On March 10, the Center for Ignatian Spirituality (CIS) hosted an event entitled “The Enduring Legacy of Pedro Arrupe, S.J.” This virtual lecture featured an eight-minute video chronicling Fr. Arrupe’s work in Japan as both a missionary and a doctor. Stationed as Jesuit superior and novice master outside of Hiroshima, Fr. Arrupe used his training as a doctor to treat victims of the atomic bomb attack in 1945. All eight of the Jesuits caught in the blast survived. Using his novitiate as a makeshift hospital, he treated over 150 patients, almost all of whom survived. Fr. Arrupe then served as a provincial in Japan until his election to Superior General of the Jesuits in 1965.
Following the video, Fr. James Conroy, S.J., spoke about Fr. Arrupe’s accomplishments and the deep respect the Jesuits held for him; Fr. Conroy described Arrupe as “[his] hero,” as many Jesuits saw him. His personal experiences with Fr. Arrupe included meeting him twice, after Fr. Arrupe had suffered a stroke and could no longer speak any language other than Spanish despite having been fluent in several, including French and Japanese. According to Fr. Conroy, his presence was still just as powerful as ever.
Fr. Arrupe’s election to Superior General (usually referred to as Father General) of the Jesuits came at a tumultuous time, as Fr. Conroy pointed out. It immediately followed the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council in 1965. While it was at first unclear how the life of a Jesuit was to be lived following Vatican II, Fr. Arrupe, according to his biographer, “saw the hand of God in everything” and encouraged all Jesuits to continue living out their mission of setting the world aflame and bringing glory to God through all endeavors of life. Fr. Conroy described how Fr. Arrupe rallied the Jesuits to help refugees from the Vietnam War after recognizing the need of the migrants, catalyzing an international Jesuit response now known as the Jesuit Refugee Service. Fr. Arrupe’s care for others and his leadership in furthering that core Jesuit value was “a significant moment for Jesuits around the world; a lot of [Jesuit] institutions have moved in that direction” since then, says Fr. Conroy.
In 1973, Fr. Arrupe coined the term “men for others” to describe the Jesuit way, a phrase that has since become a theme of Jesuit education worldwide as “men and women for others.” His life has inspired the current Pope Francis, who was studying theology at the time of Fr. Arrupe’s election to Superior General. “A lot of the leadership of Pope Francis is flowing out of the Second Vatican Council and the Society of Jesus with its congregations,” Fr. Conroy said.
In 1981, Fr. Arrupe’s stroke seriously debilitated his ability to speak and to walk; he eventually lost both of these skills completely. Fr. Arrupe resigned as Superior General of the Jesuits as a result of his stroke, but Pope St. John Paul II, rather than appointing Arrupe’s choice for interim Superior General, chose one himself. Many Jesuits viewed this as an unwarranted interference in Jesuit affairs and Vatican officials expected the Jesuits to protest or display disobedience. However, Fr. Conroy pointed out that Fr. Arrupe, despite his physical weakness, was “still in charge… this is what he said: ‘I respect and I obey the Holy Father, and I expect every Jesuit in the world to do the same thing.’” The Jesuit disobedience that the Vatican expected did not come to pass.
Fr. Conroy ended his thoughts by asking, “What makes a profound person? Integrity, courage, depth of spirituality, vision, humility, action, love of God and love of your brothers and sisters. Those are the impressions I have of Pedro.”
Grant is a senior studying Information Systems at the Carroll School of Management. He keeps busy by studying and writing for The Torch.
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