In the midst of  2020’s racial unrest, the North American Racial Justice Initiative was born. Together the U.S. Province and the Canadian Provinces formalized a plan to examine “Our Spiritan Mission in the Context of Racism” and to address the issue of racial injustice within our Spiritan community and ministries.

The initiative was envisioned as a long-term commitment, with goals to:

1. Provide opportunities for Province members to listen and learn from each other.
2. Provide opportunities for all Province members to learn more about institutional racism within the Church and our country.
3. Reflect together on how our experience as an intercultural community enriches our Spiritan mission as we live it out in our local Spiritan communities, parishes, and educational institutions.

The process began with a series of listening sessions, the development of action items, and two virtual town hall meetings, featuring speakers who could provide further education on topics of racial justice. 

The work continues 5 years later. This year, during Black History Month, the North American Racial Justice Initiative hosted a webinar entitled “Racial Justice in Response to Catholic Social Teaching” featuring speaker Fr. Gregory Chisholm, S.J. and a Spiritan response from Fr. Jeffrey Duaime, C.S.Sp., and Fr. Francis Tandoh, C.S.Sp. 

Fr. Gregory Chilsolm, a Jesuit priest who has served in many diverse parishes around the country, spoke about racial justice as a pastoral reality. He also referenced Pope Francis’s most recent encyclical Dilexit Nos and how it can be applied to the sin of racism. Fr. Jeff Duaime followed up with perspective from the Congregation as a whole about the importance and priority of interculturality. He referenced the framework laid out in  “Living Mission Interculturally” by Fr. Tony Gittens, C.S.Sp., for creating “communities of radical welcome.” Fr. Francis Tandoh discussed racial justice from a parish perspective based on his experience in West Dayton, OH. He showed through examples in his parish how education and relationship building can help address issues of racism and create change. 

These talks were followed up by a round of questions and answers allowing all members to further explore what was discussed throughout the webinar.

As the Provincial Council stated in “Our Spiritan Mission in the Context of Racism” in  2020, “As Spiritans, we are deeply impacted by the social reality in which we live. We are called to respond concretely to the challenges we face and the people we serve.  We have an important contribution to make through our Spiritan mission and charism.” The journey continues, and we remain dedicated to working for a more just world free of the sin of racism. 

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