Apostolic Planning in a change of epoch

From 5^th to 8^th December over 100 people from 70 countries gathered at the Jesuit General Curia in Rome for a Conference called “Apostolic Planing for Renewal and transformation”.

Apostolic Planning in some parts of the world had become too much of a business model and had lost the link to the religious roots of dioceses and congregations including the Society of Jesus. How do we plan, in a way for us to include the Holy Spirit?  Does ‘planning’ make sense in a context where we rely utterly on the Holy Spirit? How far can human reason take us? And, in a world that changes so rapidly, why plan when plans have to change so frequently? These were the foundational questions that led to the organisation of the conference.

The conference started with an input from Patrick Goujon, who works at Oxford at Campion Hall.  His talk was about St. Ignatius and planning. He emphasised that planning can be an act of love, a participation in the loving gaze of the Trinity on our world. This can happen if there is prayer and discernment.  Key is a care for people seeing them not as ‘human resources’ but as people taking part in God’s salvific desire for our world, as people graced by God, sent by God, blessed by God, called by God. We have to respect those elements in anything we do, seeing the ‘who’ as vital before we talk about the actions or the ‘what to do’.

An input by Dr. Christina Kheng followed dealing with essential attitudes for Ignatian or ecclesial planning. She listed attitudes such as indifference and inner freedom, magnanimity, listening and putting God first.  A new book by Dr Kheng was launched by the Jesuit superior General, Fr Sosa, on the second day of the conference. Entitled “Welcoming the Spirit: Planning in a New Age” it gives a step by step guide about how to redeem planning from a business model and put the Holy Spirit centre stage.

Other plenary sessions included Sister Nathalie Becquart XMCJ on the implications of synodality for a planning process stressing that in fact a good planning process is synodal since it involves not just a small privileged central group of experts but as wide a participation as possible.   

Mauricio Lopez, who works in the university programme of Amazonia (PUAM) spoke via zoom on how planning, if led by the Spirit and done in a prayerful way, can lead to social change. He showed how, in Amazonia, it is generating impact and helping to build a society based on the Beatitudes.

Another high point was an input by Father Sosa entitled “Pathways to hope and renewal, key orientations for Province Planning”.  Fr Sosa referred to the Universal Apostolic Preferences (UAP) of the Society of Jesus. Promulgated in 2019 as missions from the Holy Father, they give horizons which have been embraced worldwide. They now enter a second phase of more concrete action. Fr Sosa identified five calls to conversion coming from the UAPs: a call to stop working in sectoral silos but to work across apostolic boundaries; a call to movement, change and urgency; a call to  put the Spirit first, trusting that He is at work breathing over the whole earth and that we need to believe that at ever deeper levels; a call to renew the community aspect of Jesuit life which at times has been neglected due to overwork and even activism; finally a call to planning itself, to believe that we have to make choices and peer into the future, acknowledging the fragility of the enterprise of planning while also seeing its necessity. Indeed, without discerning and making hard choices we condemn ourselves to trying to keep everything going our eyes more and more fixed on particular locations with no energy to lift our eyes to the heavens and be contemplative in action.  Only if the Spirit guides us, only when we connect with Jesus will there be a real plan; only then will we, every day, become more and more the Society of Jesus.

Day three continued the theme of listening to the Spirit with an input from Sister Jolanta Kafka. Pope Francis has repeatedly said that as Christians or church leaders there will always be an element of feeling  ‘off-balance’. He used the term ‘squillibarato’. It is not a comfortable place to be as we prefer to have everything in order. Sr Jolanta challenged participants to acknowledge the graced vulnerability of being ‘off balance’ – seeing it as a time when the Spirit is changing us and leading us in new directions.  The call is to let go of the human need to control everything and of the illusion that we are in charge.

John Dardis insisted that congregational or diocesan re-structuring and renewal are two sides of the same coin.    When we restructure, we look beyond a Province or diocese, we look beyond man made boundaries to which often we are too attached.  We look over those humanly constructed walls to see new ways of doing things, we accept an invitation to ‘cross over to the other side’ (Mark 4:35), to go to the ‘other towns’ (Mark 1:38) so that we can minister there too and find new energy.   This is all part of restructuring.  Restructuring, if it is not to become something bureaucratic has to have a vision about becoming more open; more universal more ready to serve in new and creative ways.  It takes time; it can be threatening; it can be challenging but it is necessary for us if we are to become a Church that goes out and a Society of Jesus with a renewed sense of universality.  He spoke of the challenge to impact burning issues such as war and peace, the threat to democracy, the search for meaning in a world of cynicism. If we want to impact these, we need to work together across boundaries, establishing global hubs comprised of universities, social centres, parishes and individuals. This is a project that must be taken forward in the next years integrating energy from below with a clear mission from congregational or diocesan leaders. The Gospel today, he argued, demands of us that we cease to work in fragmented or even polarised ways and come together so that the many people suffering in the world can receive the consolation of Jesus.

Going deeper into the issue of impact, we looked at the theme of networks. The Society of Jesus has international networks linking apostolates. They include a network for higher education institutions, for primary and secondary education, for social centres and others. Success has been varied. Sometimes they come up against the structure of provinces and regions. There is a tension, sometimes not so creative, between planning in provinces and the work of international networks. The latter can be starved of resources both human and financial. How can this issue be addressed was a topic raised by Dani Villanueva, director of the pioneering Fe y Alegría education network.

Finance is an important issue when making plans. Ignatius of Loyola spent much spiritual energy discerning about the vow of poverty and how to keep the dependence on the Spirit. He noticed in himself that when he had money or resources he felt less dependent on God. Yet, being realistic, he knew the need for money if apostolates were to be carried forward. An input from Christine Bodewes of the Porticus Foundation addressed the issue of how to get a Plan moving. She spoke of a new culture of fundraising where funders now have programmes rather than project. This means they have their own desires, their own hopes and dreams.  Where previously funders might a project of a diocese or religious congregation now they have their own programmes.  This means we enter into a dialogue, a conversation, a discernment. This new culture is an opportunity for real partnership but it also means that dioceses and congregations have to clarify the impact that they wish to have. If not, the risk is that the funder sets the agenda rather than the diocese or religious congregation. In an important addendum, Dr Bodewes mentioned how 80% of finding comes from individual donors;  the generosity of individuals and their willingness to support the Church’s mission is not to be under-estimated. 

In the afternoons participants could choose from a variety of workshops, such as “Planning at the frontiers of turmoil and war” given by a group from JRS; “Planning in an age of secularism”; “How to deal with the resistances” and other topics.  The material will be posted on line at www.discernmentandplanning.org.

Overall, the main take away from the conference were that we need a new way of planning in this new epoch and that, using the tools of discernment, it is possible. We can see ourselves as collaborators with the Spirit, called to be humble yet effective and focussed, moving forward with the energy and urgency of Jesus Himself. The Church has something unique to give to the world – a message of reconciliation with God, with each other and with Creation. This message is so badly needed today.  Planners went away with a sense of vocation, a reminder to be grateful everyday for the opportunity they have to renew the Society of Jesus and the Church.