOLIC, JESUIT UNIVERSITY
Coming to Terms with the Mission
Weall knowthat to havean intelligentconversation, indeedto haveany kindof rational communication at all, weneedsymbols or words andsomeagreement onwhat they mean. This is especially importantwhen defining or “coming to terms” with themission of an institution.
For example,if asked what theterms Catholic and Jesuit mean in the context of acollege or university, therewouldprobablybe as many definitions of each of these words as therewerepeopleasked. What is evenmoreproblematicis that thesewords oftenbring about emotional responses as well as intellectual ones. Responses can also arisefrom different perspectives:“What do I
feel?”or “What is the correct answer?”or “What is my experience?”
Anotherway of “comingto terms,”besides thedefinitional one,is thequestion “Sowhat?” or “What do these terms mean for meand what I do?”
There are many ways we in Jesuit educationmight formulate our “So what?” questions:
- How does the mission affect the attitudes we bring to our work?
- Is the mission part of what explains whatis best in our corporate culture?
- What arethekey characteristics of CatholicandJesuit education andhoware they incorporated into our curricula?
- Howdoes academic freedom mesh withthe mission of Catholic education?
- What is the role of the reduced numberof Jesuits in an institution which is “Jesuit” yet independent of the Society of Jesus?
- What is the roleof the Catholic and thenon-Catholic, the Christian and the non-Christian, in furtheringCatholicandJesuit education?
Thesequestions raiseissues of institutionalidentity as well as of personal integrity. Howthey aredealt with, personally andinstitutionally, will determine whether or notCatholic, Jesuit colleges and universities willcontinueto sustain andfostertheir distinctive character.
Speakingof terms, notethat Catholic andJesuit areadjectivesthat distinguish thenoun university. Though themeaningof university may be shaded by its adjectives, auniversity does not cease to be what it is:alearningcommunity—a placefor ideas (old and new), aplace for the search, discovery, preservationandcommunication of what is includedin theclassiccategories of “TheOne,”“The True,”“The Good”and“TheBeautiful”(WeAmericans might add “TheWorkable.”).So thequestion is whatcoloration the adjectives Catholic and Jesuit add to the learning community we know as acollege or university.
Beforemovingon, however, anotheradjectivemust beincluded.What does theadjective American addto themeaningof the Catholic and Jesuit university?
Defining the Evolving
The Catholic, Jesuit university in the U.S. today is deeply embedded in Americanculture. This inculturation (a term often usedin Catholic Church documents) is not to bedecried. Rather, it is to be celebrated. In fact,itis precisely becausetheCatholic, Jesuituniversity is part of American culture that itcan speak tothat culture. It is in this waythat Catholichighereducation fulfills its particular mission of being a beacon of faithandreligious andethical values in aneducational community which is predominantly secular.
Theappraisal of American culturethat may arise from an American Catholic, Jesuituniversity has credibility andan influence on thelarger society fargreaterthan if theuniversity were somehow seen to be vaguelyun-university-like, or un-American.
Thesupposition, of course,is that themission of a Catholic, Jesuit university is tohave apositive influence onthegreater American societyas wellas to supportand enhance Catholic culture.
This was not always thecase.Historically, Catholiccolleges anduniversities werefoundedin theU.S. as adefensivestrategy — topreserveandtransmit theCatholicfaith amongan immigrant faithfulwho wereoften discriminatedagainstbecauseof their faith. American histories often forget the burning of Catholic churches and convents in the nineteenth century or thefact that the Ku Klux Klan hadas one of its aims the preservation of “a white, Christian, Protestant America.”Neitherdo peopleremembertoday that prayers in thepublicschools of thosedays wouldrefertoCatholics in general andthePopeinparticularas the“anti-Christ.”Nowadays such references are left to the intolerance of only the noisiestof tent andtelevisionpreachers.
Overtheyears themission of Catholicuniversities underwent asubtlechange.As Catholicimmigrants andtheir progenybecame more educated (and less threateningto the establishments of the day) and more apart of American society, they andtheir schools began to contribute to the Americansceneratherthan just defendthemselves from its real and perceived evils.
