A meeting of MAGIS Movement, bringing together Jesuit and Ignatian Young Adult Ministry, took place in Rome in early January. Its motive was to listen to the cry of young people today and to discern how God might be asking us to respond.

All around the world, young people are crying out. They cry out for meaning, for employment, for equality, for peace. We see young migrants voting with their feet and heading for places of opportunity. We see young people in Ukraine and Gaza and so many other places clearing up after yet more bombs have fallen.

During the meeting, participants visited the international scholastic community at the Gesù, joining young Jesuits studying in Rome to exchange ideas, dream, and celebrate the Eucharist together. PV Joseph, SJ, organizer of the gathering who was himself part of this community when he was a scholastic in Rome, preached about the situation in his home country of Myanmar. “Young people in Myanmar are living through unimaginable suffering”, he said. “Many have lost family members, their homes, their futures. And yet, in the midst of all this, they are searching for hope, for meaning, for God. They remind me that our mission is not just to offer programmes, but to walk alongside young people in their pain and help them discover that God is present even in the darkest moments.”

Four Doorways to Depth

The MAGIS movement offers a range of opportunities grouped around four different pathways. Young people can choose the pathway that most calls out to them:

• The pathway of spirituality – how to find God in a personal and passionate way.

• The pathway of the arts – poetry, music, art, and literature, and how they can draw us deeper into the human spirit.

• The pathway of personal growth – offering exercises both spiritual and psychological for mental and spiritual health.

• The pathway of service – reaching out to others, especially those on the margins. This pathway takes us beyond our comfort zones, where we see new horizons and become transformed.

“The MAGIS movement has its roots in the 500-year-old vision of St Ignatius Loyola. He was on fire with a desire to ‘help souls’”, said Fr John Dardis, SJ. “So many people today have a sense that they’re losing their souls – to globalization, to individualism, to consumerism. The phrase ‘to help souls’ has become once again a phrase that is packed with meaning and potential.”

The week concluded on Sunday evening, when the group gathered at Sant’Andrea al Quirinale – Bernini’s jewel of a church and the place where the young Jesuit saint Stanislaus Kostka died – to celebrate Mass with young adults from the Euro-Mediterranean Province. They welcomed the participants to their weekly Mass, usually followed by a shared dinner.

It was a powerful reminder that the MAGIS movement is not built from the top down, but grows from these local communities of young people who are already seeking depth and meaning in their lives.

To find out more, stay tuned to our Magis Instagram profile or join the next event of Magis Digital Home here.

To learn more about the Magis Think In gathering that took place in early January in Rome, read our article “Lift Off for MAGIS: Young Adults Answering the Call”.