Following the recent launch of the mission partner formation landing page – an important milestone in our shared journey – this article offers a more personal perspective behind the initiative. We speak with Manuel Martínez, Assistant for Mission Partnership at the General Curia, to learn more about the vision, background, and hopes guiding this work.

Tell us about yourself and the journey that has led you to this role

I am 39 years old, and I was born in Montevideo, Uruguay. My life and faith journey has been deeply shaped by Ignatian spirituality. From a young age, I was formed in a Jesuit school, and later I pursued my university studies at the Catholic University of Uruguay, also entrusted to the Jesuits. Since 2005, I have been a member of the Christian Life Community (CLC), the place where I choose to live my faith in community – a space of encounter, discernment, celebration, and commitment. It is both a gift and a mission, where I seek to follow Jesus in everyday life, inspired by the Spiritual Exercises.

In December 2023, I married Leticia, and today we live in Nyon, Switzerland. Family is a fundamental pillar for me – a place where love, faith, and shared commitment are nurtured. I consider myself a calm, reflective person with a good capacity for listening. I enjoy reading, music, and writing. I am naturally drawn to the humanities and seek to live each stage of life with depth and a sense of community.

How has your background prepared you for this responsibility?

My experience as Executive Secretary of the Christian Life Community (CVX/CLC) in Rome was a true school of life and mission. CLC is a lay, apostolic, and Ignatian community that taught me to live the following of Jesus from everyday life, in deep communion with others, and in service to the world. Leading its Executive Secretariat meant accompanying processes, nurturing relationships, and supporting a global mission through listening, discernment, and organization.

It was also a unique opportunity to experience the heart of the Ignatian family: that living fabric of laypeople, religious men and women, who share the same spirituality and the same desire to serve. In this sense, I learned to collaborate closely with the Society of Jesus, recognizing our diversity, but also the deep unity that binds us in the mission. Being in Rome also allowed me to get to know the work of the Jesuit General Curia up close. It was a grace to come into contact with many Jesuits deeply committed to the mission and to discover from within how the apostolic life of the Society is sustained, encouraged, and propelled globally. Along the way, I had the opportunity to collaborate with Fr John Dardis, SJ, on various projects he invited me to, which allowed me to learn, contribute from my experience, and further strengthen the bond between CVX and the Society of Jesus.

Tell us about your new role

All that journey has prepared me to take on, with gratitude and responsibility, the role of Assistant for Mission Partnership today. I feel it is a natural continuation of that path: continuing to weave networks, build bridges, and accompany processes that arise from common discernment and the desire to serve better.

What are your main priorities as you step into this position?

In taking on this service as Assistant for Mission Partnership, my first priority is to listen and fully understand the journey that has been traveled so far. This is a project that already has roots, though it is still in its early stages, so I want to contribute to consolidating it with patience, dialogue, and vision.

One of the first focuses will be to continue gathering and organizing formation resources on Shared Mission, so that they are available and accessible to the entire network. I will also keep nurturing, the collaborative platform alongside others who are already carrying out this formative role within the different Conferences of Major Superiors and apostolic sectors of the Society of Jesus.

I also want to create spaces for listening and participation, through webinars or meetings, and accompany the process of conceptualizing the Shared Mission, contributing from my experience, gathering key voices, and helping Father General have valuable elements for the next meeting with the Major Superiors in October 2025.

Beyond the concrete tasks, my priority is to offer a presence that is available, committed, and in tune with the Ignatian way of proceeding, to help ensure that collaboration in the mission continues to grow with depth, creativity, and apostolic purpose.

How can people support you in this new position?

This is a time to build together. That’s how I feel. And I believe we are not starting from scratch: a lot of ground has already been covered, with many valuable experiences that show that Shared Mission between laypeople and Jesuits is not only possible, but deeply fruitful.

I encourage you to join in: share resources, bring ideas closer, tell what you are experiencing in your communities, in your works, in your contexts. Stay in touch, open up the dialogue, and be bold enough to say what works and also what is challenging.

We’ve been talking about collaboration for years, and I’m still amazed at how so many laypeople and Jesuits work side by side, with great commitment, generosity, and creativity. It’s not about dividing tasks, but about a shared vocation, where each one, from their identity and faith, contributes to the common mission of announcing the Gospel and making it live in concrete ways.

Collaboration between laypeople and Jesuits is not a strategy or a trend, but an essential part of our Ignatian spirituality. Now more than ever, in a world that challenges us to give deep and credible responses, walking together becomes indispensable. We are co-responsible for the mission.

It’s time to recognize what is already bearing fruit, identify best practices, and discern how to keep moving forward. None of this can be done in solitude. Every contribution matter, no matter how small it may seem. I am convinced that what we need to keep growing is already among us. We just need to open our eyes, share it, and put it at the service of all.