AMDG: A Jesuit Podcast

In honor of the Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola on July 31, we're taking a green look at his Spiritual Exercises. When today's host, Eric Clayton, was in college, he stumbled upon a book entitled “The Eucharist and Social Justice.” It’s a small volume and was easily tucked into his bag when he went to Nicaragua on a service immersion trip. He remembers paging through that book with an excitement that rarely appeared when reading other theology texts. But something about this one, this invitation to consider how the source and summit of our Catholic faith was in fact a radical call to justice — that was formative. It’s what he was looking for as an undergraduate who was very much searching for answers when it came to faith and God and the church. The author of that little book is Sr. Margaret Scott. She’s a Handmaid of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and a renowned spiritual director and retreat giver. She’s fluent in numerous languages, which has led her into ministries that have taken her around the world. She has a lived experience of the universal church and the needs and joys of God’s people in many, many places. She has brought those insights into the classroom; she taught theology at Philly’s own Jesuit university, St. Joe’s. But most importantly for today, she’s brought that same global perspective, that tender pastoral care, to a new book all about Ignatian spirituality and ecological conversion. It’s called “Ignatius Was Green: Ecological Dimensions of the Spiritual Exercises” and it’s available now from Paulist Press. Like “The Eucharist and Social Justice,” this is a small, approachable volume. And for those of us engaged in the ministry of the Exercises, it’s quite helpful. Sr. Margaret invites us to deepen our own encounter with Christ through the Exercises by paying careful attention to those places in Ignatius’ text that invite deeper ecological reflection. Learn more about her book: https://www.paulistpress.com/Products/5716-7/ignatius-was-green.aspx

When Chris Lowney started his career as an investment banker at JP Morgan in 1983, his background leading up to that job marked an unusual path to the corporation. He had spent the past few years as a Jesuit in formation, after entering the Society of Jesus as a novice straight out of high school. Chris went on to work 18 years at JP Morgan, and during his tenure there, he started realizing that a lot of the stuff he had learned about Saint Ignatius and the history of the Jesuits during his Jesuit formation included a bunch of supremely relevant wisdom that corporate leaders in the “secular world” could learn from. So Chris started working on a book after retiring from the company, and in 2003 Loyola Press published “Heroic Leadership: Best Practices from a 450-Year-Old Company that Changed the World.” “Heroic Leadership” has become a modern classic in Jesuit spaces and pioneered the development what you could call Ignatian leadership studies. Just this year, Chris is back with a supplement to his first book: “The Heroic Leadership Workbook,” which he wrote with an educational design expert named Judy Wearing. The workbook is a 30-day guide for leaders in any field to help them grow in qualities like self-awareness, ingenuity, love and heroism. The workbook’s exercises are great – they invite deep reflection and are so usable. Host Mike Jordan Laskey invited Chris on the show to talk about “Heroic Leadership” and why Chris thinks the Jesuit charism and history continue to be so helpful to 21st-century leaders both inside institutional church structures and far outside them. Chris Lowney: https://chrislowney.com/ “Heroic Leadership” and the workbook: https://chrislowney.com/wp/books/heroic-leadership/ AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

Father Scott Santarosa, SJ, is the pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe in San Diego, just a few miles from the U.S.-Mexico border. Founded in 1921 as the Mexican national parish of San Diego – meaning it could offer pastoral care to any Catholic in the city born in Mexico – the community has a long history of welcoming immigrants to the United States and their descendants. Under Fr. Scott’s leadership, the parish has entered a new era of standing in solidarity with immigrants near the border – from organizing pro-migrant processions to starting a migrant shelter than operated for about a year and a half to, most recently, accompanying individuals facing the threat of deportation to immigration court. During the first of these visits to immigration court this past June, San Diego’s Bishop Michael Pham was one of the clergy members who attended, which led to national news coverage. (Bishop Pham, a refugee from Vietnam himself who grew up in San Diego, was the first U.S. bishop appointed by Pope Leo XIV. After the event, he suggested Fr. Scott might spearhead a new effort to keep the initiative going; plans are in the works for subsequent visits.) On July 11, host Mike Jordan Laskey visited Fr. Scott at the Jesuit community house in San Diego for this conversation. They discussed the challenges parishioners are facing right now, and how the parish has responded to various immigration-related issues. Fr. Scott also shared a bit about why he feels called to this ministry, and why the Catholic Church must continue to support immigrants even when it’s politically unpopular or even dangerous. Because so much of the news coverage around immigration is impersonal and faceless, we think you’ll appreciate hearing Fr. Scott’s unique perspective from his vibrant and historic parish. National Catholic Reporter article on Fr. Scott and other faith leaders accompanying migrants to immigration court: https://www.ncronline.org/news/san-diego-faith-leaders-say-their-presence-made-difference-deportation-hearings Our Lady of Guadalupe Church: https://www.olgsd.org/

