Lecture series at the Centre Sèvres (Paris). From 26 March to 14 May 2019, the Centre Sèvres is offering a series of six conferences on pastoral relations and respect for people. The Church has been deeply shaken by cases of sexual abuse, including paedophilia. It is also wounded by abuses of authority, and even, in some groups, by sectarian divergences. We must talk about it, recognize what is unacceptable, name it and take steps to prevent it. But we can't stop there. The aim of this set of lectures is also to reflect positively on how the pastoral relationship can be lived in a chaste way, from an interpersonal and institutional point of view. This is the most effective way to limit abuses. Moreover, it gives the Church the possibility to share what it is all about at such a crucial moment. This cycle echoes the words of Pope Francis in his letter to the people of God of August 20 2018: “It is impossible to imagine a conversion of ecclesial action without the active participation of all the components of the people of God.” The dynamics are the following: by welcoming current events in terms of power, abuse of power and sexual abuse, everyone agrees to accept the facts, reflect, let themselves be moved and ask how they can act from their standpoint. The series does not claim to be exhaustive but takes into account several aspects. The questions we ask ourselves will not all be dealt with at once! Together with Bishop Luc Crépy, president of the Permanent Unit for the Fight against Paedophilia (CPLP), we will start by taking a look at the current situation of the Church in France. It should however be noted that all ranks of the Church worldwide are concerned. The credibility of the its message is at stake. It is thus invited to deeply question itself and convert. Mrs. Geneviève de Taisne will kick off the second lecture by offering a psychoanalytical perspective , followed by Christopher Asprey from the Arche community of Jean Vanier, who will share his experience of working with vulnerable people. These two inputs will shed light on the path to follow for an adjusted practice. The contribution of a theologian, Fr. Patrick Goujon sj, on Ignatius' way to freedom, will give us the opportunity to hear about the Church's wealth in terms of respect for the people. Clara Pavanello’s experience as mistress of the novices of Saint-André, will shed light on the roots of chastity and how it can be concretely lived by religious people nowadays. She will also talk about the proper practice of spiritual accompaniment and how to transmit it to the youngest in formation. Finally, through a philosophical approach to the sacred, Fr. Guilhem Causse sj will invite us to make a broader detour by considering the whole of humanity in its relation to the body. This journey will end with an evening of work in small groups to allow for more exchanges between participants and give them a greater opportunity to position themselves, including on remaining issues. More info

Prie en Chemin was born just two years ago, in Lent 2017. On the occasion of this anniversary, a brief look back at this new digital nugget created by Jesuits in the service of the Word of God. Encouraged by the success of "Pray as you go" or "Rezando Voy", Benoît WILLEMAERS and I embarked on the adventure of a daily guided prayer podcast, joined from the beginning by Dominique ZEIER, a young lay person working part-time on the project. With the arrival in early 2019 of a new website and brand new applications, the idea came to celebrate the two years of Prayer on the Way with the aim of bringing together its various actors: meditation writers, musicians, readers, users. We met in small groups of four or five people to see what improvements could be desirable, what dreams we could envisage for Prayer on the Way. Here are some of the highlighted  pearls: "Prie en chemin is regular and faithful. It's just the right duration and it's balanced. Prie en chemin is to listen to a treasure in the subway. What a quality of music, beautiful voices, varied and soothing. At the same time, we talked about technical improvements, the wish to have a meditation on Saturday and the very next "spiritual kits" (and to start with "the prayer of the covenant", "preparing for the sacrament of reconciliation" or "praying in time of mourning"). Other new features will be the collections of thematic prayers to come, such as the psalms. Finally, we have other projects in the USB keyboards: "Pray on the Junior Way" to pray with the family on the weekend, or a meditation to take with you on the way to Santiago. In terms of numbers, the application has more than 15,000 users. The site registered more than 7,000 users in February. It is really heart-warming to see so many people nourishing themselves with the Word of God every day, opening their ears and hearts to what gives meaning to life. Happy birthday “Prie en chemin”!