At theendof WorldWarII, theGIBillbrought ahugeinflux of both Catholicandnon-Catholicstudents into Catholicuniversities. There followed moreand morelay faculty andthen faculty who werenotCatholic. Mandatory religious practices were gradually dropped. Academic quality becamea major goal as well as “sound teaching” inthe faith. Academic credentials, not religious belief, became determinative in hiring faculty. By thetime theU.S. electedaCatholicpresident in 1960, Catholics feltacceptedby American society andthus became much less defensive.
Almost at the same time, Catholic universities were buffeted by the cultural upheaval of thesixties, the civil rights movement, the Cubanmissilecrisis, theVietnamesewar, VaticanCouncil II, political assassinations, thelandingon themoon, andWatergate.Andthen there are the events of the last 25 years!
As aresult of all thesetraumaticevents, neitherAmerican culturenor theCatholicChurch, neither Catholic universities nor theJesuits, arethesameas they werein the1950s or even the1970s. This means thattoday, while thetradition is very much alive,theterm Catholic, Jesuituniversity simply does notmean the same as it once did.
If oneshouldwish to defineCatholiccolleges anduniversities in terms of what such schools lookedlikein the1950s, there would be but a handful of “real”Catholiccolleges anduniversities in theU.S. today — andnoneof them would be Jesuit.
On theotherhand, if onedefines Catholiccolleges and universities in terms no differentfrom thoseusedtoday by strictly secularinstitutions, in what sensewould thetermCatholic beanythingbut a misleadinglabelor, at best, only a reverential nod to the past?
It is incumbent upon Catholicinstitutions andtheir academiccommunities to respondto these definitional concerns, for unless theydo, others outside the experience of today’s American Catholicuniversity will define theterms, determinetheissuesandset theagenda.
What the American Universityis Not
To a great extent the various ways we thinkand act come out of our culture. In fact, wedo not see theworldin the sameway as aRussian or an Australian. Even in the U.S., our cultural images shift, themovefromseeingourselves as a“meltingpot”toviewing ourselves as a“stew” with manydifferent textures andflavors is but oneexample. It shouldnot beasurpriseto us that in theU.S. beingauniversitymeans to beand to actaccording to certainexpectations. To fail to meet theseexpectations means losingcredibility as auniversity.
To thepoint, acollege does not act as agrade school or high school. Neither does acollege considerits students as children. Rather, students areadults, free and, it is hoped, responsible.Neither (in Americansociety) does auniversity act as apoliticalparty or as adirect agent of social change,though it may influence political and socialactivities and movements.
Neither does a college or university act as aseminary. Although many of the same things may go on in a seminary as in a university, aseminary has entirely different purposes andgoals — the education and ministerial trainingof individuals accordingto agiven creedalbelief andtradition. Onepurposeof aseminary, for example,is to maintaindoctrinal orthodoxy overtime.A keypurpose of a university, on the other hand, is to search for and test new knowledge. Eventhough auniversity may have“seminaryclasses,”an understandingof thedistinctionbetween seminary and university needs to beclear. They differas to purpose,methods, evidentiary criteria,andwhat is consideredappropriateacademicdiscourse.For example, arguments basedon authority or tradition tendto carry great weight in thecontext of a seminary but much less so in auniversity.
One of the causes of tension between churchandacademeoverthecenturies in manydifferent cultures is theconfusion that arises when (a) one sees the university (or its cultural equivalent) as aplaceto teach thetruth to the young rather than as a place for adults to search for the truth or (b) when onesees theuniversity as aplace to teachministers, priests, rabbisor mullahs orthodox doctrine and practice rather than as aplacefor all (“cleric” and“lay”alike)topursueandtest all ideas, secularandreligious, in the search for the new and for agreaterinsight into andappreciation of the old.
What the American University Is
If American culture has certain expectations as to what auniversity is not, it also has expectations that theuniversity will reflectwhat is considered best in the culture.
Fr. Joseph Tetlowhas outlined certainaspects of American culturethat haveadirect bearingon any definition of an “American university:”
TheU.S. is adiverse,pluralisticsociety and proud of it. It is dedicated to thedemocraticprocess. It prides itself on its efficiency and on its business practices.
Themost educatedreligious believers thattheworldhas ever known — laity as well as clergy — exist in theU.S. Despiteits many faults, America fusses overmorality, moral issuesandrights. It is acountry genuinely concerned that it does theright thing and not just the expedient thing.
