Plenary #2, June 10, 2021: Spirituality & Justice in Jesuit Higher Education - Fr. Smolich, S.J.

We are pleased to welcome Fr. Thomas Smolich, S.J., International Director of the Jesuit Refugee Service, as our keynote speaker for plenary #2. Fr. Smolich is introduced by Professor Erin Cline of Georgetown University's Department of Theology. Fr. Tom asks us to consider how Ignatian Spirituality is calling us to act and educate for social justice today. He explicates what justice rooted in faith can mean today. Fr. Smolich weaves reflective practice alongside specific examples, inviting the listener to think deeply about where they might be able to reimagine their own ways of proceeding. The challenge of what "the service of faith" means for us in the era of both secularism and fundamentalism is addressed along with a compelling call to think about what returning to the margins and reclaiming the missionary means in our current world. Erin Cline, Paul J. and Chandler M. Tagliabue Distinguished Professor in Interfaith Studies & Dialogue, of Georgetown University's Theology Department, introduces Fr. Tom.