7th Congress of the World Union of Jesuit Alumni/ae 22- 27th July 2009, Burundi, Africa.

Dear Fellow Alumnus/a,

I would like to take a few minutes of your time to speak about the forthcoming World Union Congress which will take place in Bujumbura, Burundi, Africa.

It is a very important Congress for Jesuit Alumni/ae as it will be the first to take place in Africa which is one of the priorities for the Society of Jesus. It will also be a good opportunity for Alumni/ae to demonstrate their commitment to being ‘Men and Women for others’ as well as demonstrating support for the Society of Jesus and their own local Associations and Colleges.

The sacrifice involved is of course also financial. However, we do not ask Alumni/ae to travel frequently so maybe there is some way in which your Associations or Federation can support a few representatives to travel to Burundi, perhaps the younger Alumni/ae, who can also participate in the ‘Ignatian Experience’ pre-Congress programme.

I cannot stress enough the importance of having a successful Congress in Africa. Although it will take place in Burundi, the effects will be reflected across Africa. A success will demonstrate the ability of Africa to organise an event which attracts people from all over Africa and the rest of the world as opposed to events organised in Africa by external bodies. This is partially why the country in which the World Union Congress is held is given the total responsibility of organising the infrastructure of the Congress. It might be useful to know that although the Congress is being organised by the Association in Bujumbura, Burundi, the committee is being assisted by members of Associations from several other African countries including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania and Rwanda. In other words it is a true reflection of African countries working together.

In terms of security I should remind you that we are working with the cooperation of the Society of Jesus and are receiving reports from the Society’s representative for the region advising Fr General. An indication of the importance which the Society of Jesus places on this Congress is that Fr General himself will be attending the Congress.

For those of you who might wish to travel via Europe, I would just mention that there are direct flights from Brussels to Bujumbura but they are not every day. There are flights on 22 July outbound and on 29 July back to Brussels. Eric de Langsdorff from Paris and Fr Pierre Salembier SJ from Bordeaux will be arriving in Bujumbura on 15 July to look after the interests of any Young Alumni/ae who wish to participate in the pre-Congress ‘Ignation Experience’ programme.

Please, therefore, do everything you can to encourage attendance at this Congress. Even one from each Association would be an excellent result, as each Association is entitled to be represented at the General Assembly which takes place during the Congress. I hope that your Association President will have already seen the documentation giving information about the voting rights etc. at the meeting which will of course elect my successor and other members of the Council.

My thanks to you all for taking the time to read this message and I look forward to having the opportunity of meeting you in Bujumbura. Details of the Congress Programme can be found on the website www.jesuitalumni.org

Bernard Thompson
President of the World Union of Jesuit Alumni/ae
www.jesuitalumni.org