Message Board

Dear Friends,

July is a special month for us, Jesuits, as we celebrate the life and legacy of our Father Ignatius. All our preparations for the Feast of our Founder help us imbibe the longlasting legacy that he has bequeathed to us, his loving sons. His life and legacy, rooted in God and revealed in The Spiritual Exercises, inspired his first companions to join the company of Jesus. Among the many blessings he bestowed on us, first and foremost, his unsullied love for God, with a deep desire that God be found and glorified in all things, continues to inspire countless people from all walks of life. Secondly, “Discernment” is yet another timeless treasure to all those who seek to do God’s will. When the complexities of our life and its competing demands tend to distract us, discernment guides one to stay focused on God and be faithful to His calling. It is providential and significant that the Prayer Intention of the Pope for this month talks about how we need to be formed in the art of discernment. Thirdly, living up to the meaning of his name, Inigo, he was a fire that kindled other fires. Throughout his life, he was able to recognize, relish and radiate the unquenchable fire within himself and transform his companions and all his followers to strive towards ‘magis’.

“Ite, inflammate omnia- Go, set the world on fire” was the loving command that our Father Ignatius gave his loving friend Saint Francis Xavier as he left for India on his missionary journey. Starting from this great missionary, to this day, our men have travelled far and wide around the world carrying the glorious legacy of our Founder in order to glorify God in and through our life and mission. The Jesuit history tells us how the early Jesuits suffered all types of hardships, adapting to different cultures and languages, braving the deadliest circumstances and aiming to establish God’s reign. This legacy continues today in the lives of martyrs in El Salvador, and in the life of our own Father Stan Swamy, in India. The life and death of Stan Swamy, that we remember this month (July 5), is a testimony to his faithfulness to the call of the Eternal King.

As Jesuits, we are called to carry in our hearts the life and legacy of Loyola. As we reflect on the life of our founder, it is pertinent that we ask ourselves, “How are we going to recognize, internalise and radiate this Ignatian Legacy in our life-mission?” It is true that we find it difficult to follow the footsteps of our Founder, as we are oftentimes, caught up in a complacent and mediocre mentality that blocks us from deepening our lifemission. Today, we need to truly reinvigorate ourselves to get back to the original charism of our Founder Father Ignatius. We ought to carry forward this legacy to all those whom we encounter – to our people in ministry places, our staff, students, collaborators and all people of goodwill. As the loving sons of St. Ignatius, it is our duty to live out his legacy in our life. Therefore, dear friends, may the Feast of our Founder Father be an opportune moment for us to recommit ourselves to our life and mission so that his life and legacy may shine through us.

Fr. Thomas Amirtham, S.J.,

Provincial, The Jesuit Madurai Province