TheU.S. is aplacewheresignificant space (compared to other nations) is given to religious issues in the intellectual lifeof theculture. Whilethegovernment is officially neutral concerning religion, most of the population is not. America is also a placewherereligion has learned “best practices”from disciplines such as psychology and thesocial sciences.
The U.S. is where men andwomen of faith — of whateverbeliefsystem — live togetherand work together oncommon projects. It is aplacewherereligious toleration has developedintoreligious respect.
In America, authority is always questioned,neverautomatically accepted.It is aplacewherereligious leaders arelookedto for leadership, not for command. It is aplacewhere individual conscience is held supreme,even at times to thedetriment of thecommon good. The U.S.is a placewhere, culturally, truth is sought and testedand not imposed. It is a place where force of any kindagainst an individual is limited,controlled, monitoredand suspect.
And, as “American universities,”Catholic,Jesuit colleges anduniversities reflect theseaspects of theculture.It is part of what itmeans to be a university in the U.S. today.
In summary, we can list fivecharacteristics of the Catholic, Jesuit university that arisebecause it is American:
The Catholic, Jesuit university in the UnitedStates
- reflects thepluralism of Americansociety — open to all, not pervasivelysectarian
- serves thegeneral publicas well as theChurch
- values freedom of religion andreligious practice on the part of faculty, staffandstudents
- prides itself on the cultural, racial, ethnic,politicalandreligious diversity of its members andsees men andwomen as equal partners in the educationalendeavor
- operates collegially rather than on anauthoritarian model in its academicgovernance.
PART II: THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY
The Church proposes; she imposes nothing. She respects individuals and cultures, and she honors the sanctity of conscience. . .
John Paul II, Redemptoris Missio, 1990
Ex Corde Ecclesiae
NATURE AND OBJECTIVES
What does theRoman Church say thatCatholiceducation is? Themost recentauthoritativestatement on Catholicuniversities was made by Pope John Paul II in his ApostolicConstitution, Excorde ecclesiae (“From the Heart of the Church”), dated August15, 1990, and issuedafterextensiveconsultation with Catholicuniversities aroundtheworld, in particular, with those in the U.S.
As is thecasewith many an officialdocument, Excorde is much discussedandlittle read. This is unfortunate, for though itsuffers from tryingto encompass allsituations everywhere, thedocument is apositivedescription of thenatureandpurposeof Catholichighereducation intoday’s world.
Thedocument describes theessentialcharacteristics of a Catholic university:
Every Catholicuniversity, as a university,isan academiccommunitythat, in a rigorous and critical fashion,assistsinthe protection and advancement of human dignity and of a culturalheritage through research,teachingand variousservicesoffered to the local,national,and internationalcommunities. It possessesthatinstitutionalautonomy necessary to perform itsfunctionseffectively and guaranteesitsmembersacademicfreedom,so long asthe rightsof the individual person and of the communityare preserved within the confines of the truth and the common good.
Since the objective of a Catholicuniversity is to assure in an institutionalmanner a Christian presence inthe university worldconfronting the greatproblems of society and culture, everyCatholic university, asCatholic,musthave the following characteristics:
- A Christian inspiration not only of individualsbutof the universitycommunity as such
- A continuing reflection in the light ofthe Catholic faith upon the growing treasury of human knowledge,to whichitseeksto contribute by itsown research
- Fidelity to the Christian message as itcomesto usthrough the Church
- An institutionalcommitmentto the service of the people of God and ofthe human family in their pilgrimage to the transcendentgoalwhichgives meaning to life
In a word,being both a university and Catholic, it must be both a community ofscholars representing various branchesof human knowledge, and an institution inwhichCatholicism isvitally presentand operative.(#12 14.Italicsare the editor’s.)
Thetaskof theCatholicuniversity“as Catholic”is to promotethedialogue between faith andculture. Thedialoguecalled for in Ex corde is based on a premisewhich is atthefoundationof thecenturies-oldCatholicintellectual tradition:theintrinsicvalueof human reason andknowledge (#15). Whilethe revealedtruths of faith are paramount, human reason is alsoa gift of God. Accordingly, there cannot be acontradiction between the“truth of faith”and the“truth of earth.” If theredoes seemto be a conflict between the two, in principleit will beresolvedwith abetterunderstandingof thefaith, afurtherdevelopment in scienceor both. (See #46which assume this approach.)
