Q : Yes, I did, but what is the relationship between schools and theSociety of Jesus?
A : In Europe, the 16th century was a period we call the renaissance.
It was a period when many new ideas and concepts were freely born
- ideas and concepts that were unthinkable until then. For example,people began to say the earth was round, and that it was not thesun that revolved around the earth but the earth revolved around thesun, and so on. I am sure you must have come across names likeCopernicus and Galileo.
Also, in the field of art we had men like Leonardo Da Vinci,Michelangelo, Raffaello, and others, who created paintings andstatues unheard of until then. I am sure you have seen paintings like“the Last Supper,” “the Last Judgement,” “the statue of David,” and soon. Yet, in this period there were no proper schools. Universities werebegun around the 10th century, and some of these early universities
continue to exist even today in cities like Paris and London. However,there were no secondary schools as we have now. It was a period
when people had no idea as to how they could communicate
knowledge to others. That was the time when the Society of Jesus
was formed, and the Jesuits greatly emphasized learning. As I justsaid, Ignatius and his friends had all studied and graduated fromthe University of Paris. When they formed their religious order, theypreached and taught the people in order to spread the teachings ofChrist to all. They decided to stress the deepening of the knowledge ofChristianity, and paid a lot of attention to teaching youth.

Educational institutions operated by Sophia Corporation《 Higher Education Division 》

Jesuit Education Q & A

Sophia University

Founding : 1913
Address : 7-1 Kioi-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 102-8554, JAPAN
Phone : +81-3-3238-3111
Website : https://www.sophia.ac.jp/

Sophia University Junior College Division

Hiroshima Gakuin
Mascot Character
GAKUmonFounding : 1973
Address : 999 Sannoudai, Kamiozuki, Hadano-shi, Kanagawa
Prefecture, 257-0005, JAPAN
Phone : +81-463-83-9331
Website : http://www.jrc.sophia.ac.jp/

Q : What exactly is Jesuit Education?
A : By Jesuit Education we mean the type of school education conductedby the Society of Jesus, which is a Roman Catholic “religious order.”《 Secondary Education Division 》

Founding : 1947
Address : 4-1-1 Tamanawa, Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture,247-0071, JAPAN
Phone : +81-467-46-7711
Website : http://ekh.jp/

Q : What do you mean by the words “religious order?”Front Cover of a conclusive edition of Ratio Studiorum “Official Plan for Jesuit Education" 1599

Rokko Junior / Senior High School

World map of 16th century(Sophia University, Kirishitan Bunko)

Q：Where do we find those schools started by the Jesuits?

A : The earliest school started by the Jesuits was in Italy, in theisland of Sicily. It was built in the city of Messina, in 1546. Later,
their schools appeared in various parts of Europe, such as France,
Germany, Spain, and Portugal. Even today if you were to visit thosecountries, you will find in every region the name “Society of Jesus,”
as for example “Jesuiten Straße,” “Parque de Jesuitas,” and so on.

Founding : 1937
Address : 2-4-1, Shinohara, Obanoyama-cho, Nada-ku, Kobe,
Hyogo Prefecture, 657-0015, JAPAN
Phone : +81-78-871-4161
Website : http://www.rokkogakuin.ed.jp/public_html/index.htmlSophia Fukuoka Junior-Senior High School

Hiroshima Gakuin Junior and Senior High School

Rokko Junior / Senior High School

Hiroshima Gakuin Junior and Senior High School

Founding : 1956
Address : 1-630 Furueue, Nishi-ku, Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture,733-0875, JAPAN
Phone : +81-82-271-0241
Website : http://www.hiroshimagakuin.ed.jp/

Sophia University
Official Mascot Character
Sophian-kun

The Society of Jesus and Schools

EIKO GAKUEN Junior and Senior High School

A diagram explaining thatthe earth is round.

Since when have Jesuit schools existed in Japan?
What are the special features of Jesuit Education?
GAKUmon and Sophian-kun
who are keen on learning, went ahead and asked all
they wished to know about Jesuit Education.

