At the end of the annual meeting of European Jesuits in Formation (EJIF), the delegates choose three members to be part of the Coordinating Committee (CoCo), that prepares the meeting of the following year. For 2024, the members of the CoCo are: Jakub Majchrzak, PMA, doing his regency in Poland, accompanying university students in Spiritual Exercises; Joseph Ashraf, PRO, who is in his third year of philosophy, in Lebanon; and Vasco Lucas Pires, POR, who also studies philosophy, but in Rome. All three entered the Society of Jesus in 2019. Between January 1st and January 5th, the CoCo met in Brussels, with Fr. Dalibor Renić and Fr. Hermínio Rico, to prepare gathering of 2024, in Denmark. Unfortunately, Joseph was not able to fly to Belgium, being present online. Being this also a time of formation, this year’s EJIF will try to make us discover God that reveals Himself in all realities and that calls us to contemplate His Incarnation and to collaborate with Him in His mission of reconciliation. As suggested by last year’s delegates, we want to go to some frontier. We will explore the idea of collaboration in Christ’s mission in the secularized world, having as starting point the reality of Denmark. Not just the EJIF (one of the oldest and maybe most successful networks in the JCEP), but also the whole preparation is a beautiful experience of the International Society, allowing the collaboration between Jesuits of different Provinces and cultures. EJIF CoCO Jakub, Joseph and Vasco  

From July 19 to August 19, eighteen scholastics from the European Conference's provinces gathered in Portugal for the EJIF meeting. This year's EJIF, as in 2016, included the participation in MAGIS and World Youth Day. After 3 days together in "Casa de Exercícios de Santo Inácio", in Sintra, where the group had the chance to get to know each other, Lisbon was the next stop in the way: MAGIS was taking place! Having in mind the way of living of the first companions, the Jesuits in formation went 2 by 2 to the different experiences. In WYD the same "style" was kept: the JIFs were present, 2 by 2, in the Vocation Fair, where people could get to know better the Society of Jesus and the Ignatian Spirituality. After this time full of activities, the group gathered again in Sintra for two days of sharing the graces God has given during the apostolic time of MAGIS and WYD. After that, Spiritual Exercises took place in Coimbra, guided by Alzira Fernandes, with the presence of Pedro Cameira SJ and Marco Cunha SJ, who were sharing the task of spiritual accompaniment. Alzira is a lay woman with a vast experience in spiritual accompaniment, Ignatian spirituality and Spiritual Exercises, a long-term collaborator in Christ's mission of pointing God through discernment and the Spiritual Exercises: she is a good friend of the Society and of the Community of Taizé. She also works in the formation at Braga's Diocesan Seminary. In the evaluation at the end of the month-long EJIF, two main sources of consolation where identified: the first, this evangelical experience of being gathered, sent forth and then gathered again, which gave the group the experience of being sent as apostles and, also as apostles, being invited to come and rest in the Lord, sharing the full nets after their work. The second, the beauty of the welcoming environment felt in Portugal, that much helped this group to build roots and friendship in the Lord. In the last day, as usual, the new Coordinating Team (CoCo) for EJIF 2024 was elected: Jakub Majchrzak (PMA), Joseph Nassif (PRO) and Vasco Lucas Pires (POR) are the three Jesuits in formation proposed for leading next year’s EJIF. Eduardo Amaral (POR) EJIF 2023 Coordinator

Coinciding with the end of the Ignatian year, the EJiF – European Jesuits in Formation - has taken place in Spain this summer. 14 Jesuits in formation from all over the Conference made a journey guided by the topic “Returning to the roots”. Fr. General met twice with the group, at the beginning, in Barcelona, and at the end, in Loyola. He reminded us that the Ignatian year has been a time of inner transformation “to see all things new in Christ”. Ignatius experienced a conversion, a process that started with a cannon ball and continued to take place every day throughout all his life. This means that, each day, he put Christ in the center. Those are the roots of the experience of Ignatius. Looking for those roots, the EJiF visited some of the first places of the conversion of Ignatius in Manresa and Barcelona. At the same time, as the roots are alive, the group reflected about the Universal Apostolic Preferences of today and experienced in different ways how they are incarnated, through visits to present day Jesuit works in Barcelona. The 8-day Spiritual Exercises took place in Barcelona, directed by Pablo Veiga (ESP). After that, the group moved to Loyola to finish the meeting with the closing mass of the Ignatian year, the evaluation of the meeting and the election of the new CoCo: Francisco Delgado (ESP), Eduardo Amaral (POR) and Pavel Band’ouch (BOH) (Left to right). The EJiF 2023 will take place in Portugal, from mid-July to mid-August, including within it the participation in MAGIS 2023 and World Youth Day in Lisbon. Luis Delgado S.J.