While each academic discipline retainsitsown integrity and hasitsown methods,thisdialogue demonstratesthatmethodicalresearch withineverybranch of learning, when carried out in a truly scientificmanner and inaccord with moralnorms,can never trulyconflictwith faith. For the things of the earth and the concernsof faith derive from the same God (#17).
Theology plays a central role in this dialoguebetween faith and reason:
It servesall other disciplinesintheir search for meaning, not only by helping them to investigate how their discoverieswillaffectindividualsand society, butalsoby bringing a perspective and an orientation notcontained withintheir own methodologies. In turn,interaction with these other disciplinesand their discoveries enriches theology, offering ita better understanding of the worldtodayand making theological research more relevant to current needs (#19).
Because knowledge is always meant to servethe human person, research should always becarriedout “with aconcern for the ethicalandmoral implications both of its methods and of its discoveries (#18).”
Furthermore, in regard to teaching:
The moralimplicationsthatare presentineach discipline are examined asan integralpartof the teaching of thatdiscipline so thatthe entire educative processbe directed toward the whole
development of the person (#20).
THE UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY
As aresult of its Christian inspiration, theuniversity community
isanimated by a spiritof freedom and charity;itischaracterized by mutualrespect, sincere dialogueand protection of the rights of individuals. It assists each of its members to achieve wholeness ashuman persons;inturn,everyone inthe community helpsinpromoting unity,and each one,according to hisor her roleand capacity,contributestoward decisionsthat affectthe community,and alsotoward maintaining and strengthening the distinctive Catholiccharacter of the institution (#21).
University teachersshould seekto improve their competence and endeavorset the content, objectives,methodsand results of research in an individualdiscipline withinthe frameworkof a coherentworldvision. Christians among teachers are called to be witnesses and educators of authenticChristian life,whichevidencesan attained integration between faith and life,and between professionalcompetence and Christian wisdom.All teachers are to be inspired by academicidealsand by the principlesof an authentically human life (#22).
Students, as well, are challenged to continuethe“search for truth andfor meaning”throughout their lives, since
the human spiritmustbe cultivated insuch a way that there results a growth in its ability to wonder, to understand, to contemplate,to make personaljudgments, and to develop a religious,moraland social sense (#23).
UNIVERSITY AND CHURCH
The Catholicuniversity must havean“institutional fidelity to theChristianmessage [which] includes arecognition of andadherence to theteachingauthority of thechurch in matters of faith andmorals (#27).” Catholic members of the communityarecalled to thepersonal fidelity that this implies. Non-Catholic members are asked to“respecttheCatholiccharacterof theuniversity whiletheuniversity in turnrespects their religious liberty (#27).”
SERVICE
Research is encouraged in areas such as thedignity of human life,thepromotion of justice, the quality of personal and family life,the protection of nature, the search for peace andpolitical stability, andaneweconomicandpolitical orderthat will better serve thehuman community. “If need be, the Catholicuniversity must havethecourage to speakuncomfortabletruths which do not please public opinion, but which arenecessary tosafeguardtheauthenticgoodof society(#32).”
A specificpriority isthe need to examine and evaluate the predominantvaluesand normsof modern societyand culture ina Christian perspective,and the responsibility to try to communicate to society those ethicaland religiousprinciplesthat give full meaning to human life (#33).
The Christian spirit of service to othersfor the promotion of social justice is ofparticularimportance for each Catholicuniversity, to be shared by its teachersand developed by its students(#34).
MINISTRY
Thereshouldbean opportunity for thewholeuniversity community to integratereligious and moral principles with academicstudy andnon-academicactivities, “thus integrating faith with life (#38).”
As an expression of its Catholic identity, theuniversity shouldprovideopportunities for reflection and prayer:
Catholic membersof thiscommunitywillbe offered opportunitiesto assimilate Catholicteaching and practice into their lives... When the academiccommunity includesmembersof other churches, ecclesialcommunitiesor religions,their initiativesfor reflection and prayer inaccordance with their own beliefs are to be respected (#39).