EIKO GAKUEN Junior and Senior High School

A : A religious order is a group formed within the Roman Catholic
Church, to deepen the faith of people. Such groups arose around the 6thcentury. They were the earliest groups formed with the aim of praying
together, so as to glorify God. The group members led community
lives that were self-sufficient. On awakening at dawn they first prayed,and thereafter spent the rest of their day in work and prayer. Later,other groups were formed where the members wished to follow in thefootsteps of Jesus Christ, and certain groups also appeared where themembers led lives of severe poverty. In this context, a famous person
was St. Francis of Assisi. What we refer to as the Society of Jesus(or Jesuits) was a group created in the 16th century by St. Ignatius ofLoyola, along with some companions whom he met while he was in theUniversity of Paris. At that time he formed the group for the sake of theCatholic Church, which was heavily attacked in Europe. Among thosefriends was St. Francis Xavier, who first introduced Christianity into
Japan. I guess you must have studied about all this in school.

Sophia University Junior College Division

Sophia Fukuoka Junior-Senior High School

The Jesuit Schools in JapanQ : You just said Xavier came to Japan and communicatedChristianity. Weren’ t there any Jesuit schools in Japan? Wasn’ t
Xavier a companion of Ignatius, too?

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Founding : 1932
Address : 1-10-10 Terukuni, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka, 810-0032, JAPAN
Phone : +81-92-712-7181
Website: http://www.sophia-fukuoka.ed.jp/St. Ignatius of Loyola
Sophia University

St. Francis Xavier(Portrait of St. Francis Xavier
Designated Important Cultural
Property, Kobe City Museum,
Photo : Kobe City Museum / DNPartcom)zzzzzz(Sophia Archives)

Sophia School Corporation
Catholic Jesuit Center1

A : That’s a good question. Xavier also wanted to begin a university
in Japan, but his stay in Japan was only for two and a half years.
Besides, since it was about the time after the Onin civil war, Japanwas in a state of chaos in the turbulent Sengoku era. The control ofthe Muromachi Shogunate had fallen, and aristocrats with power
fled to the side of dominant Daimyos. Since Yoshitaka Ouchi ofYamaguchi was at that time a Daimyo with power, Xavier worked
in his domain. Later, Jesuit priests came over to Japan and began
missionary work, but a missionary named Valignano had an appealingidea. He first of all began a school for youth of samurai, and tried toimpart European learning to them. As the language of Europe thenwas Latin, he taught them Latin, Geography, Mathematics, and evenMusic. He began such schools in Azuchi and Arima.
Q : Azuchi ! Is that the place where Nobunaga Oda erected theAzuchi castle?
A : That’s right ! You’re really good, aren’t you? At the foot of Azuchi
castle he built a school called “seminario.” In fact Nobunaga too,at times visited the place. Here the pupils learned to use European
musical instruments, and it is said that they even entertained
Nobunaga. Also, Nobunaga was shown a globe by the missionaries
for the first time, and realized that the earth was round, and thatJapan was small in comparison to the world. That was when
Valignano came up with an unusual idea.

Japanese to see Europe. In 1590, eight years and five months after
having left Japan, they returned to Japan when it was the time ofHideyoshi Toyotomi. Unlike the days of Nobunaga Oda, it was a time
when Christianity was banned. The edict of banning continued wellinto the time of the Edo Shogunate.
Q : Yes, I can see that. Hence there were no Jesuit schools inJapan either.
A : That’ s how it was in theEdo Period. Yet in the Meiji
Period the Society of Jesus
returned to Japan once moreand erected a Jesuit university,
which was the dream of Xavier.

Picture of Arima seminario(Picture by Minamishimabara City,Nagasaki Prefecture)(Photo by Kojodan LLC)

Q : What came into his mind?
A : His idea was to choose four from among the seminario pupils
and send them as envoys to Europe. They were to be dispatchedas emissaries of leading Daimyos, see and experience all aroundthem, have an audience with the Pope, and get a grasp of Europe’s
culture.
Q : Yes! I recall hearing that in my history class. That’s the Tensho
Embassy. Isn’t it ?
A : Yes. Mancio Ito, JuliãoNakaura, Martinão Hara, andMiguel Chijiwa. They left Japanin 1582, reached Portugal after
two and a half years, traveledby road via Spain and arrived
in Rome. Everywhere they got
a rousing welcome. In Romethey met the Pope whomthey had longed to see, andthe Pope too, received themwarmly. They were the first

Q : I wonder. It doesn’t sound very simple.
The ship used by three Jesuits(Sophia Archives)

Q : Oh, I see. What schools did they build?
A : First they began a university in Tokyo. That was in 1913. In
1908 three Jesuits came from Europe. The Pope urged the Jesuits
to begin an educational institution in Japan. They got land inpresent-day Yotsuya, began the university, and called it “SophiaUniversity.” The Japanese word “Jochi” comes from the Latin word
“Sophia,” which means “profound wisdom.”

