The Jesuit Social Service (JSS), the social development wing of the Society of Jesus in East Timor, celebrated its 10th anniversary on July 14.
Jesuits in East Timor thanked guests and all the participants who took part in the life and mission of JSS.
They also expressed their profound gratitude to all the donors and collaborators who have supported JSS throughout the last decade.
JSS was established in 2013 to play a more active role in the social development of Timor-Leste following the departure of the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) from the country.
While assistance for displaced persons was no longer needed, it was obvious that social services were needed to develop the country. Isidoro Costa, a former JRS country director, and other JRS employees transferred to JSS, and two Jesuit scholastics were appointed to JSS to assist with project inception.
In January 2014, Jesuit Brother Noel Oliver took over as acting director, and in June of that same year, Jesuit Fr. Erik John Gerilla was named the new director.
JSS is firmly rooted in the justice and faith of the Gospel. It envisions a strong Timorese nation, driven by love for the country, that will create a just society and advance the common good, so that the country will be made up of unified, independent, and self-sustaining communities.
JSS fosters comprehensive community development where people's cultures and identities are honored, enabling the underprivileged to achieve self-sufficiency.
It also encourages the humanization of life by promoting the inclusion of all, particularly women, young people, and children.
Through agricultural and livelihood projects, mentoring and training for entrepreneurship and related functional skills, and public health development, people can live their lives to the fullest.
Through relationships with the local and global public and commercial sectors, networking, and volunteerism, JSS develops ways to increase human resilience in communities.
In three locations where the Jesuits have a long-standing presence: Dare, Hera, and Kasait, JSS is involved in several projects.
A few of JSS's major initiatives are in the fields of water and sanitation (improving community-based infrastructure to address inadequate access to water and sanitation).
Agriculture development is a different project. Through creative agricultural development initiatives tailored to each rural community's needs, it helps ensure a sufficient food supply that is affordable for everyone.
In addition, JSS actively promotes social innovation. It prepares and guides women and youth organizations to become social innovators.
JSS encourages youth and women to become change agents through a variety of creative projects that will not only enhance the living conditions of the communities to which they belong but also transmit values and foster communal action. JSS does this by employing business solutions to social concerns.
In addition, it emphasizes public health development to improve access to healthcare for the underprivileged in rural areas. - Santosh Digal
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
Latest News
