cpal

From the moment I was assigned to study theology in Brazil, I knew that it was going to be a challenge: a new culture, a new language, a new way of being Jesuit. And I wasn’t wrong. The first months were difficult and unsettling.

Bonfim is a small city in the state of Roraima, Brazil, near the border with Guyana. A group of Jesuits has been living there five years now, learning to work with the poor. Of the city's 15,000 inhabitants half are indigenous, mostly Wapixana and to a lesser extent Macuxi.

Since 2006 I have been deeply involved in the work of Instituto Mayor Campesino (IMCA-founded in 1962, a Jesuit centre at the service of rural communities in Colombia) in Valle de Cauca Department in southwest Colombia.

Deon used to come to mass almost daily with his wild eyes beaming and flashing a big, toothy grin. He especially seemed to love coming into the church in the middle of my homily and calling out at the top of his voice, "HI, FATHER!" He was clearly suffering from some form of mental illness, and there were numerous stories as to its cause.

Being called to the mission of the Society of Jesus is to partake in a living process, as it requires an on-going encounter with the inner person, from the spirit and the desire, to serve your personal concerns to be called and to be part of a new process, of pathways and of life.

In the southern part of Colombian state of Nariño, we have started down the path towards local and regional sustainability, understood as a life choice in harmony with the surrounding environment.

“Close proximity to the most marginalized” was always the main concern of Fr. Christophe. It was for that reason that his first option was for the urban poor.