The pivotal event of the day was probably Fr. General’s encounter with lay collaborators along with Jesuits who accompany various Christian groups: CLC, eucharistic movements, chaplaincies and other entities with Ignatian stamp. Fr. General spells out the three major points that should characterize the Jesuit way of proceeding regarding its dealing with collaborators: discernment, collaboration and, networking. In this process, discernment is key as it connects ourselves to the Holy Spirit which should show us what the Church’s mission is. Such a discernment should lead us to doing collaboration and networking with lay and religious collaborators. Fr. Sosa underlined how the four Universal Apostolic Preferences was conceived according to the three ways of proceeding mentioned above.
At the end of the afternoon, some sixty Jesuits working in the Southern part of the country gathered around Fr. General for an impromptu talk, Q&A style. The topics range from the way the Jesuits should approach politics in Madagascar, especially as the country is heading for a presidential election, to the style of government that should prevail in the Society of Jesus. “Jesuits should not let themselves being engulfed in political polarization but proceed to a healthy discernment according to our charism” Fr. General suggested. Regarding the issue of governance in the Society, Fr. General pointed out how the Jesuit system is characterized by a mechanism of checks and balance all along the way up that should, theoretically, prevent any authoritarian inclination and abuse. A joyful and animated dinner followed by a social evening closed the day.
