Pope calls Jesuit colleges to “show the way to God”

The Pope specifically pointed to the secularization of societies that seek “to push any mention of God out of the public sphere and beyond popular culture.” He also mentioned political systems that frequently ignore the “cry of the poor, migrants and those whom the world considers to be outcasts.”

As a result, “young people are left without hope in a world that seems to lack the promise of a better future,” he noted. Therefore, he shared four “paths that might help to address these challenges at the level of higher education” with the leaders of the Jesuit institutions whom he was addressing.

The first path involves “showing the way to God through the Spiritual Exercises and discernment,” the 267th Pope said. The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, who founded the Jesuits in the 16th century, are retreats that allow the faithful to discern God’s will in their lives through prayer and meditation. It's essential “to provide ways for members of your academic communities to come to know the One who is Truth,” the Pope added. As an example, he pointed to the palpable hunger for God he witnessed among young people during his recent apostolic journey to Spain.

The American-Peruvian pontiff also stressed the importance of choosing “to walk with the poor and the outcasts of the world” as the second path. North American Jesuit universities and colleges must not only “teach [their] students about the injustices faced by those on the margins of society,” but also “be powerful channels in promoting systemic change.” This involves “proposing new models rooted in solidarity and the common good,” Pope Leo XIV explained.

Noting that students generally begin their studies “full of idealism and energy,” the head of the Catholic Church invited educators to “foster that sense of hope” as a third path. The encounters and friendships formed on campuses “can bring a sense of hope and the promise of what could change for the better,” he said.

The fourth path is an “urgent duty,” the Pope warned: “working together in the care of creation.” He urged the educators to “persevere with [their] efforts to educate those on [their] campuses” about the dangers of climate change. Institutions must “instruct by example, and not solely in theory,” he emphasized.

Finally, regarding artificial intelligence — a central theme of his recent encyclical Magnifica Humanitas — Pope Leo XIV urged institutions to address the “consequences, both positive and negative” of these technological advances without delay. Colleges and universities “have a special role to play in this regard, especially through giving fresh impetus to the principles of the Church’s Social Doctrine,” he said.