RFR --- SpirConLife

The Ignatian Year celebrates the 450th anniversary of the founding of the Society of Jesus and the 500th anniversary of the birth of Ignatius Loyola. To mark this occasion, a lecture series emerged as a bright idea at the end of a long afternoon meeting in the Theological Studies Department at Saint Louis University. Like many ideas hastily concocted at the end of a meeting, no one knew if it would ever come to light. Such ideas need moral and mental support, and money as well. But thanks to the joint sponsorship of the Dominicans of Aquinas Institute of Theology, Saint Louis University’s Ignatian Anniversaries committee, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Jesuit Community at Saint Louis University, St. Francis Xavier (College) Church, the Institute of Jesuit Sources, Review for Religious, and Theology Digest, the idea found its life supports. An “ecumenical” gathering of academics, publishers, parishioners, religious, and laity formed a community of committed concern, and in the months ahead this group provided a resource and richness that was continually drawn upon.

The recently deceased and much-beloved general of the Society of Jesus, Pedro Arrupe, was fond of saying in his Basque English, “Yes, but how to do?” How could we make the lecture-series idea work? How could we manage to speak about Ignatius and his “company,” their history and their identity, in a fresh way? One does not examine any heritage simply to return to the past, but to look to the past to retrieve what is richest and then move into the future. The Jesuit heritage is something that must serve others. Thus the theme of the series took clearer focus: how could the Jesuit heritage help Jesuits and others to reinvigorate their spiritual and apostolic life? True to the Jesuit charism and to the inspiration of Father Arrupe’s dynamic practicality, the title of the series became “A Spirituality for Contemporary Life: The Jesuit Heritage Today.”

In a real sense the planning committee became an image of what we were trying to help others do: work together for the good of others. Our individual and group creativity was challenged to come up with lecturers and topics that could fulfill and even extend our dream. From the start we encouraged the speakers to approach the Ignatian heritage creatively, to push the “edge of the envelope,” to venture into new and uncharted waters. Our six lecturers, we think, did so.

They gave their lectures in the St. Francis Xavier (College) Church at Saint Louis University. One year ago the College Church began a beautiful renovation, completed only months before the series began. Although we had planned to have the lectures in a large university assembly hall, a representative of the College Church approached us and suggested our using the church. The suggestion fitted the series wonderfully. The renovated lighting system enhanced the neo-Gothic lines of the 1884 church, creating an aesthetically soothing and yet transcendent space at the same time. A Lenten lecture series in the church, Ignatian Anniversaries celebrated in a religious setting-the lecture series would not have been the same if we had not been in a place of prayer. The lectures breathe prayer, while being academically and aesthetically pleasing presentations. You will pick this up as you read.

After each lecture we reserved a period of time for audience responses. This time was not a question-and-answer period but a sharing of experience. Perhaps we were all awkward at first, but we learned quickly and willingly. The audience’s responses, or testimonials, were insightful (“the Eucharist is a feminine symbol because Jesus feeds us from his own body”), contributive (“this is the first time as a male I’ve felt included in a discussion on women”), at times pain-filled (“I feel the oppression of the Church and don’t want to support a dysfunctional family, yet want to stay”), searching (“comfort seems to make us inaccessible to God”), but remarkably accepting (“as a black American, I want to forgive my oppressors”). Each evening throughout the six weeks, we formed a community of listening, acceptance, challenge, and openness to God. And judging from the stories related to me, I believe that true conversion experiences occurred. Something extraordinary happened here, and the catalysts were the outstanding lecturers.

Walter Burghardt began the series with “The Richness of a Resource.” As teacher, scholar, editor, he has contributed to the landscape of American theology for over half a century. His scholarly interests began in studying early Church history, continued in his teaching at Woodstock College, and found expression in his editing of Theological Studies for forty-six years. Known also for his work in homiletics, he has contributed significantly to the relationship of preaching and spirituality through his many books, such as Seasons that Laugh or Weep. Now as director of the program “Preaching the Just Word” at Manresa-on-Severn, he draws from his many years of experience in a creative effort to move social issues more effectively into Catholic pulpits of the country. In addressing the topic of “The Richness of a Resource” he focuses upon religious experience as the beginning point and confirming affirmation of spirituality today.

