My dear friends,
For quite some time now, we have been releasing the issue for the last quarter of the year on a day we celebrate as Children’s Day here in India. So here is the last issue for this year, 2026, dated October-December 2026.
The articles in this issue bring you not merely ideas but precious, treasured experiences. Kinley Tshering, SJ (DAN), the Episcopal Vicar in charge of Bhutan, reminisces about his 40 years as a Jesuit. He recalls an encounter on a plane that confirmed his call to become a Jesuit priest. Guess who could have told him, “I have not said this to many young people, but you have a vocation. Don’t be afraid.” It was Mother Teresa – St. Teresa of Kolkota.
Says Kinley, “I began this journey wanting to give my life to God. Forty years later, I realize how much of my life has been sustained by God’s gift to me. I am still a pilgrim, still imperfect and still learning to trust.… And if there is one conviction I carry with me after forty years as a Jesuit, it is this: God has been far more faithful to me than I have ever been to God… That is my joy, my hope and my reason to keep walking towards the Promised Land.”
The October Special by Cedric Prakash, SJ (GUJ) laments the fact that “many families just do not seem to find the time for daily family prayer. This is a sad commentary on the fragmentation of family life. The Rosary Crusader, late Fr. Patrick Peyton used to say, “a family that prays together, stays together!”… He also reminds us of what our wonderful Pope said on 1 October 2026. “This year, Pope Leo XIV has called on us to pray the Rosary daily throughout October for world peace, reconciliation, and an end to all global conflicts.”
Another excellent article, by Vinod Fernandes, SJ (JAM), explains how our alumni can become our apostolic partners. What is truly heartening is that he gives plenty of examples of what our alumni are already doing to further our UAPs. He gives us confidence that Jesuit alumni “can move beyond being beneficiaries or occasional supporters of Jesuit institutions and become co-responsible partners in the mission.”
P.A. Chacko, SJ (DUM) says in his article, titled, ‘Do you Hear the Distress Call of Creation?,’ “We need to recognize that the “cry of the earth” and the “cry of the poor” are the same. To recognize “the cry of the earth” and “the cry of the poor” we should be able to activate our sense of empathy. Our hearts should be able to listen to the poignant “groaning of the whole creation” (Rom.8:22) in all its complexities…With a heart to listen, we shall hear the distress call of the forest being cleared, the agony of birds and animals fleeing to escape the disasters…”
Ms. Amy Saldanha from the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, Mount St. Joseph, Bengaluru describes the impact of a 19th Annotation Retreat preached by Fr. Balaraju, SJ (KAR), her Parish Priest. She calls it ‘34 Week Ignatian Home Retreat’. “Sometimes, we can feel that our life is lost, and it has nothing to offer us anymore. God has shown me that our life can blossom again, like the green shoot, pushing through, when we allow God back into our lives….This is what I have experienced after the Ignatian Home Retreat.”
If you read the short story of John Philips, SJ (MDU) in this issue, you will easily understand the thoughts and feelings of Jairus, an official of the local synagogue, who falls at the feet of Jesus to ask for a favour (Mark 5: 21 -43). “It was the faint, uneven breathing of my daughter as she lay dying. She was only a child. Her little hands, which once reached for mine without hesitation, lay motionless beneath a thin blanket. Her lips had lost their colour. Every breath seemed to demand an effort her tiny body could no longer afford.”
So there is plenty here in this issue of INI. Read and savour the articles and send the link to all your friends. A blessed Christmas and a new year of global peace!
– M.A. Joe Antony, SJ
Editor