By Jenny Cafiso

This is a momentous year for us at Canadian Jesuits International (CJI) as we celebrate our Platinum Jubilee.

Seventy years ago, in September 1955, CJI was incorporated under the name The Canadian Foreign Jesuit Mission. Previously known as the Darjeeling Mission Service, it was established in 1947 by what was then known as the Jesuits of Upper Canada Province, in response to an invitation by the local church to serve in northeast India. Over time, the Jesuits' missionary work evolved from sending missionaries to international partnerships with local Jesuit initiatives, and in 1995, CJI was adopted as the new name, reflecting a commitment to reciprocity, mutual responsibility and social justice.

Today, CJI and its Jesuit partners in Africa, Asia, and Latin America are united in their commitment to the Society of Jesus’ Universal Apostolic Preferences established in 2019: Showing the way to God; walking with the excluded; journeying with youth; and caring for our common home. Our projects and advocacy initiatives, including this year’s fall education and advocacy events focusing on “Women at the heart of justice” (see page 7),  reflect these priorities. When we prioritize working with people who are excluded and marginalized, it is there that we find women, who often bear the brunt of poverty, forced displacement, and violence. But it is also among women that we find actors for change, defending their families and their land, and protecting our common home.

It is fitting that CJI is marking a milestone in the same year that the Society is celebrating the 50^th  anniversary of the 32nd Jesuit General Congregation, which issued Decree 4 — a landmark declaration that the mission of Jesuits is “the service of faith, of which the promotion of justice is an absolute requirement."  In other words, faith and social justice were to be the focus of all Jesuit life and activity.  A key outcome was the call for a preferential option for the poor, with a focus on serving the most vulnerable, including refugees and forcibly displaced persons.

Historians say that Decree 4 marked a turning point in Jesuit history, permanently shaping the Society of Jesus's mission, identity and image within the church and wider society.

Today, CJI continues to uphold the legacy of a “faith that does justice” alongside its loyal supporters and friends by walking in solidarity with the world’s poor and marginalized.