[From “Jesuits 2023 - The Society of Jesus in the world”]

“MAG+S” is a global movement enabling Ignatian spirituality to be experienced around the World Youth Day events that have such huge impact on so many young people.

But magis is actually a facet or trait of - or even more than that - a lifelong goal of Ignatian spirituality that is constantly promoted outside WYD meetings. It should come as no surprise to learn that in several countries pastoral youth ministry or social programmes have adopted the name MAGIS.

Here below you will find two interesting examples of different versions of the MAGIS “brand” in Spain and Cambodia.

Mag+s UNIJES - Vocational Culture in universities

Raquel Sanz Velasco - UNIJES - Vocational Culture, Province of Spain

“Vocational Culture” began in 2019 as a project in Jesuit universities in Spain (UNIJES) to “accompany young people in the creation of a hopeful future” (Third Universal Apostolic Preference).

At MAG+S, we want to help them to develop their vocation in a holistic, integrated fashion. Following Jesus affects the whole of life, from the professional arena to the personal and spiritual.

The various options we offer include discernment workshops, opportunities for service, courses on Ignatian identity or “More than...” meetings for young people in professions such as Law, Economics, Psychology, Education, Science or Healthcare.

At a “More than...” event, young people studying the same subject, or in the initial years of their working life get the chance to go deeper than the knowledge or skills they are acquiring day-to-day in their classes, internships or jobs.

These events offer a space for young people to deepen their self-knowledge, pray and reflect on how to lead a professional life as people of faith. They also share personal experiences and listen to inspiring testimonies from Christian professionals.

“Since ‘More than... education’ I see my daily activity, centred on Jesus, in a new light.” (Juan)

“I want to end my PhD as a better, more loving person, learning who I want to be (and who I don’t), what I want to be like (and what I definitely don’t want to be like) in the world.” (Ana)

MAG+S is creating a network of robust professionals who feel driven to fully inhabit and give their all to the vocation to which they feel God is calling them. Ultimately, isn’t that what Ignatian magis is all about?

MAGIS links Cambodia with Hong Kong

Alan Ting Yuet Wong, SJ - Chinese Province

How does Wah Yan College, Hong Kong, help its students to work for a more just world? One way has been, for this Jesuit secondary school catering to mostly non-Catholic middle-class students, through the MAGIS Cambodia immersions. MAGIS Cambodia challenges graduates to move beyond their comfort zones, to experience and to develop relationships that hopefully create new horizons.

The MAGIS day consists of various activities such as farming, interacting with local children, exploring Cambodian history and, most importantly, is structured around the Ignatian worldview of prayer, Mass, Examen and sharing about their day. The opportunities to share on a deeper personal level after the pressures of exams and the conclusion of their school life is immensely rewarding, essentially to know that you are loved and cared for, irrespective of your future academic achievements. In other words, it aims to close the gap between who the students think they can be and what God calls them to be.

The 2005 World Youth Day MAGIS event inspired the religion teachers of Wah Yan College Hong Kong to initiate MAGIS events within the school. In the words of one teacher, MAGIS programmes, through the Ignatian framework, help them learn more “about self, others, the world and God.” Or in other words, MAGIS allows the participants to apply the theories learnt over the years, and put them into practice, to live and work with others for the common good of humanity.