Editor of Review for Religious, David Fleming is known for his conferences, workshops, and writing in the areas of Jesuit spirituality, spiritual direction, and religious life. A former professor of theology at Saint Louis University and Weston School of Theology in Boston, former provincial of the Missouri Province, and current superior of the Jesuit collegiate formation program, he has authored several books on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius and coedited a book entitled Religious Life: Rebirth Through Conversion. His “How to Find a Busy God” focuses on how God works for us.

Professor of religious studies at Georgetown, former president of the Catholic Theological Society of America, Monika Hellwig has also won the prestigious John Courtney Murray award for her outstanding contribution to American theology. Her long-standing relationship with the Jesuit heritage and her creative advancement as a laywoman contribute to her treatment of “Christian Responsibility for Today’s World.” In constant demand as a lecturer, she has authored fifteen books and more than a hundred articles. With a strong pastoral concern and clear writing style, she has become a leading interpreter of the Catholic tradition for contemporary Christianity.

An alumnus of Saint Louis University, Jon Sobrino delivered the fourth lecture and packed the church to bulging. His book Christology at the Crossroads has made a major impact on theology worldwide. His theology and life are characterized by a strong social involvement with and for the poor of El Salvador. A professor of theology at the University of Central America in San Salvador, he directs the Monsignor Romero Center and coedits a journal of Latin American theology. His twelve books and numerous articles have been translated into several languages. Had he not been out of the country November 16, 1989, he would have been with his six Jesuit colleagues and the two laywomen who were slain on the university grounds. His topic, “Rich and Poor Churches and the Compassion Principle,” challenges the U.S. perception of the world and its standards.

A professor of theology at Catholic University of America, Elizabeth Johnson is known as an outstanding teacher and scholar. She has written a number of articles on feminist theology, the nature of religious language, as well as on the doctrine of God, Jesus, Mary, and the saints. She serves on a variety of committees and is a consultant to the national Lutheran/Roman Catholic dialogue, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, and an international committee on the use of English in the liturgy. Her work consistently combines a deep understanding of the Christian tradition and its riches for life today. Her “The Greater Glory of God: Woman Fully Alive” extends the Ignatian heritage in ways that would both please and astound St. Ignatius.

Scholar, teacher, administrator, and editor characterize the final lecturer, John Padberg. Currently director of the Institute of Jesuit Sources, which publishes scholarly work on Jesuit tradition worldwide, he also chairs the Seminar on Jesuit Spirituality and a newly formed Seminar on Jesuit Higher Education. He edits the journal Studies in the Spirituality of Jesuits. His scholarship on the history of the Jesuits is internationally recognized, and he is in constant demand as a leading articulator of Jesuit tradition. His lecture, “God’s Search Goes On,” examines the changes in the contemporary world and the challenges they bring to retrieving a spirituality applicable for tomorrow.

Before the series began, one administrator cautioned, “People don’t attend lectures anymore.” The attendance was astounding, averaging about five hundred people each evening; some three thousand attended these lectures. The audience included people from Africa, the Philippines, South America, and the Orient. Without doubt, something special happened. The lecturers catalyzed the community to examine their own experiences, deal with the challenges of the Jesuit heritage, and look to God beckoning them into the future. Not expectedly, each lecturer remarked about the attentive and interactive nature of the community present. The interrelation of the lecturers and the audience bears fruit in the written texts, especially because most of the talks were revised in light of the presentation. The audience clearly drew out the best from the lecturers, who recognized a receptive audience.

This time of celebrating anniversaries is a time for memories, a time to retrieve what is best in our spirituality in order to contribute to a new, creative life. We do not hold the future-that is God’s creative and mysterious design; but we do hold the past. We build on the human side, but rely on the divine. In these lectures you will find the divine calling to us, for the Holy Spirit continues to “renew the face of the earth” while never forsaking the richness of the past.