It was Palm Sunday, April 17, 2016, when the world learned near simultaneously that the Catholic Church and more specifically, the Society of Jesus, owned and sold 272 men, women and children in 1838 to save its most promising educational mission in the United States from financial ruin. How could anyone fully comprehend this news?
A Church whose social teaching is rich in tradition and is steeped in principles like caring for the life and dignity of the human person; putting forth options for the needs of the poor and vulnerable; being in solidarity with God’s one human family; and caring for God’s one human family was now in the crosshairs of debate.
Saint Ignatius of Loyola, the patron saint and founder of the Society of Jesus, developed practices that can lead everyone to a place of reflection and prayer. At the intersection of Ignatian Spiritual Exercises and Catholic social teaching is a place of repair and restoration. Repair is possible through admission and a willing spirit. Restoration is a long and arduous journey. Yet both are necessary to fully live out the teachings of the Catholic Church.
When Pope Francis spoke out against racism after the murder of George Floyd, saying “we cannot tolerate…racism and exclusion in any form and yet claim to defend the sacredness of every human life,” he was inviting all of us to examine our consciences. It is in examining one’s conscience that we admit faults and ask for forgiveness. Surely Pope Francis did not see George Floyd only as a Black man. Instead, he saw someone who was vulnerable and whose dignity was not respected equally. When we look at our neighbors (not just those physically in our peripheral view), do we see God in them? This is the examination of one’s conscience that begins to change mindsets and eventually hearts.
When the descendants of Jesuit slaveholding came together to find a new way forward after learning of the grave sin against their ancestors, a spirit of repair and restoration was the centering point. A Church that talked about Catholic social teaching now had to face the tunes of its own sin. The conversations were uncomfortable and necessary. It was convenient to go back into one’s own corner and try to figure a path forward in isolation. The power of proximity did not allow that convenience to take hold. Independent racial healing facilitators kept the descendants of the enslaved and the successors of the enslavers at the table to go through the necessary pains of working to restore God’s one human family.
Think about the new family moving to a strange place to start a life of hope. In Matthew 25:35, Jesus said “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.” It is in welcoming and inviting unfamiliar people into spaces that we are made anew and allowed to see them in a new light. Imagine if George Floyd were treated differently at Cup Foods on May 25, 2020. Imagining a new future together in partnership as Descendants and Jesuits is what led to the creation of the Descendants Truth & Reconciliation Foundation, a modern-day example of restorative justice rooted in the principles of Catholic social teaching upheld by Ignatian spirituality.
The history of the 1838 sale was tarnished. Just like restoring the luster of tarnished silver takes time and effort, it also takes time and effort to go deeper in prayer and reflection. Hours can become days; days can become months; and months can become years when the wounds are as deep as racism.
Over two years, Descendants and Jesuits met to dust off the history of racism in the Church and polish it with love, heartache, laughter, tears, anxiety, and joy. What was tarnished has now been unveiled through honest and inclusive truth telling. What was tarnished is now being used as a vehicle to uplift a vulnerable population through home improvements and educational scholarships. What was tarnished is now inviting strangers to a conversation of healing and companionship.
Being proximate to the discomfort is what led to a new beginning and different ending to a somber past that was not rooted in the teachings of Jesus Christ. How does one go about transforming their minds to invite discomfort into their lives? Each person is unique in their own way. This is evident through mere fingerprints. Lines that are small in stature yet grossly different in comparison. Seeing God in every person is a start.
What have you done for Christ?
What are you doing for Christ?
What should you do for Christ?
Make it your mission to focus on repair and restore while you have an opportunity to do so.