This past spring, host Mike Jordan Laskey traveled to New York for a Jesuit Media Lab theatre event. He was coordinating the outing with our JML contributor Renee Roden, who lives at a Catholic Worker house in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The Catholic Worker, of course, is the movement founded in 1933 by Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin, which grew from a newspaper dedicated to Catholic social teaching and pacifism to a network of houses of hospitality in urban areas and farm communes in rural areas. Renee and Mike had some time before the event that evening, so they visited Maryhouse, a house of hospitality the movement opened in 1975 and where Dorothy Day spent the last five years of her life. It’s a pilgrimage site of American Catholicism. And unlike many other pilgrimage sites, Maryhouse isn’t a museum – it’s still a vibrant and active Catholic Worker house of hospitality to this day. By a great stroke of luck, Dorothy Day’s granddaughter Martha Hennessy was in town and could give Renee and Mike a tour of the house. Martha was the seventh child born to David Hennessy and Tamar Day Hennessy, who was Dorothy’s only daughter. Martha spends most of the year on a farm in Vermont, but she frequently travels to New York to live and work at Maryhouse. Martha has carried on the Catholic Worker tradition in her own life, including participation in anti-nuclear protests with the Plowshares movement. As Martha showed Renee and Mike around Maryhouse, she spoke of her grandmother with such admiration and love, almost as if Dorothy herself were in the room. Mike invited Martha on the podcast to share stories from her life and reflections on how the Catholic Worker continues its work of mercy and justice today. We know you’ll love getting to know this incredibly special person who has carried on her family legacy with so much devotion and passion. More about Martha: https://catholicworker.org/martha-hennessys-revolution-of-the-heart/ Martha’s connection with the Plowshares movement: https://kingsbayplowshares7.org/ The Catholic Worker Movement: https://catholicworker.org/ AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/

From June 23 through June 27, 2025, on the campus of Loyola University New Orleans, student affairs professionals from across our network of Jesuit colleges and universities gathered to be formed and fueled by our shared Jesuit mission. One of the keynotes from the conference featured four university presidents: Tania Tetlow of Fordham University, Vincent Rougeau of the College of the Holy Cross, Salvador Aceves of Regis University, and Xavier Cole of Loyola University New Orleans. The conversation was wide-ranging, hitting on a number of hot button issues facing the higher ed landscape today. Each of these presidents demonstrated through their thoughtful, passionate responses that they are committed not just to higher education but to leading Catholic, Jesuit institutions to meet the many needs of this moment. I left feeling inspired. About an hour after that conversation ended, a second one began — with today's host, Eric Clayton. The four presidents kindly sat down in one of the beautiful studios on Loyola’s campus to continue the conversation they began on stage. That’s what you’ll hear on today's episode.

Nestled in the Horn of Africa on the easternmost part of the African continent is a small country called Djibouti. It’s bordered by three other countries: Eritrea to the north, Ethiopia to the west, and Somalia to the south. Djibouti’s eastern border abuts the busy shipping lanes of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. These bodies of water are connected by the Bab al-Mandab Strait which serves as an essential gateway between the Mediterranean Sea with the Indian Ocean. Directly across that narrow body of water from Djibouti is Yemen. You can imagine the geopolitical significance of this particular part of the world. You might be thinking of issues pertaining to global trade, to international peace, to development and humanitarian assistance. And you might not be surprised to know that there is a United States military presence in Djibouti. But you might be surprised to learn that the only Catholic priest currently serving in the US military for the entire continent of Africa is living there in Djibouti. You might also be surprised to learn that this priest is a Jesuit, one who just a few months ago was teaching theology and neuroscience to undergraduates at Creighton University. Now, Fr. Chris Krall is serving as a chaplain, having been called up from his reserve status at the end of the 2024 fall semester. Instead of grading papers, he’s traveling by helicopter to remote bases across Africa to bring the sacraments and a listening ear. Fr. Chris is our guest today calling in all the way from east Africa. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to be a priest ministering to folks in the military, this conversation is for you. We talk about how Chris’ current mission fits into his Jesuit vocation of being available to go where God’s people need him. We wrestle with some of the possible tensions inherent in being a priest in the military. And we reflect on the surprising similarities between ministering to colleges students and ministering to women and men in uniform. A note: This conversation was recorded in late May.

