Provinces and Regions

Who are Jesuits?

Jesuits are members of the Society of Jesus, a religious order founded by St Ignatius of Loyola. The Order was officially approved by Pope Paul III in 1540. The Soceity of Jesus consists of priests, brothers and scholastics whose rootedness in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius bonds them together as "friends in the Lord." The mission of the Society of Jesus can be summed up as "the service of faith and the promotion of justice." Jesuits are working all over the world in various ministries, and they are the largest male religious order in the Catholic Church.

Jesuits in Africa

Eight years after the founding of the Society of Jesus a Jesuit mission was started in Congo. In 1554 Jesuits were sent to Ethiopia to initiate contacts with Christians there, and by 1561, Jesuits had journeyed into present-day Zimbabwe. In 1971, the Superior General, Fr Pedro Arrupe, created the African Assistancy to encourage collaboration among the many different groups of Jesuits working across the continent, and to foster common formation programmes.

Today, Jesuits are working in 30 African countries. They are members of 7 Provinces and 3 Regions.

CENTRAL AFRICA: Democratic Republic of Congo
NORTH-WEST AFRICA: Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone
WEST AFRICA: Benin, Burkina-Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Gabon, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Togo
EASTERN AFRICA: Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda
MADAGASCAR: Madagascar
ZAMBIA-MALAWI: Zambia and Malawi
ZIMBABWE: Zimbabwe
RWANDA-BURUNDI REGION: Rwanda and Burundi - Independent Region
MOZAMBIQUE REGION: Mozambique - Region dependent on Portugal
SOUTH AFRICA REGION: South Africa - Region dependent on Great Britain

 

Some communities of Jesuits are based in Africa but depend on Provinces outside Africa

France for Algeria and Morocco
Portugal for Angola
Near-East for Egypt

 

For more details concerning the number of Jesuits in each Province or Region click here