Global Perspectives

1. Ignatius taught that we can find God in all things. 2. Ignatius was courageous – his leg was famously broken by a canon ball when French soldiers attacked the town of Pamplona, in 1521. When it did not set, Ignatius demanded it be re-broken (without anaesthetics) so that it could heal properly. 3. Ignatius gave up his ‘old plans of romance and worldly conquests’ to pursue without reservation what was more important (which for him meant taking vows of chastity and poverty and becoming a priest). 4. Ignatius’ ideas stood the test of time - he founded the Jesuit order which today has over 20,000 people serving communities in 112 nations 5. Ignatius said that the central ingredient for spiritual growth was gratitude 6. Ignatius combined intellectual integrity with a clarion call to serve the interests of the poor. 7. Ignatius believed that personal fulfillment was dependent upon reflection. He developed the Examen of consciousness – a call to discern God’s spirit by reflecting on our em...

The goal of eradicating extreme poverty is within the means of this generation. Never before has it been more important that we make courageous decisions, driven by compassion and love. What depresses me is how desperately conservative, cautious and risk-averse so many of our choices are. I may still be in culture shock. Earlier this year, we were living and working on Thai/Burma border. We travelled inside Burma to visit internally displaced Karen and Shan communities. These people have been forced from their homes by the Burma Army. These are surviving in the jungle – refusing to leave their homeland or come under the control of their enemies. In Burma, I learnt the meaning of courage and of resilience. I will never forget a man I met in Shan State in Burma, called Waling. He had and epic story of survival. He told me that a few years before the military junta had attacked his village in Northern Shan State. Of the 70 families in his village, only 4 made it to safety; he didn’t know...