Jesuits are also present in the Russian Region

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During his stay in Poland, Father General Arturo Sosa had the opportunity to learn about the work of the Jesuits in the Russian Region. This independent region is associated to the Society of Jesus of Poland and several of the Jesuits who work there are of Polish origin. At the end of his visit to the Polish Provinces, Father General received the final vows of three Jesuits, Piotr Kropisz, Tadeusz Drozdowicz and Stephan Liepke. The latter two, Tadeusz and Stephan, work in the Russian Region and live in Moscow.

Siberia, this northern region of Russia known mainly in the West because it was synonymous with exile for dissidents to the Soviet regime, also hosts Jesuits in Novosibirsk and Tomsk. The parish priest of Our Lady Queen of the Holy Rosary parish, in Tomsk, Fr. Wojciech Ziólek, gave us a portrait of the Jesuits’ commitments in the region.

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“We strive to do everything possible, to develop every dimension of the Jesuit apostolate, from direct pastoral care and Spiritual Exercises to intellectual apostolate, social apostolate, work with the poor, interreligious dialogue and ecumenism, focusing our attention on relations with the Orthodox Church. We do this in an institutional way, but also in the contacts and daily work from our residences.”

He continues, “It is worth pointing out that the Russian Region not only includes Russia but also Kyrgyzstan and Belarus, which are former Soviet republics. Indeed, each area of the region has its own specific characteristics and challenges. In our community, in Tomsk, we run a parish, a school and small pastoral centres in the villages of the region. We are three Jesuit priests with two scholastics. Our objective, through all our activities, is to show that the priest is not a distant person but that he is rather very close to people and that his task is to nourish in people a proximity with God.”

In addition, we invite you to look at this short - and strong - testimony of a young Russian Jesuit in formation, who speaks to us about his vocation. His name is Michail Tkalich.

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Posted by Communications Office - Editor in Curia Generalizia
Communications Office
The Communications Office of the General Curia publishes news of international scope on the central government of the Society of Jesus and on the commitments of the Jesuits and their partners. It also handles media relations.

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