At the beginning of the year, we had in Brussels the first face to face meeting for the organization of the EJiF 2022. The participants were two of the members of the CoCo (the Coordinating Committee), Karol Klimaszyk sj (PMA) and Luis Delgado sj (ESP), the President of the Conference, Franck Janin sj, and his Assistant, Herminio Rico sj. Unfortunately, Filippo Carlomagno (EUM) could not travel to Brussels due to a Covid quarantine in Rome, but he participated in the meetings through Zoom. The work done the previous months was shared and the schedule of the EJiF was discussed. The EJiF 2022 will take place at the end of the Ignatian Year in Spain, between 13th July and 3rd August. We will meet successively in Barcelona, Manresa and Loyola, three main cities of the beginning of the experience of Ignatius, a conversion that was developing every day all throughout his life. The proposed path for this summer goes hand in hand with the topic of this EJiF edition: “Returning to the roots”. Luis Delgado (ESP) Coordinator of the EJiF 2022 CoCo

After having been limited last year, by the pandemic, to a brief online meeting, this summer, EJIF-European Jesuits in Formation returned to its traditional format. Representatives of the JCEP provinces met in South Poland from the end of July to the third week of August. The general theme was the motto of the Ignatian Year – to see all things new in Christ – with a particular accent on poverty. The gathering opened with a Zoom conversation with Father General. St. Ignatius day was celebrated with the Jesuits of Krakow in a mass presided by the PME Provincial Fr. Jaroslaw Paszynski. There followed a visit to Auschwitz and 3 days of experiments Magis-style in which they contacted with elderly people and orphans, with a daily time of shared reflection on the experience. The 8-day Spiritual Exercises took place in Stara Wieś, directed by Javier Melloni (ESP). At the end, there was time for the evaluation of the meeting and the election of the new CoCo. The JCEP President, Franck Janin, accompanied the group in the opening days and at the conclusion. A big thank you to the 2021 organising CoCo: Domingos Perloiro (POR) Michał Król (PME) and Sébastien Majchrzak (EOF). And best wishes for the new CoCo as they are already planning next year’s EJIF: Luis Delgado del Valle (ESP), Filippo Carlomagno (EUM) and Karol Klimaszyk (PMA). The new Coco with Fr. Janin and the old Coco

The 2021 EJIF meeting will take place in the area of Krakow, in the South Poland Province, from the 29th of July to the 19th of August. The theme of the Ignatian year, “See all things new in Christ”, will guide the delegates of the Jesuits in formation from all over Europe during these days. The main goals of this meeting are: a) to experience the belonging to the universal body of the Society of Jesus; b) to share the Spiritual Exercises as a common spiritual root; and c) to move towards the conversion of heart as Father General asks, especially in what concerns our vow of poverty. Three scholastics, Domingos Perloiro (POR), Sébastien Majchrzak (EOF) and Michal Król (PME), will take the responsibility, together with the Conference of European Provincials, of preparing and leading the meeting. Domingos is in the Juniorate, studying Philosophy and Humanities, in Pedro Arrupe Community, in Braga, Portugal. He will move to the San Saba Community (Rome), in September, to finish his studies of Philosophy. Sébastien is in the second year of a five-year cycle of studies in Philosophy and Theology, in Centre Sèvres, in Paris. He lives in Saint Pierre Favre Community. Michal is a second-year theology student at the Jesuit Academy Collegium Bobolanum, living in the college community. He would like to work in the pastoral ministry and will be ordained deacon next year.