Experiences in Brussels, Palermo, Genoa, Torino, Milano and Manchester.   Brussels - Drongen Come and see! The European Youth Retreat 2019 attracted eleven participants who wanted to discover their relationship with Jesus. From February 8th on, the young Europeans went to Drongen Abbey close to Gent to spend the weekend without distraction, just focussing on their faith. The participants were guided through each exercise by a team of former participants, that was trained in leading each spiritual exercise by Wojciech Werner SJ during the previous three Sundays. The retreat consisted of three steps: me—you—we. At the beginning, the participants were encouraged to discover not just themselves but also God’s role in their live. Times filled with creative reflections on each one’s path of life gave the opportunity to discover God’s footprints in their biography. The next phase emphasised the relation to others. This might also include one’s own vulnerability but also times, where the participant did not behave in a supporting or healing manner towards others. Failure and sins were brought into mind to finally let go of them. During a mass the participants faced all their failures and sins by writing them down on a paper that was enveloped afterwards. To show, that Jesus loves each one of us despite our sins and failures, these envelopes were handed over to the flames of a fire lit in the garden. This impressive ritual was for many participants the highlight of the retreat. They experienced, that God loves them and that their failures in daily life and in relationships do not count for God nor reduces his love to each one of us. Many participants were visibly moved by this and perhaps experienced the relieving power of reconciliation the first time in their lives. I assume, for many, this experience opened their hearts for God’s unconditional love. These exercises seem demanding, and indeed, they were. So funny elements like warming up games, get togethers and dancing sessions created an easy atmosphere and helped to make a group out of the participants. Besides team-building effects, the purpose of these games was  something more important: the young Europeans could experience, that joy in a community is a most fundamental part of faith and that God wants us to be happy in an environment, where the faithful can rely on each other. In summary, the European Youth Retreat were a great success. The participants discovered God and his unconditional love in their paths of life and the group leaders grew quite a lot on fulfilling their role towards the participants. God wants to show himself to us and God wants us to grow towards him. Both has happened in these blessed days at Drongen Abbey. Christian Lischka, nSJ (GER)   Palermo – Genoa – Torino – Milano From January 30th to February 2nd, 16 final year students from the Istituto Gonzaga of Palermo experienced the Ignatian spiritual exercises at the Chemin Neuf Community of Villa La Nuza Retreat House. They were accompanied by Fr. Salvo Collura SJ, Fr. Alessandro Viano SJ and Andrea Bonavita SJ. Simultaneously, in Genoa, another 14 high school students from the Istituto Sociale di Torino and the Leone XIII of Milan, accompanied by Fr. Nicola Bordogna SJ, Antonello Famà and Leonardo Angius SJ, went through the same enriching experience. This offer is being made to mature students within the Jesuit Education network at a particular moment in their lives after having been gradually prepared spiritually for this experience. This experience of the Spiritual Exercises is made just a few months away from their state exams, at the termination of high school when they are preparing to make important choices for their future, as they are setting the foundations for their career and their life as adults. More information Jesuits EUM    Manchester Students at the Manchester Universities’ Catholic Chaplaincytook advantage of the offer of some quiet time for prayer and rest on a recent weekend retreat at the Prayer Centre of the Poor Servants of the Mother of God at Freshfield, near Formby. Nine students took part, most of whom are part of the music group which enhances the liturgy at the 7pm Mass at Holy Name Church.  The group was accompanied by chaplaincy team members Sr Cecilia FCJ, Br Geoff te Braake SJ and Senior Chaplain Fr Peter Scally SJ.  A highlight of the weekend was the opportunity to sing at Sunday morning Mass for the residents of the care home run by the sister. Jesuits in Britain  

Session of school principals in French-speaking Western Europe (EOF). Under the aegis of the Province of EOF, a seminar brought together, in Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium), from 16 to 19 January 2019, about fifty heads of schools of the Belgian and French Jesuit networks. The theme of the session was "Responsible, empowered, empowering", in line with the theme proposed by the General Secretariat of Catholic Education: "Responsibility in Sharing". This is the sixth meeting of heads of schools since 2004. The objective was to get school principals to review the organization of their school in terms of the empowering of the different actors in the school: members of a management team, staff members or students. The guiding principle was that these school principals become actors in the session, that they share their experience after having heard various contributions to feed their reflection on the development of managerial and educational strategies. Trying to influence and transform our institutions by adopting a more participatory and empowering management of the various actors in the school could also lead to the question of how to work towards management excellence, declined under the 4 C's: Conscience, Competence, Compassion and Commitment. The intervention of Father Provincial, Fr. François Boëdec SJ, was particularly noticed and appreciated. We can call it as a founding speech. Taking up Father General Arturo Sosa SJ's invitation, launched in Rio in 2017, to work towards reconciliation between humans, with creation and with God, Father Provincial made particularly enlightening remarks for the educational project of all our schools. "The challenge is to train young people so that they can be real agents of change in our society, so that they are not prisoners of a social environment, but capable of seeing further, of moving our societies towards more justice, of taking up the challenges of the fight against poverty, against unemployment, against the destruction of the planet, against a certain form of financial management that destroys society. » "The announcement of faith is not optional. We are not afraid to say what is at the heart of the establishment project, and from which source we want to drink. This implies a great respect for the itineraries of each person, of other religions and spiritualities too, a concern to enable young people to discover the importance of interiority, and not to remain on the surface of their lives, but it also means having clear proposals not only for religious culture, but also for the presentation and accompaniment of the Christian faith, in its most central aspect, that is, the personal encounter with Christ, which can give meaning to a life, open horizons of freedom and fill an existence. A living, simple, joyful faith, which favours the inner structure more than the armor, in a Church that breathes and is not afraid of the world, in the image of Pope Francis. » Variety and diversity The varied content of the interventions and the diversity of the personalities who testified to their personal and professional experience largely opened up perceptions and representations. The participants were nourished, challenged, sometimes disturbed by an intellectual, musical and human adventure. Guy Perier, "conductor" of the meeting, and Michel Scheuer SJ, former Rector of the University of Namur, convinced us of the need to surround ourselves well in order to be able to exercise our responsibilities effectively but also to leave the "framework" to renew the sense of mission and the project of a shared work. At the end of this seminar, no solution was given but beautiful encounters augur well for a fruitful collaboration and a simple invitation to let oneself be carried away by what has been experienced during the training session, to translate it into actions, where and when the need will arise. The invitation will allow each participant to deploy his or her talents and to orchestrate, with others, within his or her institution, the best responsible education service for the young people entrusted to him or her. Arlette Dister-Jacquemotte (Delegate of the Provincial for schools in French-speaking Belgium)

