I have a friend who is interested in becoming a Jesuit missionary. What exactly does that mean?
He told me to watch ‘The Mission’ but even though I found it a compelling film, I still have questions.
What makes Jesuit missionaries distinct from others?
Is their primary goal to convert people to their religious beliefs?
Where did the order originate?
Do they believe that if others don’t convert to their particular religion then they will go to hell?
Are they known for travelling to remote areas and working with indigenous peoples?
The Jesuits are a Roman Catholic religious order that was founded in the 16th century by St. Ignatius Loyola, a Spanish playboy turned mystic. It was founded primarily as a teaching order and to combat Protestantism and is known for its missionary work. In the 16th-17th centuries, Jesuits traveled all around the world, from Central and South America, to Africa, to India, and even to China and Japan. The order is known for its emphasis on education, rationalism, and science. Lately, they’ve gotten under the Vatican’s skin, as the order has grown more and more left of center and radicalized. In the US, for example, draft resister and peace activist Fr. Daniel Berrigan is a Jesuit, and in Central America, a number of Jesuits are/were involved in Liberation Theology, and one, I believe, was even a minister in the Sandinista government of Nicaragua.
The Society of Jesus was founded in Spain in 1540 by St. Ignatius Loyala. Its members are known as Jesuits. Technically, the Jesuits are a mendicant order; a body of priests organized for apostolic work, following a religious rule, and relying on alms for their support. It is now the largest religious order in the world.
Unlike many religious orders, it was not founded to pursue particular work; its members will undertake any work at all, and the focus of its work has naturally changed over time. Currently it is best known for its involvement in social (and, some would say, political) issues, but in fact its members are engaged in a wide variety of work throughout the world, not just working for the socially marginalised – migrants, racial minorities, the economically disadvantaged – but also doing pastoral work in parishes, providing education, providing retreats and spiritual counselling, publishing and broadcasting, etc.
Traditionally the order has been seen as very intellectual, placing a very high value on study and education. It operates a number of universities (of which the most prominent in the US are probably Georgetown University, Boston College and Fordham University) and a very large number of high schools. Its members study for longer before ordination than the members of most other religious orders, and many of them are sent for further (generally acadamic) study at various times in their careers. Some people consider the order to be elitist, perhaps because of its intellectual focus.
The order is involved in missionary work, but it is not the main focus of its activity as it would be, say, for a number of other orders. Conversion of others is not the primary goal of the order. According to the decrees of the 34th General Congregation of the Society of Jesus (which you will find here: http://www.jesuit.org/resources/docs/c34_indx.html) “the contemporary Jesuit mission is the service of faith and the promotion in society of that justice of the Gospel which is the embodiment of God’s love and saving mercy.”
Jesuits (and Catholics generally) do not believe that “if others don’t convert to their particular religion then they will go to hell”
They do, as part of their work, “travel to remove areas and work with indigenous people”, but they do lots of other things as well.
Your friend should also be aware that Jesuits take a vow of obedience, and as such, he won’t be guaranteed of doing what he wants to do (missionary work). If the order decides it would be better for him to be teaching freshman geography at Marquette High School, that’s what he’ll be doing. If they’d rather he be a secretary in the Jesuit’s office in the Vatican, that’s what he’ll be doing. Etc., etc., etc.
Completely depends on what orders the jesuit receives. I’m sure that a jesuit’s superior could tell him to stop drinking all Coke products, and it would be required, but I doubt that such an order would be given.
Scantilly, also make sure your friend knows that, even if he is assigned as a missionary after joining the Jesuits, his life won’t be like that shown in “The Mission.”
Things have changed slightly in the last 400-odd years.
Scantilly, be aware also that the Jesuits are not unusual in taking a vow of obedience. Members of most or all religious orders take vows of obedience (and poverty, and chastity). The jesuits are not different from others in this regard.
However, from the outside looking in, vows of poverty don’t look so poor. In the words of one of my priests (moving into his brand new, fully furnished dorm room, and unpacking from a brand new Taurus), “If this is poverty, bring on chastity!”.
As a Jesuit educated person, I have always been fascinated by the title of the Black Pope, the head of the S.J.
I’m sure that there are some dopers out there who can provide more detailed info.
