ASIA - Education is the driving force of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific

Macao (Agenzia Fides) - The Jesuits of Asia will continue to have service education as a main focus of their activities and presence: is what emerged from a recent meeting of the Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific (JCAP) held in Macao, which was attended by representatives of Hong Kong, the Philippines, Cambodia, Japan, Indonesia, East Timor and Australia.
As Fides learns, the meeting highlighted the service promoted by the Jesuits proceeds with significant results in all countries. As Don Roberto Boholst SJ said, the College named after St. Ignatius of Loyola in East Timor is now able to accommodate 105 students in each of the three annual study periods. Even the construction of the Xavier Jesuit Community School in Cambodia is doing well, and its director, Don Ashley Evans SJ, provided details on the new school.
If in Indonesia a program based on the "Ignatian pedagogical model" is being completed, a significant development in the Province of China is that the next school year, all schools will have lay headmasters. More good news come from Japan and the Philippines.
Fr. Mark Raper SJ, President of the Conference, reiterated in his message that "Education is the driving force of the Conference, offering the group three points to consider: careful planning; the urgency to focus on the poor and marginalized; the indispensable value of collaboration across the region. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 26/06/2015)