IJC Voice - Monthly E-Newsletter

I.J.C. Voice

October 2021

Volume 12, Issue 1

Thanksgiving is the lens God means for us to see joy all year round.

~ Ann Voskamp

Here, at the Ignatius Jesuit Centre, there is much to be grateful for, especially those wonderful messages of encouragement and generosity that have come in each day. These blessings and genuine expressions of support uplift our spirits through the day’s challenges.

This month we are grateful to the Estate of Roger and Rosemary Fischer for a bequest made in honour of Roger’s uncles, Fathers Clair Fischer SJ and Leonard Fischer SJ. Roger and Rosemary were lifelong parishioners of St. Clement’s Parish. Roger was active in providing affordable housing through St. Peter’s Place in Cambridge. It is an honour to be among the charities they chose to support.

Thank you to the Ex Corde Foundation of the Hamilton Diocese for a capital grant of $25,000 towards the replacement of the roof on St. Brigid’s Villa. The Villa is a well-loved venue for small community workshops and is used throughout the school year by the Wellington Catholic District School Board.

Make a donation

Ignatius Jesuit Centre is a registered charity and can accept donations of stocks, bonds or mutual fund units through CanadaHelps.

Considering a legacy gift and have some questions? Email development@ignatiusguelph.ca or phone 519-824-1250 Ext 257 (Vanessa) or Ext 266 (Leanne).

Loyola House Retreats & Programs

The retreat house is reopening in April 2022!

Stay tuned for our upcoming 2022 retreats and programs calendar.

A Place of Peace, Beauty and Sustenance

Where nature gives strength to

mind, body and soul

RE-OPENING OF LOYOLA HOUSE

The Ignatius Jesuit Centre’s retreat house, known as Loyola House, first opened in 1964; more than 70,000 people from around the world have been on retreats at Loyola House up until 2020.

In March 2020 the retreat house closed due to pandemic restrictions. We imagined how to reopen, but after many discussions, we made the difficult decision to remain closed through the pandemic. As a result of the closure we had planned to lay off most of the staff in the late winter of 2020. Our finances were in jeopardy and we were unsure of the future for the retreat house and the Ignatius staff.

But then something short of extraordinary happened - the Centre was approached by the County of Wellington who had learned that the 47-room retreat house was closed. We entered into a 13-month contract with the County in October 2020 to provide temporary housing in the community until November 2021; the Loyola House Supportive Temporary Accommodation Pilot (LHSTAP) opened to those experiencing homelessness. This collaboration offset our budget shortfall in the short term.

The County’s Housing division and their community partners have been working since the contract began in November 2020 on securing permanent supportive housing for those living at the temporary supportive shelter at Loyola House. The LHSTAP was a short-term housing solution and the Ignatius Jesuit Centre will support the transition in any way we can.

Based on recent surveys of our retreat clients and in one-on-one conversations, we are confident that our retreatants want to return. In response to some of your concerns around the pandemic and in order to reopen we will be renovating some of the retreat house: adding ensuite washrooms in the accommodation wing, replacing beds, removing rugs and installing new flooring.

Our Ignatian Retreats and Programs and conferencing provide sustenance for many. You have made this apparent in your recent connections with the staff. Our capacity to offer retreats, programs and conferences is crucial to both our short and long-term sustainability.

We know our retreatants anxiously await the reopening of one of their most beloved retreat houses and we look forward to that day. Here’s to another 50 years of retreats at Loyola House!

At Ignatius Farm

Are you interested in starting a farm enterprise or learning more about ecological agriculture?

Term 4 is open for registration!

Upcoming events:

October 6: Virtual Field day; Sundance Harvest Farm

October 18: Seed Saving

October 20: Virtual Field day: Swallow Haven Farm

October 25: Vegetable crop planning

Are you interested in starting a farm enterprise or learning more about ecological agriculture?

Join us for the 2021 season of the Ignatius Farm New Farmer Training Program. Registration is by term or individual event.

We have a great line up of webinars and virtual field days planned for 2021. Individual events will open for registration 4 weeks prior to the event date. Registration for term 4 will open in early October.

See EFAO.ca/Ignatius-new-farmer-training for more information.

This program is made possible through collaboration between Ignatius Farm, Everdale, and the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario.

Poetry, stories, and info to reflect on

Ignatius Outside

By Greg Kennedy, SJ

While Preppers pile stock

and dystopias in dark flocks

start flying north

to roost in our crammed

ugly chicken coops

(home of unseen suffering

and various avian flus)

this land here keeps calm

and carries on consoling

at least on the outside,

which is exactly where we should be—

we the childhood finger

caught in the car door

traumatized for life

but still driving.

Outside—

thank God it still exists for now,

as what’s around the corner

pushes us more and more in.

September 30, 2021

At the recommendation of the Jesuit Canadian Provincial, Erik Oland SJ, IJC chose to recognize the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation by providing the day off for reflection or participation in a community event. As everyone works towards healing, understanding and eventual reconciliation, staff was asked to donate a portion of their day's wages to a fund that IJC matched, which was donated to the White Owl Native Ancestry Association.

White Owl Native Ancestry Association (WONAA)

White Owl is dedicated to innovative Indigenous Wholistic practice with a commitment to whole person development within the family and community. The goal for children and youth is to experience belonging and value through relationship-building that encourages self acceptance, self expression, and understanding - a sense of place and belonging. Our Wholistic Practitioners work with individual clients and their families to help them in that process.

WONAA offers: Individual, couple and family counselling services; Land-based teachings and programs; Outreach programs to connect families to available services; Healers (In partnership with Guelph Community Health Centre)

Listening to Indigenous Voices will be used by all Ignatius staff.

500th Anniversary Celebration

This year Jesuits worldwide are celebrating the 500^th anniversary of Ignatius’ conversion after the battle of Pamplona in May of 1521. Read all about it in Eric Jensen’s Ignatius Loyola and You: Learning to Become a Reflective Christian. Curbside pickup or mailing options are available. Contact Andrea at officecoordinator@ignatiusguelph.ca to purchase a copy of Ignatius Loyola and You. For a full list of books available click here. Also, Ignatius Loyola and You: Learning to Become a Reflective Christian, has just been published in Taiwan in a Chinese translation. Click here to purchase the translated book directly from Taiwan.