Fr. Sakuma: From your place in Rome where the Society of Jesus has its headquarters, and your viewpoint as Superior General guiding Jesuit societies across the world, what are your expectations with regard to Jesuit schools in Japan? Fr. Sosa: The Society of Jesus is responsible for around 2,000 educational institutions and schools, including 80 universities worldwide. The universities especially are spaces of dialogue, with possibilities for the creation of new ideas and ways of life. One of the most critical challenges fac-ing our universities today is collaboration and networking. The International Association of Jesuit Universities was launched last year, with the specific goal of forming a net-work of learning institutes, based on both a common mis-sion and a vision of finding ways to aid the wider world. I encourage Sophia University to actively engage with this international network. Fr. Sakuma: Within Japanese society which includes rel-atively few Christians, how should we go about tackling the issue of collaboration between our institutes of learn-ing and their surrounding communities? How can Jesuit schools best utilize their strengths within Japanese culture, a culture having its own diversity of features, regardless of whether they are religious or non-religious? At the frontiers of the non-Christian world, what sort of challenges do Je-suit or Catholic schools face? Fr. Sosa: The word “catholic” means “universal.” It is ac-cordingly something vital to everybody, regardless of race, nationality, language, or culture. Catholic education is not just for Catholics, but for all human beings. In nations where Catholics are a minority and secularization is evi-dent, there lie greater prospects of exercising truly personal choices, that harmonize with the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola. In societies having greater freedom of choice, there are people who have chosen to be Christian or Catho-lic. They have the power to express and advocate Christian faith, which is why I believe that being in a minority situa-tion offers fresh opportunities. Pres. Terumichi: Given the current state of Japanese so-ciety and the political economy of the global community, including the issue of social security, it is indeed logical for students to adopt a short-term perspective, in the sense that they seek to focus on ensuring a stable future for themselves. However, this indicates an inclination to focus hopes on the type of learning that produces practical results. In view of this, I believe it vital that we drive home our educational spirit of “Men and Women for Others, with Others” at an early stage. Given these circumstances, how may we convey to our students and society the significance of learning in a Jesuit environment? Please share with us any advice you may have. Fr. Sosa: There has always been a tension between market-ing, education, and human formation, and this is something very vital. It will never go away. This tension should actually be sustained, since it serves to remind us that we, in this technology-centered age, are nurturing human beings. We are part of a society, and this society needs to be gov-erned. Society has to set and achieve defined goals. Politi-cal participation is also essential in checking how public Fr. Arturo Sosa, S.J.Superior General of the Society of JesusFr. Tsutomu Sakuma, S.J.Chancellor of Sophia School CorporationYoshiaki TerumichiPresident of Sophia UniversitySpecial Talk7
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