Publisher: University of Illinois Press
Edited: Christopher Chapple
The Jesuit Tradition in Education and Missions is a collection
of articles that explore and document a history of the movement
with respect to these two fields. For anyone that may ask what does
this have to do with ISKCON? I can point to a number of reasons
why this publication is of interest to us.
ISKCON is a fledgling movement in relation to the Jesuits. If we
examine the history of other groups, we can learn from their mistakes
as well as successes. We ignore more mature foundations to our detriment
if we disregard them merely for coming form a different tradition.
In fact, we may actually find that we have something in common if
we care to approach with an open mind.
Looking at the first guiding principle for every task laid out
by the founding father of the Jesuit movement, Ignatius de Loyola,
in his 'Spiritual Exercises' is that 'every man is created to praise,
reverence and serve God our Lord, and by this means to save his
soul. The other things on the face of the earth are created for
man to help him attain the end for which he was created.' These
sentiments are very similar to our own movement. Given this similarity
it would seem wise to study the history of the Jesuit Society since
it is much older than our own movement and see what lessons we can
be glean from it.
For those unfamiliar with the Society of Jesus, it was born in
the first half of the sixteenth century, in Italy, as a means of
countering the attack by the Protestants on the Catholic faith.
The society was an invaluable asset to the Catholic Church as it
attempted to systematically eradicate malpractice and ignorance
in the priesthood as well as in the laity, and the principle means
by which they achieved this, was through education.
In this collection, we find possible approaches from which we can
proceed to look at our own institution. For example, Francesco Cesareo
examines the ideals of the Jesuit education for the sixteenth century
to discover exactly why the Jesuit formula was so successful. Within
forty-five years of its foundation, the society had founded 144
colleges and by 1749, they had grown so large as to accommodate
669 colleges and 24 universities around the world. In fact, Jesuit
schools became the main stream for all Europe. Surely, there must
be something we can learn from this phenomenal success.
How and why were the Jesuits so successful? It seems their success
stemmed from the clarity of vision about the ultimate aim of education,
which was to prepare sound Christian individuals that used their
learning to spread the faith, together with a systematic curriculum
to prepare students for this task. This was the vision of the founder
of the order, Ignatius Loyola. Their mission was further enhanced
by the fact that their educational institutions were highly adaptable
to changing times.
Present day Jesuit education in America is also addressed. Joseph
O'Hare sensitively, yet firmly examines present day problems in
education policy. Throughout the 1950s and the 1960s Jesuit institutions
expanded in complexity and size, however, this expansion outstripped
the number of Jesuits available to enter these institutions.
Questions are raised about academic standards since Jesuit institutions
have been renowned for their academic excellence, why then did they
not feature even in the top twenty USA education institutions? Should
they aim for one super-excellent Jesuit institution? There is strength
in planning for the future by anticipating future issues before
they happen. O'Hare recognises that the future of Jesuit institutions
will depend more and more on the commitment of non-Jesuits, and
therefore he encourages dialogue and collaboration between the two
for the inevitable changes that will happen. In preparing for change
in this way, Jesuits can ensure that change will be healthy and
that the Ignation vision is held at the core of each of these institutions.
The openness of discourse, continual introspection, revaluation
and observation of their education programme allows for a programme
that is focussed upon the vision of their founding father, while
still being relevant to contemporary times. Similarly, if ISKCON
is to grow and expand it is going to have to be facilitated by a
strong education program. We need to address how we are going to
provide for both its full-time and congregation members. The Jesuits
were successful because they planned and provided for different
abilities and purposes. At present the Jesuits enjoy over one million
alumni in America, many enjoying positions of leadership in the
corporate world, in public life an in educational institutions both
Catholic and secular. For the Jesuits, it has been useful to have
followers in all sectors of society, because it sends signals to
other members of that society that Jesuits are willing to make a
full and positive contribution to the community in a way that non-Jesuits
can relate, while still being able to contribute to their movement.
If we look at our movement, many devotee children are going to grow
up and marry, and that will mean sustaining oneself in the outside
world. How are we going to equip them for this role? What part do
we want our children to play in outside society? Or are we only
going to provide education for full-time preachers?
We must not also forget the needs of the congregation in terms
of fulfilling their educational needs. Looking back at my own struggle
to educate myself in Krishna consciousness, I feel there is a need
to direct the education of the congregation through a systematic
and structured education programme. Perhaps the use of supplementary
books to Srila Prabhupada's major works may be used as a guide to
learning the fundamentals of Vaishnavism. In fact there has been
a recent publication in England called 'Inviting Krishna into
my Life' which is a good basic guide to new comers and congregation
members, and perhaps it would be useful if publications such as
these can be more widely circulated.
Above all, The Jesuit Tradition is useful to us as an example
of how institutional disputes can be openly aired and healthy discourse
encouraged to resolve opposing views. Thomas Fasse's essay allows
a forum for discussion for the diverging opinions over the future
of the Jesuit education programme in America. The author first tries
to find the converging factors of the three General Congregations
(supreme governing body of the Jesuits) on practical action for
faith and justice and then reviews the impediments of implementing
that action, the predicament of compromised policies and the prospects
for the future resolution of the crisis. Above all, there is a willingness
to adapt and change as well as admit errors, and it is precisely
this type of approach that will help us avoid mistakes such as those
blunders made by ISKCON in the 1980s. We need to learn how to develop
the institutional machinery of our society from those more experienced
than ourselves, after all, Srila Prabhupada wanted his society to
be highly organised to carry out its most important purpose: to
spread Krishna Consciousness, therefore we should open our eyes
to the histories of other organisations to minimise our errors and
to ensure better efficiency of our own organisation.
Arti Kachhia
A congregational member of ISKCON and graduate of Trinity College,
Cambridge.
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