Caesare Sposetti SJ: A faith that does Justice

Cesare Sposetti SJ, from the Jesuit social justice journal Aggiornamento Sociali in Milan, was one of the guest speakers at a recent conference hosted by the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice in Manresa. Jesuits and colleagues from various works in the Irish Jesuit Province attended. Fr Sposetti guided those gathered through a reflection on the relationship between justice work and Ignatian spirituality in a presentation entitled: “A Faith That Does Justice: Why It Still Matters”.

He traced how the Jesuit mission – rooted as it is in the Ignatian contemplation on God looks upon the world – calls us to respond to the suffering and needs of our time. A ‘faith that does justice’ might be a slogan that is turning 50 years old, but it is a sentiment that can be found from the very beginning of the Society.

Building on a careful examination of Decree 4 of General Congregation 32, Fr Sposetti explained how attending to our own personal spiritual movements of consolation and desolation is a way to engage in social and political struggle. Dr Kevin Hargaden of the JCFJ says, “It was a really remarkable talk that allied his longstanding engagement at the forefront of justice issues in Asia and Europe with this winsome, accessible, but profound spirituality.”

After the lecture, Pat Coyle of Irish Jesuit Communications interviewed Fr Sposetti on the content of his presentation, putting questions to him that his talk elicited. Listen to the full interview above.