The new community in Kosovo.

The carpenter, realizing how large we wish the new table to be, is shocked. The components are much bigger than the car in which they should be transported. During the transport the carpenter’s son has to stand on the buffer-bar at the back of the car in order to attach the wooden pieces with his own bare hands onto the rooftop of the car. Now the table is standing there in the central room of the community flat. A table gathers together, calls and bands together by being the centerpiece. The new table therefore is a good symbol for what is happening right now at the Loyola Gymnasium in Prizren, Kosovo: A new community has been created, and its aim is to gather together:

Gathered around a table: Two provinces.

The Loyola Gymnasium is somehow floating between two provinces, the Croatian and the German. Geographically speaking Kosovo undoubtedly belongs to the Croatian province. However, the school in Prizren was founded and built up und until now is led by the German province. After the founder Father Walter Happel SJ its director now is in second generation a German Jesuit: Father Axel Bödefeld SJ. It is unclear, what province the school belongs to. The German province claims the school being a work of the Croatian province, the Croatian as one of the German.

On the one hand, this unclear status causes difficulties: In Germany, there is at this moment a very constructive and visionary discussion about the future of the “German schools”. Are we thinking about Kosovo there, too? I think it would be great for Loyola Gymnasium to profit from the new structures. The question, what province the school in Prizren belongs to, should be solved. 

There are, however, positive consequences of the fact, that two provinces feel responsible for the school. Both provinces have sent two Jesuits each in order to form a community and enlarge the Society’s engagement. An interprovincial community of four Jesuits has been created. Where else do we experience at the moment, that two provinces which are very far away from each other and have no closer connection share the responsibility for a community and an apostolate?

Gathered around a table: A community of communities.

The fact that we founded a Jesuit community at Loyola Gymnasium together with the many new movements and projects around the school convinced “Jesuit Volunteers” to send two volunteers to support us. Together with a teacher of our school that wanted to transform her loneliness they form a community. They live right next to the Franciscan community of sisters that have been engaged at Loyola Gymnasium for many years now. Each of these three communities appoints one member to take over responsibility for the fourth, large community of Loyola: The boarding school. The school has gathered together on its own territory a community of communities.

Gathered around a table: The school and its surrounding.

The school is located in the outskirts of Prizren. The geographical context tells something about the relationship between the school and its surrounding, the country and the city with its topics and needs. Not least because we want to change this, the elementary school has moved into the city center. Now the largest festival of culture in Kosovo (“Doku Fest”) used the new school building in the city center as a venue for events and asked us to accompany the festival with a program for children and youths. For us, this was a good opportunity to teach our students to take over responsibility for their country with its problematic politics and needy people. This is at the moment the key word of our school development: Education to democracy. With this term we are trying to band together the fundamental elements of Ignatian pedagogy in an at the same time Islamic and secularistic environment. 

Gathered around a table: Kosovars and Roma.

The poorest and most isolated among the many Roma quarters in Prizren can be found very close to our school. We are starting to build a bridge between our students and the children and youths of the Roma quarter. Maybe here we can achieve what fails in all of Europe: living together. Tomislav Vujeva SJ, scholastic from Croatia, one of the two volunteers and I are trying to gather both groups around one table.

Gathered around a table: Two apostolates SJ.

In order to receive formation for the encounter with Roma I went through a long experiment at “Elijah”, the apostolate of Georg Sporschill SJ and Ruth Zenkert in Romania. They are living what we are desiring: Friendship with Roma. It is the beginning of a partnership. What will happen, if two completely different apostolates of the Society in two very different corners of Europe will accumulate their powers? A very demanding school in Kosovo and a social project with Roma and street children in Transylvania – what will they give birth to?

Gathered around a table: Christians and Muslims.

And then there is Sthjefen Dodes  SJ, the only kosovarian Jesuit, has the task to gather people around a table. He will revitalize the relationship to the diocese church, the relationship to the bishop, the clergy and the very small catholic community in the country. At the same time, we will develop and fulfill in school the role of a “personal adviser”. By far, the majority of the Kosovarian people is Muslim. The Loyola High School is no exception. Most students and members of the staff belong to Islam. Hence, Shtjefen will not only build bridges to the catholic scene in Kosovo, but as personal consultant within the mainly Muslim school life he will gather Christianity and Islam around one table. 

Invitation to gather around the table.

Guest are very welcome, we have a lot of rooms to stay in and things to experience. And there are still some seats available around our table…