National Jesuit News » Jesuit Father Thomas H. Smolich

Cardinal Blesses Jesuit Community’s Chapel at Boston College

NJN Editor — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 16:15:07 +0000

On December 3, 2010, the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, Boston Archbishop Cardinal Seán O’Malley, OFM Cap., presided at the blessing of the Chapel of the Holy Name of Jesus at the Blessed Peter Faber Jesuit Community near the Boston College (BC) campus.

The chapel stands at the heart of the Jesuit Community of the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry (BCSTM). Named for one of the first Jesuits who was known for his preaching and spiritual guidance, the Faber Community is home to BCSTM faculty members and 55 Jesuits from more than twenty countries who are preparing for priesthood and other ministries in the Catholic Church. The new community residence was needed when the former Weston School of Theology in Cambridge, Massachusetts reaffiliated with Boston College and moved to the BC campus.

“The opening of the Blessed Peter Faber Jesuit Community this fall enriches the strong Jesuit presence on the BC campus,” said Jesuit Father Thomas H. Smolich, president of the Jesuit Conference. “The Jesuits appreciate the support Cardinal O’Malley has given to our ministry of priestly formation through his blessing of the chapel.”

Cardinal O’Malley expressed gratitude to the Society of Jesus for service to the Church in Boston and throughout the world. As evidence of his gratitude, Cardinal O’Malley is giving the community an image of Our Lady of Montserrat to place in the chapel. The pilgrimage site of Montserrat in Spain is where St. Ignatius of Loyola formally abandoned his military and courtly life and embraced his new identity as a pilgrim, a first step toward his founding of the Society of Jesus.

In addition to Fr. Smolich, principal concelebrants of the Eucharist were Jesuit Fathers Bradley M. Schaeffer, rector of the Blessed Peter Faber Jesuit Community, William P. Leahy, president of Boston College, and Steven C. Dillard, secretary for formation at the Jesuit Conference.

Cardinal Blesses Jesuit Community's Chapel at Boston College

NJN Editor — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 16:15:07 +0000

In the Halls of Congress, Jesuits Are Going Door to Door for Immigration Reform

NJN Editor — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 13:56:19 +0000

Today, a letter signed by every Jesuit major superior in the United States was hand delivered to the White House and each individual Congressional office. Their canvassing effort seeks immediate and comprehensive immigration reform. “With the new Arizona law, there is a real risk that life on our national borders will become subject to a patchwork of state responses; Congress is faced with both a constitutional and moral imperative to act,” said Jesuit Father Thomas H. Smolich, president of the Jesuit Conference of the United States. “Despite what some reactionary politicians would have us believe,” Smolich added, “we can secure our borders in a way that does not cost us our humanity.”

With important primary elections on Tuesday and Capitol Hill staffers working on the legislative agenda for the resumption of the Congressional session, the Jesuits took the rare step of issuing a joint letter from all ten of their Provincial major superiors across the country. “In our language of religious life, we would refer to this as a kairos moment,” Smolich said. “Or in the language of a baseball fan,” he continued, “now is the time for Congress to get in the game.” John Kleiderer, director of social and international ministries at the Jesuit Conference, worries that if Congress does not act quickly, “the lives of thousands of people on both sides of the border will be hostage to the mid-term elections and neither side of the debate will see progress toward either security or justice.” Referencing the Justice for Immigrants Campaign sponsored by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Smolich said “the Catholic Church has been a leading advocate of immigration reform. We wanted to send a clear message to the President and Congress as well as invite all Jesuits and our many lay partners to join us in support of the Church, speak out for the least among us and ask your members of Congress to act now.”

The Jesuits are asking for legislation based on five core principals shared by the Justice for Immigrants Campaign.

1.   A path to legalization that ensures undocumented immigrants have access to full rights.
2.   A legal employment structure for future workers that protects both migrants and United States workers.
3.   Expedited family reunification and emphasis on family unity.
4.   The need for due process and humane enforcement of our immigration laws.
5.   Economic development assistance and fair market access for developing countries.

For the complete text of the letter, you can click here.