Every year, the Magis network offers Inigolib, a spiritual and festive gathering, to young people who have participated in one of its activities as well as to other young people who wish to get to know the spirituality of Saint Ignatius. Inigolib is animated by young people and companions, lay, religious and Jesuits alike. This year's edition took place at the end of January during the WYD in Panama. 100 young people met in Paris and 30 in Marseille. In both places, the same pedagogy was adopted: highlights with the local diocese (night hike, pilgrimage, international mass, etc.); keynote Marian speeches by Bruno Régent sj in Paris and Mgr Aveline, auxiliary bishop of Marseille; moments of prayer and singing; salsa dancing (yes, we did!); various testimonies and workshops with a very social dimension in Marseille. Manuel GRANDIN sj (Paris-Assas)   Testimonials from participants: "I came out of the Inigolib weekend particularly marked by the presentation given about Mary, an inspiration for our discernments. Being the great undecided person I am, mulling things over and over again, I found Mary's attitude to be very liberating. It is not a question of weighing the pros and cons, of falling into the trap of a career plan, of saying yes once you have been convinced by the program, but of trusting, believing before seeing, and constantly saying yes to what is before you. Father Bruno Régent summed it up well as: "joy in embracing reality". Mary helps us by her humble attitude. Above all, they are small questions that require a simple yet daily yes to renew our way of being a son/ daughter of God". Marie, Inigolib' Paris "I was very happy and I thank you for the opportunity to participate in this weekend in Marseille. A time of catechesis allowed us to enter directly into the theme of this year's WYD: With Mary, let us dare to say YES. For me, it was one of the highlights of the weekend. I particularly remember the fact that to commit, to say yes, is to give up. I spend my time giving up things although I'm not always aware of it. This is a point on which I can rely when making a choice. What I also found remarkable was the large number of young people involved, in one way or another, for a single cause. It is a true hope for my future and for our society. A second strong moment was the 'solidarity soup' experiment. Of course, the distribution remains the highlight, but I especially remember the time it took to prepare the soup. Everyone participated in their own way, which made for a united group. We shared this time with people who spoke, others less, but each time it was a different and unique exchange". Aurora, Inigolib' Marseille "I welcome the joy and the simplicity of these days. Thank you to the organizers of Inigolib, and thank you for this opportunity to in tune with the WYD in Panama!" Marc, Inigolib' Paris

A three-day meeting for the Spiritual Centres of the EOF Province in Le Châtelard - Lyon, France (18-20 January 2019). Every year, the directors, superiors and presidents of the associations of the five Jesuit spiritual centres of the EOF meet for a weekend of exchange and reflection, under the guidance of the delegate for spiritual apostolate. Our first objective was to better understand what a Jesuit spiritual centre represents nowadays and what common features could characterize it. We then had a good brainstorming session, during which each centre presented its apostolic project for the group's evaluation and criticism. At the end of this exercise we identified three common axes – spiritual exercises, formation in accompaniment and weekends for couples –, as well as questions and specific areas of action for the future. Thus, one centre is delighted to attract hundreds of young adults interested in initiation retreats; another welcomes a good number of people who are distanced from the Church thanks to proposals aimed at the professional world; whilst a third gets a lot of requests for its 'listening sessions' in its diocese. Questions raised, included: How can we better address different family realities?; What place should be given to young people?; Should more teaching be reintroduced to counter the lack of religious knowledge? A second important theme of the meeting was: volunteering in spiritual centres. Thanks to a questionnaire sent in advance, each centre was able to present the role and place of volunteers in its mission. Among the many issues raised, I would like to highlight those of the recognition of volunteers; the scope of their mission; and expenses and their support by the staff. Lively discussions allowed us to compare very different situations and the solutions or planned solutions that the various teams have already developed. What emerged was an image of living centres anchored in social reality! A pleasant evening with the Jesuit community and members of the board of directors of Le Châtelard crowned an intense weekend, one which strengthened our desire to serve better through the works entrusted to us.