If your friend is interested in working overseas in a Jesuit establishment, but does not feel up to taking holy orders and vows of obedience and chastity, he might want to consider the Jesuit Volunteers International (JVI):
In a rough analogy, Jesuit Volunteers are to fully-fledged Jesuit missionaries as Peace Corps volunteers are to US Foreign Service personnel. Being a JV is usually a 2-year stint (like the Peace Corps), not a lifelong career.
IANAJV so I’m not speaking from first-hand personal experience. One of my nieces and her husband are currently JV’s in the Marshall Islands, on the second year of their two-year haul. They teach local Marshallese children (not USAF military kids from the nearby base) in a Jesuit-run High School and find it very rewarding. They teach English and current affairs, and are not involved in actively recruiting kids to Catholicism. When they finish their two-year stint, they’ll do something else. So, it doesn’t have the lifetime commitment that being a Jesuit missionary would entail. (Plus, being female and married, she would certainly not qualify for the latter!).
If your friend is interested in “Jesuit Missionary-type” work, doing a 2-year JV stint might help him to decide if it’s what he wants to do with the rest of this life.
Hope this helps. Any inaccuracies in the above description are errors on my part as I do not claim to speak for the Jesuits or JVs.
You share that distinction with my step-father. Personally, I’m a Rockhurst High grad. Then I went and got educated by those heathen Holy Cross priests for college (of course, they say they saved me from those heathen Jesuits…)
To follow up on what Antonius said, there is also a JVC (Jesuit Volunteer Corps), which is located inside the U.S. It consists of a year of service in hundreds of locations, ranging through an enormous variety of programs. I had many friends in college go into the JVC, and they greatly enjoyed it.
I my God, I’ve posted to a Jesuit thread 4 times, and I haven’t shared my favorite priest joke!
Okay, so Christ’s nativity, a day after the Wise Men came to drop off their presents, the Holy Family received three more visitors - St. Dominic, St. Francis and St. Ignatius (for those not in the know, Dominic is the founder of the Dominicans, Francis of the Franciscans, and Ignatius of the Jesuits). St. Dominic, giving Mary a hand carved, wooden rosary, says “As a symbol of my order’s devotion to prayer, I give you and our Savior these rosary beads.”
St. Francis slowly perches a pair of white doves on the baby Jesus’ cradle saying, “As a sign of my order’s devotion to peace, I give you this pair of doves.”
Finally, St. Ignatius puts his arm around Joseph’s shoulder, and walks him out of the stable. He stops, looks Joseph in the eye, and says, “Have you thought about where you’re going to send the boy to school?”
Not the ones I knew in college. Their order would have included alcohol.
Ah, Jebbie jokes. UNfortunately I don’t remember very many.
BTW, The priests I knew didn’t mind these jokes, they told them themselves.
There once were a rabbi, a buddist monk, and a priest. The rabbi said, “I like being Jewish because…” and went on to describe his religion. The monk said, “I disagree, Buddism is better because…” and explained why. The priest said, “no way, Christianity is the best religion because…”. Then there was a huge flash of lightning, a cloud of smoke and a roll of thunder. When the smoke cleared, it revealed a stone tablet bearing the inscription:
“All religions are good and equal.”
It was signed, “God, S.J.”
(S.J. meaning “Society of Jesus” which is what Jesuits put after their names)
Once there were three priests who were talking about why they liked the orders they had joined.
The Franciscan said, “I like my order because, if you are ever hungry or homeless, you can surely find a Franciscan who will help.”
The <insert name of another order I forget> said, “I like my order because we are so scholarly. If you ever have a question about church history or doctrine, you can find one of my order who will know the answer.”
The Jesuit said, " I like my order because if you ever have a question about morality, you can find a Jesuit who will say it’s ok."
The Franciscans, Dominicans, and Jesuits were having a big meeting that went well into the middle of the night. Suddenly all the lights went out in the meeting room. The Franciscans immediately took out guitars and sang songs, and the Dominicans began praying. But the Jesuits went to the basement, found the fuse box and reset the breaker.
The popular Western Civ teacher that I had in high school was shipped off to Africa to teach after I left. This was the priest who taught a week-long 60s course where we sat around listening to 60s music, watched movies like Easy Rider, and attempted to replicate the 60s without drugs.
We had a protest at the end of that course where we marched into the office, hijacked the intercom, and demanded that we be allowed to wear jeans to school.
That was the first and last year the course was taught.
