JCTR Bulletin No. 44 Letter from the Editor

Letter from the Editor continued...

SOCIAL CRISIS IN ZAMBIA

Zambian leaders of the Bulletin will know of the very powerful pastoral statement of 16 June, issued by the Catholic Bishops for reflection during a National Day of Prayer and Fasting. The bishops pointed to the social crisis currently facing the country, manifested in the serious problems in the health and education systems and in the great suffering of thge majority of the people, the 70% to 80% living (surving?) in extreme poverty.

In truly prophetic fashion, the pastoral called upon President Chiluba to publicly acknowledge the social crisis facing the nation, stting that

...we believe that the threat from the social crisis is as great as the threats from the situations in the Democratic Republic of Congo or Angola. The high level of commitment by the Head of State to respond to these external threats must be matched by an even higher level of commitment to the domestic threats.

The bishops cautioned that it would not be possible to enter peacefully and hopefully into the the coming election year of 2001 with the country in a state of social crisis.

Over the next several months, the JCTR Bulletin wants to contribute to the national political debate through some faith-filled analyses of what can be done to meet the social crisis. Please let us hear from you!

CHANGE OF NAME OF JCTR

A few years ago, we floated the suggestion that the ''Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection'' (JCTR) might more appropriately be called the ''Jesuit Centre fo Faith and Justice'' (JCFJ). The proposal was temporarily shelved, until it could be considered by a new board of Trustees that the Zambia-Malawi Province is establishing for JCTR. As the process for such establishment is now underway, we are circulating an opinion questionnaire among the Jesuits about the name change. Other readers of the Bulletin may want to comment on the suggestion and their views are welcome.

The reasons for the proposed change of JCTR to JCFJ is to put us more in line with similar Jesuit centres around the world, and while retaining emphasis on the theological (faith) character of our work, to make explicit the justice commitment that underlies all our activities. The current name has also caused some confusion over the years, with some people thinking that we are a seminary or a retreat centre, and some media reports referring to us as ''Jesuit Centre for Technological Research'' ro Jesuit Centre for Teleological Reflection!''

What do you think about ''Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice''?

Pete Henriot, S.J.

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