In a chapel at La Storta, while journeying to Rome with two companions, Ignatius had a vision of being placed alongside Jesus as he carried his cross. This vision inspired Ignatius to continue his pilgrimage to Rome and to seek his blessing for his work. Once in Rome, and after being favorably received by the Pope, Ignatius and his companions decided to found the Jesuits, La Compañia de Jesus, to better live out their call to walk alongside the crucified. For Ignatius, and those who follow in the wake of his pilgrimage of personal and spiritual growth, what emerges from this period is the necessity of walking and acting with the marginalized to call out and resist systems of oppression. The end of his journey to Rome was the start of another, unceasing journey towards justice.

As Heidi Kallen, the Field Education Supervisor at the Jesuit School of Theology, offers in her video reflection, the vision of La Storta shaped how Ignatius thought of the mission of the Jesuits and the work we do at a place like SCU. Through her experience on an immersion to the Kino Border Initiative, she saw the ways we are still called to walk with the excluded as companions in mission. To respond to the challenges of today, we must take them on in the company of one another. Through our final image for reflection, Tony Cortese, Director of Ignatian Spirituality in the Ignatian Center, links us to Heidi’s experience on the border and asks us to think about those we are called to walk with on our own journeys.

As we end this Mission Monday pilgrimage and wrap up the Ignatian Year, it is time to reflect. How are we called to be part of something greater than ourselves? How are we called to respond to the myriad of injustices that take place in our neighborhoods, cities, states, countries, and the wider world? Like Ignatius, we must stand in solidarity with those who have been marginalized in order to bring about transformative and inclusive change. Like Ignatius, we cannot do it alone.  

The core of Ignatian spirituality is the process through which our experiences lead us into periods of reflection followed by direct action. This process is never complete but is a constant flow from one state to another. Each new experience requires us to respond with reflective pauses before we can offer positive transformative actions and responses. And this journey will never be complete. We will constantly need to return to those moments that shaped our path; to reorient ourselves in new contexts; to grow and explore; and be ready to face the new challenges and injustices that will undoubtedly and unfortunately rise before us.

^{Photo Credit: Chuck Barry}

Questions for reflection:

• After watching Heidi's video and reflecting on the photo of the migrant burial site in Pima County Arizona, where do you encounter the Crucified One among us? Who do you see that is suffering, abandoned, or alone? Who might need your companionship?
• Ignatius walked the road with his friends, never alone. Who are your companions in mission? Who are your friends and companions that remind you of your mission and our identity? Who comforts and strengthens you to continue our journey of faith and walk with the Crucified One?