Society of Jesus in Ukraine

The Jesuit Order, or Society of Jesus, was founded in 1540 by St. Ignatius of Loyola. Its specific mandate was to go anywhere in the world to serve the people of God in the Catholic tradition, with a special loyalty to the Bishop of Rome, the Pope, according to the missions he deemed most important for the spread of the Gospel.

Today, that same mission is the service of faith and of the radical implications of faith in a world where it is becoming easier to settle for something less than faith and less than justice. We recognize, along with many of our contemporaries, that without faith, without the eye of love, the human world seems too evil for God to be good, for a good God to exist. But faith recognizes that God is active, through Christ's love and the power of the Holy Spirit, to destroy the structures of sin which afflict the bodies and hearts of his children. Our Jesuit mission touches something fundamental in the human heart: the desire to find God in a world scarred by sin, and then to live by his Gospel in all its implications. This, the instinct to live fully in God's love and thereby to promote a shared, lasting human good, is what we address by our vocation to serve faith and promote the justice of God's Kingdom. Jesus Christ invites us, and through us the people we serve, to move, in conversion of heart, "from solidarity with sin to solidarity with him for humanity," and to promote the Kingdom in all its aspects. (GC34 Decree 2 #11)

There are approximately 20,000 Jesuits worldwide - priests, brothers and seminarians – working in some 127 countries, 33 universities, 200 schools, retreat centres and parishes, social projects ranging from agricultural development to work in refugee camps, and communications. Together with our Jesuit colleagues and partners throughout the world we are committed to the service of faith, and this requires that we promote justice, foster dialogue between religions and cultures, and lovingly care for those most in need of the Lord’s loving kindness.

Historical Jesuit activity on the territory of modern Ukraine focused on education, preaching and religious reform. Today, we give conferences and retreats, publish popular and scholarly works, teach university and work in parishes. There are Jesuits in Ukraine of both the Byzantine and Latin Rites (Greek Catholic and Latin Catholic).

For further information, write in the language of your choice to the email address indicated on the Home page.