For the third time, from July 10 and 20, I was invited by the Superior of the Jesuit Region of Rwanda-Burundi to lead a retreat on dialogue and reconciliation for Jesuits from these two countries. I teamed up with Ms Luisa Rossi, an Italian living in Switzerland. Both of us belong to the ESDAC* network, which offers communal discernment retreats.

The process alternates periods of personal prayer, sharing in small groups and assembly. The aim is to constantly move from the "I" to the "we", from the personal to the collective/common dimension. The aim is to build a body in communion, listening to the Spirit. It's easy to imagine how challenging this can be when you are immersed in a history as wounded and suffering as that of Rwanda and Burundi. But the challenge of the retreat is also to discover that God does not desert our human stories, and that life is stronger than death. This was the powerful and consoling experience we had during this week's retreat. The review of personal stories, of the history of these countries and of the history of the Society of Jesus in this region, was powerful. The key to such an opportunity is to create a safe environment where everyone can speak and be heard without judgment, with total benevolence.

For this, the practice of deep and consistent spiritual conversation is an exceptional tool. I will long remember the evening focused on forgiveness and reconciliation, when everyone was invited to lay before Christ on the cross the stone of their own burdens and of what hinders God's action within them, all these stones finally forming a new cross. Many of the participants testified that this celebration - at the end of the first four days of intense sharing - brought them unsuspected peace and joy.

Franck Janin SJ

* ESDAC is the acronym in French of “Exercices Spirituels pour le Discernement Apostolique en Commun” = Spiritual Exercises for Apostolic Discernement in Common