COMPANIONS IN THE IGNATIAN JOURNEY
A Continuing Formation Program
in honor of Fr. Daniel McNamara, SJ. and Fr. Francis Reilly, S.J.
May 30, 2008
Dear Friends of Fr. McNamara, S.J. and Fr. Reilly, S.J.,
This year, we are celebrating the 29th Anniversary of Seniors' Ignatian Silent Retreats. Fr. Francis E. Reilly, S.J. began giving Ignatian retreats to groups of graduating college students during Holy Week in 1979. This apostolate grew, and other Jesuit priests soon joined Fr. Reilly in this effort, notably, Fr. Daniel McNamara, S.J., Fr. Roque Ferriols, S.J. and Fr. Bart Lahiff, S.J. Today, the Seniors' 8-day Retreat has become a firm tradition among scores of graduating students at the Ateneo.
In support of this tradition, a core group of friends and former students first launched the Spiritual Development Fund in honor of Fr. Reilly in November 1996. To date, the fund generated is used to subsidize 8-day retreats for Ateneo senior college students who cannot
afford to pay for the retreat.
Fr. McNamara has continued the spiritual tradition which Fr. Reilly began. Since 1980, Fr. McNamara has been helping in the Ateneo seniors' 8-day retreat. He has also shared in the mission of helping the alumni to sustain the fruits of their Ignatian spiritual exercises
beyond the retreats by giving alumni recollections and celebrating Mass during the Feast of Christ the King and Palm Sunday. During the early 1990s, Fr. McNamara and a few alumni from the Seniors' 8-day retreats started the 3rd Sunday Recollection and Mass which is held at least once a month at the Ateneo.
We understand and feel deeply about the mission of Fr. McNamara, Fr. Reilly and the other Jesuits because through their sincere and passionate efforts, we have been moved in many ways. We would like to continue this mission and we desire to invite more fellow Ateneo alumni to join this Ignatian journey. Thus, we are synergizing our efforts to set up the Companions in the Ignatian Journey in honor of Fr. McNamara and Fr. Reilly. As a continuing formation program, Companions in the Ignatian Journey weaves together various spiritual traditions offered to the Ateneo alumni by Fr. McNamara, Fr. Reilly, and their lay partners in this mission. Companions in the Ignatian Journey concretizes our dream to institutionalize a more systematic and sustainable spiritual development program for the Ateneo Alumni.
We also offer the launching of Companions in the Ignatian Journey as our collective contribution to "Deepening Spirituality, " this year's theme for the Ateneo de Manila 2009's Sesquicentennial Celebration from 2007-2009. Our formation program aims to reach out to
a greater number of Ateneo alumni and provide more creative opportunities for us to grow in Ignatian lay spirituality. In the spirit of magis, we dream and work toward realizing our own Continuing Ignatian Formation Program for the Ateneo alumni, because we feel that after 29
years of offering eight day retreats for seniors, alumni recollections, Holy Week retreats and Dasal Gawa reflection guides, it is time to offer something more. We are enclosing a brochure on the vision, mission, and goals of the Program.
We are inviting you to help us extend the precious legacy of Fr. McNamara and Fr. Reilly to other Ateneo alumni. We would like you to be part of this meaningful endeavor by soliciting your commitment and support through your generous donations and active participation in our
formation activities.
We hope that you can also join the formal launching of Companions in the Ignatian Journey on June 22 (Sunday), 12:00 noon at the Ateneo de Manila University (exact venue to be announced). It will also be our celebration for Fr. McNamara's birthday and 50th year anniversary as a Jesuit. Fr. McNamara's Golden Jubilee Mass will be held at 11:00
am at the Ateneo College Chapel on the same day.
Kindly confirm your participation in the launching and luncheon celebration on or before June 16. If you wish to donate, you may contact the Representatives of Convenor Groups listed below.
Thank you very much for your generous support and we look forward to sharing with you the fruits of this venture through a menu of formation activities customized for the Ateneo alumni and different alumni groups.
Representatives of Convenor Groups:
Atty. Anne Mariae Celeste V. Jumadla
3rd Sunday Recollection Group
Email address:
amariaecelj@ gmail.comMobile number:0917 3824753
Ms. Ivy A. Betco
Email address:
ivy.a.betco@ accenture. comMobile number: 0919 6462166
Ms. Patria Gwen M.L. Borcena, M.A.
Philos Christou (Batch 88 Retreat-Support Group)
Email address:
patria_gwen@ yahoo.comMobile number: 0919 7510070
Mr. Edgar Jose P. Olaguer. M.A.
Philos Christou (Batch 88 Retreat-Support Group)
Email address:
epolaguer@unionbank ph.comMobile number: 0917 7942232
Ms. Rose S. Lo
Batch 89 Seniors' 8-Day Retreat Group
Email address:
rosenoel@pldtdsl. netMobile number: 0917 9018517
Mr. Timothy G. Gabuna, M.D.M.
Fr. Reilly's Friends
Email address:
tgabuna@ateneo. eduMobile number: 0920 9609802