22 November 2018

For and with others...truly

Article by Mr Caleb Ryan

For and with others...truly

Between September 29th until October 17th this year, Alicia Deak and Caleb Ryan, were part of an Ignatian Leadership Pilgrimage that retraces the steps of Saint Ignatius of Loyola.

I’ve never travelled to Europe before.

Not being accustomed to long flights that span more than one continent, meant that my initial appreciation for genuine hospitality on the Ignatian Leadership Pilgrimage was for the Emirates Airlines staff and the impeccable service they provided to me and my fellow pilgrims on the Melbourne to Dubai flight on our way to Paris. No offence to Jetstar (wink, wink, nudge, nudge), but good blimey, what a difference some old fashioned customer service can make! And for the record, I don’t have any commercial affiliation with Emirates Australia and certainly receive no financial acknowledgment for my affirming commentary. Their service was very good is my point, and friendly.

The hospitable care provided by the delightful cabin crew in-route to France set the tone for a series of experiences, and especially interactions with human beings, that I can honestly say has gifted me with a more humbled insight into what it means to truly serve others, and perhaps more importantly, be authentically with them as you do.

Our time in Paris was a whirlwind and despite spending just three jam packed nights in the “City of Lights”, I could take up the entirety of this article celebrating the French capital’s beauty and charm. I’ll return for sure. We walked the streets of Paris for a full day under the tireless guidance of 94-year-old Jesuit priest, Father Bernard Gillibert. The group of pilgrims (all under 50) struggled to keep up with this most resilient of characters as he explained stuff, pointed things out, and toddled off again here and there, all the while educating us on how life might have been for a young Inigo of Loyola living in Paris more than 500 years earlier. We were all struck by his generosity of his spirit, energy and companionship.

We left Paris and Father Gillibert, on a fast train to a town in the Basque country of Spain (located in the North) called Azpeitia; the birth place and childhood village of Inigo of Loyola (as a student of history and geography I was surprised to find that Loyola is a region, rather than a town). In Azpeitia, we stayed in a recently (and superbly) renovated convent with the sisters of ‘The House of Spirituality; Jesus and Mary’. The sisters who have chosen a vocation of hospitality and service, were a daily posse of happy faces and provided a quiet presence that met our every need, with joy and happiness. Their gentle commitment to service and providence left me filled with gratitude and I loved seeing their faces in the morning and at night as I passed the kitchen and watched them dry the dishes one by one, together.

An eagerness to serve and accompany us would become a constant characteristic of the people we engaged on the pilgrimage. I shared the trip with my much younger, fitter and as I would discover, more intelligent colleague, Ms Alicia Deak. As part of a pilgrim group of eighteen, we were consistently blessed with the presence of living angels along the journey. There was an elderly gentleman named Paco, in Azpeitia, who honoured us with nostalgic anecdotes of growing up in the same village as Inigo and attending the same church, a church he still attends every Sunday. Amaia, was a Basque tour guide who didn’t fuss regardless of what we asked of her, and Father Louis (SJ) at ‘La Cova’ (the Cave) Jesuit Retreat Centre in Manresa, Spain, offered me a simple, yet deeply informative, appraisal of Rembrant’s ‘The Prodigal Son’. His sermon in motion (we were walking the streets of Manresa at the time), will stay with me for life. Finally, in Rome, we stayed with the ‘Minim Sisters of the Scared Heart’ in a small accommodation building not far from The Vatican.

Sisters Ferdinanda, Titziana and Juliana, epitomized what it authentically means to be for and with others. They have given their life to providing accommodation and care for guests of their quaint little hostel. They accompanied us with their touch, their smiles, their cheeky humour (especially Titziana; a real cracker!) and their grace. I was particularly moved by a thought that when sisters like these three go to God, as inevitably they will and many sooner rather than later, who then will accompany the young North African refugee men that these beautiful women feed on a daily basis? Who will provide protection and warmth to the pilgrims at their door like Alicia and I who have ventured across the globe seeking soul food and a depth of experience?

If not them, who will be for and with others today, and tomorrow?

On our last night in Rome, I looked into the youthfully radiant eyes of a ninety-three-year-old Sister Ferdinanda and (emotionally it must be said), realized I may never see her again. I promised myself in this moment, that I for one would have a bit of a go when it comes to this for and with others stuff.

Caleb Ryan Learning Area Leader Religious Education

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