Photo by David McMahon.
“My life has always circled around Ignatian spirituality”, said Jesuit Education Australasia (JEA) Executive Director Barbara Watkins (pictured above) in an interview published on 21 February.
She said taking on the role “does not include a personal sense of wanting to create something; it’s more about accompaniment and about being strong in Jesuit spirituality while emphasising who we really are … and we do this with a collaborative approach.
“In terms of staying within Ignatian spirituality, I was deeply formed at St Aloysius and then this was further deepened whilst at Loreto Normanhurst. You cherish all those stories you hear and all that history, as well as an understanding of what it means to be truly Ignatian. It’s interesting to note the influence that St Ignatius had on Mary Ward. The Constitutions and that overall influence of St Ignatius and Mary Ward were incredibly valuable to me.
“Although I have never been to Manresa, I found my way to that element through the Mary Ward stories. Her own deep connection with the Jesuits and Ignatian sprituality formed her but it also formed my life in significant ways. At Loreto Normanhurst we had a boarding school of 200 students and luckily I had all these connections with a group of amazing Jesuits who would come up and say Mass for us on a Sunday nights for the Boarders or on special occasions. The Jesuit commitment and way of life are a very big part of who I am.
Read the whole interview here: Inspired by the Jesuit way.
Banner image by Torsten Dettlaff, Canva.