Loyola Jesuits in First Studies reflect on Father General’s visit

This past April, Loyola University Chicago hosted Father Arturo Sosa, S.J., Superior General of the Society of Jesus, for a series of talks on campus. As Superior General, Fr. Sosa leads the Jesuits, the largest religious order of priests and brothers in the Catholic Church. He traveled from the Jesuits’ headquarters in Rome and made stops in several cities in the Midwest. At Loyola, his visit included addressing about 40 Jesuits in First Studies—the second stage of Jesuit formation—from both Loyola and Saint Louis University, as well as presiding over Mass for the Jesuit community at Madonna della Strada Chapel. 

One of three First Studies programs in the United States, Loyola’s program provides recently-vowed Jesuits with a holistic formation that integrates academics, intergenerational community living, and ministerial work. Loyola’s campuses and location in Chicago help young Jesuits develop philosophical and professional experience within the context of a culturally, economically, and sociologically diverse environment.  

Pablo Velasquez, S.J., who is now in his third year of First Studies, is working on a master’s in both social philosophy and environmental sustainability. He described Loyola as “a great space for me to integrate and make sense of the vocation that God is gifting me.” 

Avoiding careerism and embracing collaboration 

Velasquez said he appreciated hearing from Fr. Sosa on what it means to be a Jesuit, as it’s helpful for him to be intentional as he goes through formation.  

“He said that what he needs of us guys in formation is to become Jesuits,” Velasquez recalled. “By this, he clarified that our goals should not be to cave into the temptation of any form of careerism. Regardless of what roles we may come to occupy, we must always be 100% Jesuits.” 

Velasquez also said Fr. Sosa stressed that Jesuits are not to be a spiritual presence on the sidelines supporting the work that others do, but rather collaborating with others in the trenches, doing the work that needs to be done.  

Fr. Sosa gave the example of Jesuit scientist researchers working alongside other researchers, which Velasquez found particularly motivating, given the work he is doing in environmental sustainability. “We should not have careerism, but we cannot be on the sidelines either.”

Br. Carl Caceres, S.J., who also attended Fr. Sosa’s talk, echoed Velasquez, saying that Fr. Sosa emphasized that Jesuits “do not have collaborators but are collaborators.” 

Caceres, who joined the Jesuits in 2021, is now in his second year of First Studies at Loyola working on a doctorate in higher education. He is also doing Loyola’s spiritual direction internship. “There’s no better place to be than right by Lake Michigan. That’s my place to pray.” 

Responding to polarization and uncertainty 

Caceres recalled that Fr. Sosa talked about how we live in a time of polarization and divisions. “He said the world is very polarized, and that we’re not immune to that in the Society of Jesus as people having different opinions or strong feelings about the direction of the Church, the world, how to do things, and that it’s very important to keep our eyes on Jesus, poor and humble.” 

Fr. Sosa also discussed the future of the Society, addressing the question: Where does he think that the Jesuits go from here? Velasquez said that Fr. Sosa’s answer—“I don’t know” —was both challenging and inspiring. 

Velasquez doesn’t view his answer as a sign of lack of leadership. “I see it as him modeling for the rest of us where we are called to be existentially today. We must recognize that to be able to listen to the Spirit today, as individuals and as a body, and to be able to give a generous response, we have to face head-on with the world the anxieties that it is facing but with a type of disposition rooted in our faith that disposes us to conversion.” 

“Our identity as Jesuits is not to be the experts with all the answers and resources for the rest of the world’s problems, nor to be an oasis or place of respite where others can escape from complex realities,” Velasquez continued. “Instead, Father General is reminding us that we need to incarnate our faith with Jesus today on the way of the cross. From this place we commit ourselves entirely alongside the crucified of our times to Jesus’s work of the buildup of the kingdom of God.” 

Caceres said that Fr. Sosa understands that people are concerned about having fewer Jesuits because there are tough decisions to make about where to send people to work, and institutions and ministries may have to close or change. 

That it is not necessarily a bad thing, Caceres said, as it can lead to greater collaboration, fresh thinking, and more dynamic, intimate communities.

A call for detachment 

“Fr. Sosa says it’s a wonderful thing that in the United States, in Chicago, and that we have so many people who are partners in mission,” Caceres said. “So, there may be fewer Jesuits, but there are more people who are partners in mission, who know about Ignatian spirituality.” 

Velasquez said he was shocked and inspired that Fr. Sosa emphasized “that we need to recognize that we are currently very unfree of many attachments. We are attached to many of our institutions based on their legacy throughout the years, which limits our ability to respond generously to where the Spirit is inviting us today. He said we need to be freed of the anxiety handed over to us by the older generations about the number of vocations going down. And he even went on to say that we may need to free ourselves of our attachment to our manners of proceeding!” 

It was challenging to consider what Fr. Sosa’s statements might imply for the Jesuits moving forward, Velasquez said. “But what I hear is that we cannot allow them to become distractions that impede us from our end, which is to love and serve God in all things.”  

Fr. Sosa’s visit inspired both Caceres and Velasquez, and Caceres said he was impressed by how humble, down-to-earth, and transparent Fr. Sosa was. “He personifies being a companion of Jesus, modeling Ignatian indifference—not having an agenda and not pushing a specific thing, but to discern well and be indifferent on the result. And he lives that way.”