Dear Colleagues,
The Office of Mission and Ministry launched several reading groups on “Ignatian Humanism: A Dynamic Spirituality for the 21st Century,” by Ronald Modras. Modras’ work opens up the Ignatian heritage through the lens of Ignatius’ biography and from the perspective of its foundations in Renaissance Humanism. He then traces the dynamic vitality of Ignatian Humanism as it played out in the lives of individual Jesuits over the centuries up to the present day. The conversations in each of the groups has proved to be rich, thoughtful and engaging for the participants and for the Jesuits who joined in the conversation with them. The practical relevance of these stories from the past for some of the many issues we confront today has been a consistent theme in our discussions.
I am inviting you to consider participating in the next round of reading groups. My office will provide you with your own copy of the book. Optimal group size is from 6 to 10 participants. This year we will begin the groups in the last week of September. Each group will decide how often it will meet. Commonly groups have met every two weeks, preparing one chapter per meeting. If every three weeks works better for your group, that’s up to your group to decide. Either I or Rev. Jim Pribek, S.J., assistant vice president for mission, will facilitate. The meeting time options are noon on Tuesdays and 9 a.m. on Wednesdays. We can offer up to four groups during this coming semester.
If you are interested in participating, please register online by Friday, Sept. 16.
The day and time for which you register will be the day and time for subsequent meetings of your group. If you are available to meet either time, please register for both and you will be assigned to one book discussion group.
We will plan to launch the new groups in the last week of September.
Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to your participation.
Peace,
Rev. Jim Voiss, S.J., vice president for mission and ministry
