The Superior General And The 100th Aniversary Of The California Province

Father Nicolas had spent more than 40 years of his priesthood in Asia, choosing near the end of his term as provincial to serve in a poor parish in Tokyo where he ministered to Filipino and Asian immigrants....

Father Nicolas' busy weekend also included visits to Jesuit-administered Blessed Sacrament Church Catholic Church in Hollywood, Loyola High School of Los Angeles and Loyola Marymount University in Westchester - all in conjunction with the opening of the 100th anniversary of the California Province of Jesuits. Altogether, the recently-named Superior General was scheduled to visit 11 cities and nearly 30 different ministry sites over nine days in California.

His visit began with a tour of Homeboy Industries, where Bertha Cordova, a 33-year-old, third-generation gang member, spoke of her journey out of gangs at the lunch with Father Nicolas. Now an office clerk at Homeboy she has received "a lot of help from Father Greg Boyle [Homeboy Industries founder] and the staff. I've been through a lot. When I came here, I came as a broken soul. I had nowhere else to go. It was very hard to break the cycle."

With a 15-year-old son of her own, she told Father Nicolas that she is "trying not to let him walk in the same steps we walked. I'm letting him know that we are here to walk with him."...

At Dolores Mission Church, the Superior General was welcomed by Jesuit Father Scott Santarosa, pastor, and parishioners Esperanza Vasquez and Rosa Campos... After the presentation Father Nicolas was taken on a tour of Dolores Mission, and presided at a concelebrated liturgy at which he thanked the parishioners for their warm hospitality.

For Jesuits serving in the area, the visit was especially significant.

"It was a brother coming to see what his brothers are doing," said Jesuit Fr. Joe Spieler , a marriage and family counselor serving at Dolores Mission. "I am filled with pride and humility at the same time. It reaffirms what we are doing. And he understands our philosophy of having the people ask the question, 'What would the Lord do?' He got that instantly."

Ineed, after the luncheon at Homeboy Industries Father Nicholas told the young women and men, "I can see and I can hear humanity here at its best. It's best because you have been able to come through terrible things and have made the best of yourselves. It's always the best of yourself when you give to others. If religion is about transformation, I think I see it here. It's not how many hours you spend in church. I see transformation here."

Chosen a year ago to be Superior General, Father Nicolas has taken on an enormous task leading over 18,000 men in 95 provinces around the world. But, as Jesuit Father John McGarry, Provincial Superior, noted, "Father Nicolas is a warm and friendly human being, a dedicated priest, a prayerful Jesuit, and a wise and learned leader. I very much look forward to introducing him to the California Province."

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