Surrounded by 300 family members, friends, and Jesuit companions, Fr. Tom Lamanna pronounced his final vows in the Gonzaga University Chapel on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2003.

The Provincial, Fr. John Whitney, was principal presider at the liturgy and received Lamanna's vows on behalf of the Jesuits' Father General, Peter Hans Kolvenbach. Joining Whitney and Lamanna at the altar was Fr. Pat Lee, the novice director and Lamanna's superior. Following the Mass, a reception was held at Gonzaga's Jesuit House.

During his homily, Fr. Lamanna spoke of his growth and formation as a Jesuit and expressed his appreciation and thanks to his family, friends, and the Society for the love and support he has received throughout his 17 years as a Jesuit.

Most of his apostolic work in the Society has been at Gonzaga Prep in Spokane, where Lamanna taught during regency and again after his ordination in 1997. After leaving Prep three years ago for his Tertianship program in Alaska, he was assigned to Portland, where, for the past two years, he has served as the assistant to the novice director.

Final vows signal the end of formal training for a Jesuit and his full incorporation into the Society of Jesus. At the time of his first vows, made after two years in the novitiate, a young scholastic vows perpetual poverty, chastity and obedience and promises to live out his life in the Society. At the time of his final vows, he joins the ranks of full membership in addition to pronouncing a special fourth vow of obedience to the Holy Father.

Jesuits Ordained as Deacons

Five Jesuits were ordained as deacons in two ceremonies in October. These men will be ordained as priests this coming June. Craig Hightower, a student at the Weston Jesuit School of Theology, was ordained in Cambridge, MA on Saturday, Oct. 11. The following Saturday, Jack Bentz, Viet Tran, Tom Lankenau and Bryan Pham were ordained in the Oakland Cathedral. All are students at Berkeley's Jesuit School of Theology except Pham, who is completing his theology studies at Regis College in Toronto, Canada.

Jesuits in Formation Gathered at Loyola Jesuit Center

From December 27th through the 30th the Oregon Province men in formation gathered together at the Loyola Jesuit Center in Portland. 40 men came from Toronto, Boston, New York, Chicago, Saint Louis, Berkeley, Spokane, Seattle, Tacoma and Portland to celebrate our lives together. This gathering included men from the first year novices to those recently ordained.

The theme of the gathering was a reflection on our vows. It was inspired by the Luke 24 account of the Road to Emmaus. How have our vows set our hearts afire? It was a mixture of prayer, personal reflection and group sharing. Those with vows joined with other Jesuits from the area in renewing those vows at the end of the gathering. The highlight of the gathering could arguably have been the bowling tournament in North Portland. It was never quite clear as to whether James Nolte or Doug Pierce was the final victor.

Sean Raftis, Joseph Carver, Fernando Alvarez and Dan Mai were the planning committee and they did a terrific job!

Only two scholastics were missing from our ranks. Jes Sauer’s mother passed away only a few days before the gathering. He, of course, was in Dayton, Ohio attending to her. Glen Butterworth was sent to represent the scholastics at the funeral. We were all very much aware of Jes and his grief throughout the gathering and felt a bond of love with him.

It was a wonderful celebration, a time of renewal and of reconnection of our dispersed brotherhood.

New Province Logo

In September, the Province introduced its new logo, pictured here. Against the promise of a bright blue sky stand the mountains which mark the Province from Montana to Alaska, from Mount Ashland to the Brook Range. Then in the foreground, is the golden sunburst symbol of the Society of Jesus. IHS, the Greek abbreviation for the name of Jesus, has been used in Christian art since the 12th century when the early Jesuits adopted it as a way of identifying the Society which bore the Savior's name. In this logo, the IHS stands above two stars and a moon, as on Ignatius' own seal, a symbol that the name of Jesus will reign in heaven above every other object.