A : Yes. One of those three Jesuits named Dahlmann, felt a university
alone would not be sufficient. He felt we needed also a secondaryschool. Hence in 1938, Rokko Secondary School began in Kobe. It
took five years to graduate from secondary schools in those days.
After the Pacific war, Japan began to rebuild afresh, and under a
new system primary schools took six years, junior high schools threeyears, and senior high schools three years. Rokko Secondary School
immediately became a steady six-year school, consisting of juniorand senior high schools. In 1947, Eiko Gakuen began in Yokosuka(it shifted to Ofuna in 1964), and in 1956 Hiroshima Gakuin wasestablished in Hiroshima city. These too, were a six-year institution
consisting of junior and senior high schools. Furthermore in 1983,Taisei High School(renamed Sophia Fukuoka) was entrusted to theSociety of Jesus, but the school in itself was older.

Special Features of Jesuit Education
Q : I had no idea there were such Jesuit Schools. What is special
about Jesuit Schools?
A : Well, we’ve come to something precise and sharp now. We haveJesuit schools all over the world, and what they have in common
may be expressed by the words, “men for others.”『Newe Zeyttung auss der Insel
Japonien (Tenshou ken'ou shisetsushouzouga) 』(Photograph courtesyof the Main Library, Kyoto University)

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Q : Well, I don’t know English, and so it’s a bit difficult.
A : It’s actually very simple. It just means “people who serve others.”

Q : Did they start anything else?

Site of Azuchi seminario

living in poverty, those forced to leave their countries due to wars
or conflicts, those deprived of freedom by oppressive regimes,
and the socially disadvantaged. We must educate those who canidentify with such people. That is the reason why we use the word“with.” Also, the word “men” does not refer only to males, becauseeven females study at Jesuit schools. These days we say, “ForOthers, With Others.”

A : I understand. In any case while studying in such schools youlearn a variety of things. If while doing so, you feel within yourself adesire to become such a person, that would be enough. As regards
other features of Jesuit Education, we have the English word
“excellence” and the “four C’s.”

Jesuit Education Developing in the WorldIn 2021, schools based on the educational orientationof the Society of Jesus are developing in 84 nations
around the globe. Our Jesuit network links over 2700
different educational institutions, including 839 secondary
education institutions, 193 universities and higher education
institutions, etc.. Over three million four hundred thousand
youth study at our institutions.
Countries developing
Jesuit Education

Universities, etc.

84countries

193839Over 3,400,000

Secondary Schools

Students studying
at Jesuit Education Institutions

Q : And what exactly is that? That seems even more difficult tograsp.
A : What it means is this. It is something Jesuit schools havealways traditionally viewed as vital. The word “excellence” means
surpassing or excelling others. In other words, whatever you do,
you do it so as to exceed or outshine. The Latin word for this is“magis.” You do the best you can in your study, and try to outdo
yourself. This does not refer only to study, but also as a humanbeing, you try to be the best you can.
Q : And what are those “four C’s?”
A : They are four words that begin with the letter “C,” and they
are intimately linked to “excellence.” They symbolize the type of
graduates we wish to turn out in our Jesuit schools. The first is“Conscience.” That is, our graduates should be men and womenof conscience, with ability to judge between right and wrong. The
second is “Compassion,” that is, pity and concern for others. As theBible says, “rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those whoweep.” We need to identify with the feelings of people. The third
is “Competence,” the ability to do things fruitfully and efficiently.
Society is undergoing rapid changes with the growth in science andtechnology. We need to adapt to the situation and fulfil our many
obligations. The fourth is “Commitment.” This is a difficult word,
but it means we need to face up to situations where people areunable to live as human beings, and do what we can to remedy thesituation in a spirit of responsibility. Such are the people we wish toturn out.

Did you understandJesuit Education?

tud y
Let ’ s s t her !
fur

Q : It seems hard, yet I would like to be in a school like this. Isn’ t itdifficult to enter a Jesuit school?
A : It's okay. Study hard and you can make it!

Q : What does that mean?
A : A Jesuit named Fr. Pedro Arrupe, who was the Superior Generalof the Society of Jesus, said that in our schools we must educate
those who wish to serve the following categories of people. Those456