CULTURAL DIALOGUE
A university is open to all human experiences and is ready to dialogue with and learn fromany culture. A Catholicuniversity “is aprimary andprivilegedplacefor afruitfuldialoguebetween the gospel andculture(#43).”Whileit is truethat thegospel transcends all cultures
A faith that places itself on the margin ofwhatishuman,of whatistherefore culture, would be a faith unfaithful to the fullnessof whatthe word of God manifestsand reveals,a decapitated faith, worse still, a faith in the process ofself-annihilation(#44).
TheCatholicuniversity shouldcarry on adialogue with thecultures of theworldinterms of the meaningof thehuman person, liberty, dignityandopenness to thetranscendent. It shouldbedeeply concerned overtheimpact of technology andthedefenseof traditional cultures, helping themto receive modern values without sacrificingtheir own heritage (#45).
In addition, the Catholic university can offerprofessional training “that incorporates ethical values and asense of service toindividuals andto society (#48).”It cancontribute to theecumenical dialoguetofurtherunity amongChristians andtheinterreligious dialogue to assist in discerningthespiritual values that arepresent in allreligions (#47).
GENERAL NORMS
Followingthis description of theCatholicuniversity, Excorde concludes with a series of general norms for implementation. Amongtheseis that theCatholicuniversity shouldmake known its identity in its missionstatement andprovidemeans for theexpression andpreservation of its Catholicidentity (Art 2: 2 & 3).
Thenorms also address theimportantbalance betweeninstitutional commitmentandtheacademic freedom of theindividualby stating, “whilethefreedom of conscience of eachperson is to be fully respected,” any official action or commitment of theuniversity “is to beinaccordwith its Catholicidentity”andthat“freedom in research andteachingis recognized and respected” (Art 2: 4 & 5).
Serious conversation on theapplication of thesenorms in theU.S. continues. A central concern is that decrees implementingthenorms may offset thepositivedelineation of Catholichighereducation in thedocument itself and/or separateCatholichighereducation fromwhat is viewedas agenuineAmericanuniversity.
The Catholic Tradition
Catholicism has an intellectual traditionthat goes back almost 2,000 years, a tradition that emphasizes not only God’s sovereignty but also theintellectualdimension of faith and the intertwined relationship between faith and reason.
A Catholic university invites both faculty andstudents to an intellectual understandingof an individual’s faith, no matterin whatreligious tradition that faith is grounded. As Fr. John Padberg has said, “Politics, sex,andreligion arethethree topics on whichAmericans do as little thinkingas possible.”“Yes,” he says, “we talk about them, imaginea lot about them, fear them, and emote aboutthem. But do we think about them?”He continues:
A Catholicuniversity hasthe responsibility of reflecting on the intellectual traditionsof the Catholicfaith itsdoctrines,philosophicalunderpinnings,history,currentpractices,artisticexpressions, music,poetry,literature,architecture,etc. It alsohasthe responsibility of showing,through experiences, how the faith and intellectilluminate and enricheach other.It ishere thatthe Catholicuniversity serves the church best the intellectualpursuitof the theory and practice which best inculturates the faith in this time and place.
Why is it important to stress this relationshipbetween faith and reason? Because it is this tradition that distinguishes theCatholicintellectual tradition from fundamentalism of any stripe, including Catholic.
What is also so important in an increasingly secularage is that the Catholicuniversity is becomingmoreandmoreaplacewherepeopleof otherfaiths andbeliefs cometoexploretheir own values andtraditions andto search for meaningin their lifeandculture.
This is where“catholic” comes to mean“universal.”This is wheretheCatholicuniversity makes an important contributionto thediversity of an increasinglyhomogeneous American higher education system.
In summary, a Catholic university is:
- alearningcommunity wheremen andwomen of different traditions fosterthesearch for meaningandthecontinuingdialogue between faith and culture
- Christian in inspiration andgroundedinan institutional fidelity to theChristianmessage as transmittedbyCatholicteaching
- faithful to thecenturies-oldintellectualtradition that asserts the intrinsic valueof human reason and maintains that faithand intellect illuminate each other
- pledgedto academicfreedom andfreedom of conscience within aframeworkof moral values, ethicalbehavior, civilityand mutual respect
- respect by theindividual for theCatholic identity of the institutionandby theinstitution for thefreedom of conscience andreligious liberty of theindividual
- committedto integratingfaith with life,to examiningthemoral andethicalimplications present in each discipline,andto viewingreligious experience andquestions as integral to the understandingof human existence and culture.
