Gabriele Hüdepohl is the new delegate in the Central European Province of the Jesuits for the order's schools. As the first laywoman and the first woman, she has cross-border responsibility for the development and cooperation of a total of twelve schools in the province: three Jesuit and four network schools in Germany, two network schools in Austria and three Jesuit schools in Lithuania. An interview with her about the brand essence of the Jesuit schools, why good decisions are becoming increasingly important for young people and how they learn to take a balcony perspective on their lives.
Ms. Hüdepohl, what attracted you to this task?
Gabriele Hüdepohl: I am a teacher and I was a school principal for a long time. So I'm staying with my dream job, if you will: the school, the students. For me, accompanying young people on their path of world exploration and education is one of the most exciting areas of responsibility that exists in our society. In my new role I now take a different perspective on it. That appealed to me.
What are the challenges, what do you have planned?
I would like to network the twelve schools in the countries of the Central European Province even more closely and also expand them to include additional schools. The connection and exchange between the German-speaking schools in Germany and Austria and the schools in Lithuania is certainly a challenge, but one that I find very exciting. The aim is for schools to find support and strengthen and further develop their profile. We work closely with the Center for Ignatian Pedagogy in Ludwigshafen.
Is it possible to strengthen the profile of Jesuit schools without - or with fewer and fewer Jesuits?
What does without mean? Jesuits as teachers, as pastors, or in running schools? In Belgium, priests have long been represented almost exclusively on school supervisory bodies. This is definitely not optimal. The schools nevertheless remain unmistakably Ignatian. Of course, Jesuits should and will continue to be heavily involved in our schools - as much as possible in view of a shrinking order. However, the Ignatian educational tradition and Jesuit principles are so strong and valuable that they have an impact far beyond the order. There are many women and men who know Ignatian spirituality, live it and shape the schools. Our schools have a unique profile in the educational landscape in the educational tradition and spirituality of the Jesuits. And that is exactly what we want to promote and strengthen: that our schools maintain and expand their brand core even with priests who are less active there. Perhaps to put it a bit old-fashioned: in the service of a world worth living in for everyone.
What exactly is that, the specifically Jesuit educational profile?
Education has been part of the DNA of the Society of Jesus for centuries - alongside the transmission of faith. The transfer of knowledge and personal development are closely linked. The aim is for the students to not only be well prepared for their lives, but also to leave our schools as young people who are able to make distinctions, make decisions and take responsibility.
What does that mean specifically?
In my opinion, what particularly distinguishes the Jesuit schools are four aspects: On the one hand, we strengthen students in the experience of their dignity. On the other hand, our goal is not for the students to learn as much as possible, but rather for them to always think about the meaning of what they have learned, to study it in depth, to question it and to reflect on it, entirely in the Jesuit order tradition. Thirdly, it is important to us to focus on justice in the small and large world, be it when it comes to grading or the issue of poverty. And fourthly, we want to keep the question of God alive. Of course, the points mentioned do not only apply to our schools, so they are not exclusive, but they are crucial for us.
Would strengthen, what does that mean?
The students are taken seriously. For example, student rights are important to us; they are also informed about them and receive support if their rights are violated. Violations of dignity are noticed and discussed, including by classmates and teachers.
And then, of all places, abuse happened in Jesuit schools.
Yes, terrible, shameful. I was the headmistress at Canisius Kolleg in Berlin when the cases there became known in 2010.
Would you say the workup is complete?
The processing in schools and in the church is certainly not finished. The well-known cases of the past in our schools can probably be described as largely closed in terms of clarification, documentation and, I hope - as best as possible - reparation. But of course the topic is not closed there either, because many people, former students, have to live with their experiences and many suffer severely from the consequences. In the same way, the topic remains part of the history of the schools, and it is very important to us that we remember it, even if it is a terrible one. It reminds us to remain attentive to the fact that sexual violence occurs, at school, among peers, but also in families, in sports clubs, on the Internet. And that we prevent attacks there in the future as far as possible through prevention concepts, further training, contact persons and an open culture in schools and that we definitely do not look the other way, but rather intervene.
Regarding your fourth aspect – keeping the question of God alive – is this possible in an increasingly secular world?
Of course not in the form that we are asking anyone to confess, but in fact many students and their parents choose a Jesuit school precisely because the question about God is asked there. Ignatius believed that God can be found in all things, and that this is ultimately the basis of spirituality and pedagogy. Our students encounter this again and again in their everyday school life; they should be able to deal with it and find an answer for themselves - instead of pushing aside, dismissing or ignoring the question of God, which is so important for being human. In the Jesuit schools there are both pastoral care offerings as well as intellectual and spiritual offerings that create space for questions and arguments, for religious experiences. Times - places of silence, for example: silence, which is the basis for being silent together, listening, listening to yourself, allowing yourself to be touched, giving time for questions to develop. Whether experiences, whether intellectual suggestions lead to a personal question about God, whether they provide answers, everyone has to answer that for themselves, in all freedom.
There is another aspect: being able to speak, knowing about religion, my faith, and being able to provide information about it - even to people who believe differently. I think this is very important, especially in our time when we live together with people who often have foreign religions and worldviews.
What kind of generation is in the Jesuit schools today? Can you describe them?
It's hard to say, I see very different facets. There are very interested, curious students who want to discover the world and are committed to helping others. However, we can also sense how these young people have been burdened during the years of the pandemic: many of them being at home, alone, at an age when they actually want to conquer the world. And then the many wars and crises also put a strain on young people. Many are worried about the future.
This generation has a lot of opportunities, especially if they are well educated. There are so many that it even overwhelms students. The upcoming decision about what you want to study scares some people. It is all the more important that our students learn to differentiate - and decide that they can develop self-confidence and confidence. Decisions that they make, especially after school, as they become more and more independent, are important, give their lives a further direction, and have consequences that they and others have to bear. And that is also part of the Jesuit profile: the Jesuits have very good tools for making good decisions, for discerning spirits, as Ignatius called it.
Can children and young people do this?
We try very consciously to train this. Normally, a school is very well structured: one subject follows another, one task follows the next, you don't have to think about it. That's why we allow interruptions in our schools, and consciously build them into everyday school life, in which it is possible to calm down, reflect, explore feelings, and contemplate. Instead of always being in the middle of the action and driven by it, the students should learn to take a balcony perspective on themselves, as I like to call it: i.e. looking from above at what is actually happening on the dance floor of my life, what and how Am I dancing there and with whom? And then also the inside perspective: How does that feel? The exams also serve this purpose, they are formats for looking back, alone in the evening, together at the end of the week, the school year or at oasis days: Who did I meet? What touched me? Where do I encounter resistance? What am I grateful for? What inner voices do I hear? These considerations are important for your entire life and can be lived and practiced throughout your life, with or without a religious connection - so to speak, the Jesuit school for your entire life.
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