HOPE is a powerful word. In the first letter of Peter, we read, “Always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks you about the hope you have.”(1 Peter 3:15) And so, I answer you with the reason for my hope is the faith, presence, passion, and witness for peace and justice of the young people I met at the Ignatian Teach-In for Justice (IFTJ) held in Washington, DC this past weekend. So many of these young people exemplified for me a promise of hope as they leaned into being, building, and preaching a message of hope.

In its 25th year, this gathering began after the martyrdom of the Jesuit priests and their companions in 1989. Since then, these yearly education, prayer, empowerment, and advocacy training weekends continue to grow and welcome thousands of students, educators, and justice advocates from Ignatian high schools, colleges, and partner schools. Our Vocations team was there to promote vocations to our congregation and to share our charism of being, building, and preaching peace with our lives and in our ministries. This was my first time at this event, and I left with a sense of hope for the future of our Church, country, and world.

Looking back on the weekend, I would like to share a few glimpses of this hope that continue to flash through my mind. These include:

• At our booth, we invited students to help Pope Francis answer how to build peace in our world. More than 100 of them wrote their answers on sticky notes and put them on our cardboard cutout of Pope Francis. I’ll never forget watching a young Salvadoran student, carefully writing his answer to, “¿Cómo podemos construir la paz en nuestro mundo?” (How can we build peace in our world?) He wrote two, “Empatizar con los demás.”(Empathize with others.) And “Acompañar” (Accompany) – both echoing messages heard from Papa Francisco. He is involved in peace and justice work and was invited to attend the IFTJ as a representative of the students in the Jesuit schools of El Salvador.
  
• Saturday evening, we gathered in hushed silence in a formal Prayer for the Jesuit Martyrs. As the names were read of the Jesuit martyrs and their companions and other priests and sisters killed for their work for human rights in the modern era, students and others silently carried small candles into the prayer space and formed a circle around the chapel. As one light became two, three, fifty, a hundred – the space was illuminated with the memory and faith of these martyrs. I gazed around the circle to these young faces illuminated by the candlelight and I was moved to tears.
  
• ¡Presente! During the IFTJ roll call, delegations respond “¡presente!” (present here!) when their institution’s name is called. This process ties us to the practice of responding ¡presente! when the names of the thousands killed by those trained at the School of the Americas were written on white crosses and sung in litany, with participants responding “¡presente!”
  
• At our vocations booth, we spoke to many participants about how we dedicate our lives to God as vowed Dominican Sisters and work for peace and justice in our world. We invited them to take time to listen to what God is calling them to do with their lives and to be open to considering religious life. While many are not yet sure where God is calling them in life, they were certain they would continue advocating for peace and justice in the world wherever God calls them. I am sure Jesus was right there with us encouraging them on.

These are some reasons for my hope. What are yours?

If you sense God may be calling you to consider religious life as a Dominican Sister of Peace, contact us to begin the conversation. Who knows, maybe you are the witness of hope others are waiting for.