PART III: THE JESUIT UNIVERSITY FOUNDATIONS
It might begoodat this timeto reflect amoment on what it means to be a member of a family. Basically, it means that we are notalone. We are “rooted” in our family cultureandhistory. Our grandparents andparents tell stories andwe repeat them. Wecomefrom somewhere. Wenot only haveapersonal history but afamily history whichmakes us who andwhat weare. Wearedifferent. Wedo things our way. As others do, we celebrate theFourth of July andThanksgiving, but we do it the way we do it. Objectively, we may beneitherbetternor worsethan otherfamilies, but we instinctively knowthat our “way of proceeding” is best. At the same time, we aredevelopingnew ways andtraditions that we will pass on.
So, amongall thefamilies of Catholicuniversities aroundtheworld, wefindourselves as members of thenational andinternational family of Jesuit highereducation. Wemay admit, on our betterdays, that theBenedictines at Collegeville,the Dominicans at Dubuque and Chicago, or (even) the Holy Cross Fathers at South Bendmay have something to offer that is as goodas or even betterthan what wedo, but weare loyal and proud to be who we are(And, in fine Jesuit practice, we’ll steal any goodidea!).
As aCatholic,Jesuit university weareamemberof ahigher education family that has its own origins, its own insights, its ownway of doingthings, its own hopes, and its own ways of expressingthem andlivingthem. Wehaveour own gifts –our own charism.
That charism, that characteristicway of thought andaction, has its origin in thecharism of St. Ignatius Loyolawhoestablishedthefirst 40 Jesuit schools. Inhis life, his experience, his insights, andhis “way of proceeding”wefindtheorigin of andthe spirit behindwhat wedo andwhowe are.
A good place to start in our understanding ofJesuit education is to considerIgnatius’ great legacy, his bookentitled Spiritual Exercises. Jesuit education is basedon thereligious worldview of thesaint whofounded it.
The Spiritual Exercises is abookof directions to helponeperson guideanotherthrough aseries of spiritual experiences basedon the Christian scriptures and on Ignatius’ own spiritual journey. As abookof directions, it is abook to bedone,not abookto beread. Ignatius began towritedown his spiritual experiences at his homeat Loyolawhilerecoveringfrom abattleinjury in 1521. After many “adventures,” the book was finally publishedwith papal approval in 1548. It became oneof the classics of Western spirituality.
Theworldview foundin the Exercises is both profoundly spiritual andprofoundlyworldly. It reflects the fact that Ignatius was a layperson who grew up surrounded by thedeepreligious faith and intense worldliness of the Spanish court of King Ferdinand.
Theresult was a spirituality that stressedthe“worldliness of God.”God’s continuingloveandpower arerevealedin all of creation. In thewords of the19th Century Jesuit poet GerardManly Hopkins, “The world is charged with thegrandeur of God.”
Since Godis foundin every thing, in everycircumstance, in every movement of theheart, seekingto knowourselves andtheworldbecomes a religious act. No wondertheJesuits foundahomein theworkof learning and education! No wonder they feltthere was no room for mediocrity in eitherlifeor in study. In Ignatian spirituality, teachingthehumanities, scienceandtechnology is teachingabout God’s partnership with human beings in creating anever better and more just world.
The way a person becomes a more conscious participant in this process of making a betterworldis by discerningand followingGod’s desires. Onefinds “God’s will”in faith, inreason, andin one’s own deepest desires. Accordingto Ignatius, aperson does this best by praying for the gift of knowing Jesus more (“magis”), becoming more united withhis mindandheartand following himmoreclosely in his loveandservice. In theSpiritual Exercises, the invitation of God is to know, loveandfollowChrist intransforming the world.
Someelements of the Exercises that provide the foundation of Jesuit education:
- To know and love the world is to knowand love the God creating it
- Finding God in all things, we are partners with God in making the world
- God’s love is more powerful than humanweakness and evil
- The concept of freedom includes freedom from sin, ignorance, prejudice, limited horizonsand distorted values anddesires
- A person can discern what is better todo, distinct from one’s own presentactivities and inclinations (which may, infact, be good) by listening to God in theScriptures, tradition, the believingcommunity, thecircumstances of one’s life, in reason and imagination, and in thedeep desires of the heart
- All areasked what more they can do inserving God and others
- love (and faith as well) is shown in deeds more than in words
- With Jesus Christ as a model, everyone is called to compassionate action.