Host Mike Jordan Laskey is joined by Jesuit Media Lab fellow, Michael O'Connell, on this special episode of "AMDG: A Jesuit Podcast" to kickstart the summer.

Today we’re talking about joy. It can be a hard thing to hold onto in this moment: The headlines are scary; our lives are full of stress and worry; and, everywhere we turn there seems to be some new reason to be afraid. But none of that is of God. And indeed, even in such moments, joy is waiting to be found. It’s worth remembering that Jesus tells us he has come so that we might have life and have it more abundantly. That’s a joy-filled life he’s describing, not one that cowers in the shadows in fear and worry. Jesus wants us to step out and into the fullness of God’s creation. Today’s guest is author Shemaiah Gonzalez. Shemaiah has degrees in English, intercultural ministry and creative nonfiction writing. And her new book, “Undaunted Joy: The Revolutionary Act of Cultivating Delight” gives us a roadmap back to a life full of joy. Host Eric Clayton and Shemaiah discuss joy and delight and abundance and what it means to tell stories at the intersection of all three. We hope when the conversation concludes, you feel a bit more joyful—and perhaps inclined to pick up a copy of Shemaiah’s book. Get her book here: https://www.amazon.com/Undaunted-Joy-Revolutionary-Cultivating-Delight/dp/031016317X Visit her website here: https://www.shemaiahgonzalez.com/

Welcome to “Pathway to Priesthood”—a special podcast series from the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. In these conversations, we’ve been talking with Jesuits who are in the final days of preparing for ordination to the priesthood. We’ve reflected back on their vocation stories and experience of Jesuit formation, and we’ve wrestled with some of the biggest questions surrounding priestly ordination. This is the final episode of the season—so we went big. We have two Jesuits today: Orlando Portalatin and Joe Lorenz. Orlando is from Puerto Rico. Before joining the Society of Jesus, he had a 20 year career in human resources management. He says he doesn’t have a late vocation—he was just late to respond! Joe is from Maryland. He studied Arabic in college and as a Jesuit, taught English in Beirut for over 200 students. As you listen to Orlando and Joe share their stories and reflections, I invite you to consider whether you or someone you know might be interested in discerning a call to Jesuit life. If so, head over to beajesuit.org. And I invite you to pray for all of the Jesuits who will be ordained this year as the begin their priestly ministry.

If you stop and think about it, it’s amazing that the work of William Shakespeare, more than 400 years old, is still read by pretty much every student in the English-speaking world starting in high school or before. Our guest today, Luke Taylor, SJ, has recently co-written and edited a volume that brings together two of his passions: the Bard’s work and Catholic education. The book is called “Exploring Catholic Faith in Shakespearean Drama: Towards a Philosophy of Education,” and Luke worked on the text with fellow authors David Torevell and Brandon Schneeberger. Luke is a Jesuit scholastic from the UK who’s studying theology at Boston College. Before he entered the Society of Jesus, Luke earned a doctorate in comparative literature from Harvard and taught at the college level. Host Mike Jordan Laskey asked Luke about how the book came about and why he thinks Shakespeare’s work continues to be studied all these centuries later – and what particularly about the Bard’s work makes him perfect for a Catholic audience. They also talked a bit about Shakespeare’s disputed religious background and the likelihood he at least had some brief encounters with Jesuits. It was a fascinating conversation and we think you’ll love getting to know someone who has thought so much about the intersections between Shakespeare’s work, Ignatian spirituality and Catholic faith. "Exploring Catholic Faith in Shakespearean Drama": https://www.routledge.com/Exploring-Catholic-Faith-in-Shakespearean-Drama-Towards-a-Philosophy-of-Education/Torevell-Schneeberger-Taylor/p/book/9781032741864?srsltid=AfmBOooEudxwsHTMxBt97rbMFZePoyvTFahb0t9LXLlQHBa64Kg7SL02 AMDG is a production of the Jesuit Media Lab, which is a project of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. www.jesuits.org/ www.beajesuit.org/ twitter.com/jesuitnews facebook.com/Jesuits instagram.com/wearethejesuits youtube.com/societyofjesus www.jesuitmedialab.org/