Chi Prov news roundup.

Being on retreat for the month of January, I've been out of the loop on a lot of recent news - including goings-on in my own Chicago Province. The last week has given me a chance to catch up with what I missed, and I found a couple Jesuit news items I felt I should discuss on this blog.

The first item is the death of Chicago Province Jesuit Father Stan Wisniewski on January 27th. I and many of the other first-year novices got to know Father Wis during our hospital experiment at Colombiere in the fall, and his passing - unexpected to us - was something of a shock. A perfect gentleman and an able conversationalist, Wis always had a few pearls of wisdom to impart to the novices lucky enough to sit at his table during lunch. He had a clear-headed and incisive understanding of the challenges facing the Church today as well as great optimism for the future. I'll miss having the opportunity to speak with him when I visit Colombiere, especially considering the long list of questions I never got to ask him - about his many years in teaching, his parish work, his experience of the Exercises, and so forth. So, Wis, until we meet again, Godspeed. Hope you're praying for us as we'll be praying for you.

The second news item comes from Cincinnati, where Chicago Province Jesuit Father Paul Huber recently completed 53 years at St. Xavier Church. I've met the 93 year-old Father Huber just once, at the Chicago Province ordination weekend last June, but from the first time I heard about him I've been impressed by his great dedication to the people of his parish. While Jesuits are none for their mobility, Paul Huber's life shows that we can sometimes find and serve God best by staying put. Father Huber's departure from the downtown Cincinnati parish where he's served with distinction for over half a century marks the end of an era, and I'm sure he'll be sorely missed there. Now that he's at Colombiere, however, a new generation of Jesuits - i.e., us novices - will have a chance to get to know him and pick up valuable life lessons in the process. AMDG.