Also, with its constant useof the imagination, reflection on experience, repetition of materialandtherelationshipbetween thedirector anddirectee, even the“method”of the Spiritual Exercises has
influencedthe teaching methods selectedbyJesuit educators throughout the centuries.
Practice
PEDRO ARRUPE
“Passing overin silence”400years of thepractice andmethodology of Jesuiteducation, we turn to FatherPedro Arrupe, who is calledby many the“re-founder”of the Jesuits after Vatican II. In an address tothe10th International Congress of JesuitAlumni of Europein Valencia,Spain, in1973, the then Superior General (“General”)of theSociety of Jesus essentially redefinedthemission of Jesuit education incontemporary times.
Today our prime educationalobjective mustbe to form men and women for others;men and women who will live not for themselves,who cannoteven conceive of a love of God that does not include a love for the least of their neighbors,and who are completelyconvinced that a love of God that does notresult in justice for all is a farce...
We must also determine the character of the type of men and women we want to form, the type of personsinto whichwe mustbe changed,and the type of personswhichthe generationssucceeding usmustbe encouraged to develop...Onlybybeing a man or women for othersdoesa person become fully human.
PETER HANS KOLVENBACH
It is in this spirit that Father General Peter Hans Kolvenbach, on the200th anniversaryof Jesuit education in theU.S. celebrated at Georgetown University in 1989, describedthecharacterof thegraduateFr. Arrupecalled for:
Our purpose ineducation,then,isto form men and women “for others.”The Society ofJesushasalwayssoughtto imbue studentswith values that transcend the goals of money,fame,and success. We want graduates who willbe leadersconcerned aboutsociety and the worldinwhichthey live.We wantgraduates who desire to eliminate hunger and conflict in the world and who are sensitive to
the need for more equitable distribution of the world’s goods. We want graduates who seekto end sexualand socialdiscrimination and who are eager to share their faith with others.
In short, we want our graduates to be leaders in service. Thathasbeen the goalof Jesuiteducation since the 16th Century.It remains so today.
In his Georgetownaddress Fr. Kolvenbachwent on to describe four “characteristicthemes” of Jesuit education:
1. Jesuit education is value oriented. Theeducation process must rigorously probecrucial human problems andreflect onthe value implications of what is studied.This is to be done in every course (e.g., theuses of technology) on aconsistentbasis so as to developthe habit of reflectingon values andof assessingvalues andtheir consequences not onlyfor oneself but for others.
2. Jesuit education is committedtothepromotion of justice. This includes efforts to make Jesuit education availableas much as possible to everyone and theeducation of all classes — rich, middleclass, andpoor — fromaperspectiveof justice. Students should be challenged tonot make asignificant decision(theoretical or practical) without firstthinking of how the results would impact
thosein society with littleor no controlor influence.
3. Jesuit education is interdisciplinary.The responses to the crucial questions of our times require not only empirical dataandtechnological knowhow. Theyrequireconsideration of sociological, psychologicalandtheologicalperspectives if the solutions proposed areto demonstratemoral responsibility andsensitivity. Jesuiteducationattempts tointegratereligious, humanitarianand
technological values.
4. Jesuit education is international. Notonly is Jesuit education international inscope, locatedon every populatedcontinent, butalso internationalinviewpoint. This means that education for the “global village,” curriculawhichinclude major world cultures, diversity inthecultural backgroundof our students, international exchanges andincorporation of aglobal dimension intoeducational programs are part of the fiberof a Jesuit college or university. Fr. Kolvenbach concludedwith twoobservations:
1. Staffing. Thekey challengeinmaintaininganddevelopingJesuiteducation in the future is how the hiringandpromotional practices of theinstitutions reflect thepriority of theIgnatian vision while being just topotential colleagues andprotectiveof academic standards. It is an obligation injustice to acquaint prospectivestaff administratorsandprofessorswith thespirit of the institution and to ask if theycan share in its spirit and contribute to its mission.
