EVERYBODY'S CHALLENGE - Jesuit Refugee Service | USA

The stress on co-operation with laity seems to be a novelty, but it is
not. Ignatius sought the support and collaboration of others, e.g. the
St Martha House for girls, for many of his apostolic initiatives. After
assuming responsibility for the institution for some years, Ignatius
handed it over to the lay women involved in its running. In order to
finance the colleges Ignatius invited princes, bishops and others to
be sponsors. It is a Jesuit characteristic to invite others to join in a
good work, to give them a framework of doing good, or of taking on
responsibility for a work of charity. JRS does depend on the good
will of lay volunteers and religious of other congregations as well
as the generosity of private donors and organisations. But it also
provides them with the organisational structure and support, and,
more importantly, the spiritual vision for serving refugee people.
Inner bond of unity
It is at times hard to see what keeps this extremely mobile, diverse
and at times apparently loose organisation together. It cannot be a
strong organisational structure because it does not have one, at least
compared to the enormous organisational structure of the UN and
other organisations. At one of the JRS in-service seminars, I spent
three weeks with 35 other JRS workers. I went away with a feeling of
unity. The group kept its diversity in work and outlook but an inner
bond of unity had grown. The eighth part of the Constitutions presents
ways towards uniting distant members with their head and among
themselves. Union of hearts is the most important aspect. This
union is fostered in different ways in JRS, through friendships,
communication, meetings and visits. The union of hearts also needs
the outside hierarchical structure of directors on different levels.
Where this union with the responsible JRS director is not nourished
disunity also arises within the team. Ultimately it is the common
mission to refugees which keeps this bond of unity of a Communitas
at dispersionem. The growing young Society soon felt the need to spell
out in the Constitutions the structures and means in order
to preserve the unity of the body. The JRS is also establishing and
defining clearer structures of responsibility and government with
the same need to preserve the unity of the body in its great apostolic
dispersal.
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