2. Theroleof theJesuits. In his address, Fr. Kolvenbach pointedout that theinstitution is independent of the group of Jesuits who workwithin it. Thedistinctive role of the Jesuits in a Jesuituniversity is to share the basic Ignatianpurposeandthrustof Jesuiteducation. This is donein official ways by theproperuniversity authorities, but moreimportantly, through themultiplerelationships and activities that formthe fabric of university life. It is a role inwhich theJesuit communitymembers become resources for the transmission of thevalues of Jesuit education and thespirituality from which they flow.
RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY
Religious diversity within Jesuit colleges anduniversities is notbased solelyon thebasicpluralism of theU.S. nor only onthebenefit of havingadiversity of views within the educational community.
This diversity is also basedon aspecialcommission given to theSociety of Jesus. For over40 years, John XXIII, Paul VI, andJohn Paul II haveaskedthe Jesuits totake on as a special work dialogue with three general groups:Christians who arenotunitedwith Rome,members of otherreligionsandthosewho do not believeinGod. This commission was again mentionedin the Allocution of John Paul II to the 34thGeneral Congregation of the Society of Jesus in 1995:
The Church asksthatunity among all Christiansmightincrease.Thispriorityextends to interreligious dialogue and inspiresthe service of human rights and peace as the foundation of civilization.In this, the Church oughtto find the Society of Jesusinthe vanguard.
This chargeincludes ecumenical dialogueamongChristians, interreligious dialogue(Christian, Jewish, Muslim, etc.), dialoguewith thesecular, especiallyin theareas of human rights and peace, and, we might add,dialogue among differing perspectives withinthe Catholic Church.
A Jesuit university, then, is
- a university based on St. Ignatius’ visionof thefundamental goodness of theworld and his view of human endeavor as a partnership with the creating God
- committedto asearch for knowledge that demands academic excellence andto aloveof theworldwhich leads tothedesireto createabetter, morejustexistence
- pledged to forming men and women whoseekto transform theworldby beingleaders in the service of others
- dedicatedto developingcritical thinkingand a habit of reflectingon values necessary to make sound judgments
- supportiveof religious diversity withintheuniversity community as aconditionfor genuinedialogue:Catholic,ecumenical, interreligiousand secular.
PART IV: CONCLUSION
MORE QUESTIONS
As we started off with a set of introductoryquestions, it might be good (Jesuit) practice to end with some:
- Do we see thesearch for meaningas primary in our work? Do faith andculturemeet andengage at our schools or just look at each other in an irresolutesilence? Do we think about our values andbeliefs andactively assist others todo the same?
- Do we model service to others? How justarewe in our relationships andinstitutional procedures? Arethereregularconversations relating mission towork? Is mission afactor in hiringandpromotion andpart of faculty and staff development?
- Howdo academicandadministrativeunits grapple with mission issues incurricula, budgets andstrategicplans?Do stated goals and outcomes match themission?
- Howdoes themission reach students “where they live?”
CONCLUDING REMARKS
Though every Jesuit school lives out its CatholicandJesuit characterin its owndistinctiveway, each has inheritedtheIgnatian vision. This vision provides us withprinciples of action andwith goals not yetcompletely achieved.It is aprofoundlyhuman vision, open to all, based on Ignatius’ convictionthat theworldis goodandthathuman beings can, in partnership with God, make it better.
Ignatius was aman of deepfaith. To himthere was no difference between the highestof human goals andthelovingdesires of God.
Wein Jesuit education may bemorelikeIgnatius than we may realize. As Ignatius said:
- Wearepeopleof faith:faith inhumankind, faith in alovingGod. Perhaps, too, those of us in the Christiantradition can fall in love with the personof Jesus Christ, dedicatingourselves tothe values He lived.
- Wearelearners in lovewiththeuniverse. We are in love with the glories of the world and with the wonders of thehuman heart and mind.
- We serve. Our work is not only to free ourselves from whateverlimits our ownhorizons, but also to bring others to thatsame freedom.
- We work in community. We are muchmore than a collection of individuals. Weare colleagues in (yes) a noble enterprise,whether our particular labor be behind adesk, in a classroomor in the raking of leaves.
- Weliveaccordingtoavision. This vision is thefamily story that tells us who we areandleads us to the future. This Ignatian vision is ours — in this timeandplace. It belongs to us andto thestudents we teach andwith whom welearn.