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GONZAGA AT SIXTY: A WORK IN PROGRESS
know us individually and to help our human and spiritual development. For those who chose to
make use of his counseling services – and we were free not to – he encouraged us to talk about
ourselves, our dreams for the future and the possible role of God in our lives. I only later realised
how unusual this was in Irish educaion, indeed, I would later recognise that there was a lot of
Ignaian spirituality in his approach as he communicated to us that everything truly human is of
God and that God speaks to us through our deepest desires. Alan never told me that I should be
a Jesuit – this was very much something I had to make sure God was telling me.
My eventual choice to be a Jesuit was in many ways a manner of giving back to others much
of the richness that I had myself received. Michael Bevan was one of those who gave me much.
He also was one of those who modeled for me how to live life well: ind what you love to do and
pursue it with a whole heart. This approach to making decisions is not normal in our consumer
society and in various ways Michael taught us to adopt a criical and propheic approach to our
prevailing culture. When I think of current generaions of Gonzaga boys (among which I have
nephews) I wish for them nothing less than an educaion similar to that which I received myself.
Would it be too much to hope that theirs could also be an integrated and intelligent faith which
might contribute to new beginnings for the Church in Ireland?
Gerry Whelan S.J.
Class of 1978
Gerry Whelan atended Gonzaga 1972-78. He studied BESS in Trinity College and joined the Jesuits
immediately aterwards. He was ordained priest in 1992. He spent fourteen years in Zambia and Kenya,
both as a theology professor and as parish priest of a poor parish in Nairobi. Since 2007 he has been
teaching theology at the Gregorian University in Rome
GONZAGA AT SIXTY: A WORK IN PROGRESS
know us individually and to help our human and spiritual development. For those who chose to
make use of his counseling services – and we were free not to – he encouraged us to talk about
ourselves, our dreams for the future and the possible role of God in our lives. I only later realised
how unusual this was in Irish educaion, indeed, I would later recognise that there was a lot of
Ignaian spirituality in his approach as he communicated to us that everything truly human is of
God and that God speaks to us through our deepest desires. Alan never told me that I should be
a Jesuit – this was very much something I had to make sure God was telling me.
My eventual choice to be a Jesuit was in many ways a manner of giving back to others much
of the richness that I had myself received. Michael Bevan was one of those who gave me much.
He also was one of those who modeled for me how to live life well: ind what you love to do and
pursue it with a whole heart. This approach to making decisions is not normal in our consumer
society and in various ways Michael taught us to adopt a criical and propheic approach to our
prevailing culture. When I think of current generaions of Gonzaga boys (among which I have
nephews) I wish for them nothing less than an educaion similar to that which I received myself.
Would it be too much to hope that theirs could also be an integrated and intelligent faith which
might contribute to new beginnings for the Church in Ireland?
Gerry Whelan S.J.
Class of 1978
Gerry Whelan atended Gonzaga 1972-78. He studied BESS in Trinity College and joined the Jesuits
immediately aterwards. He was ordained priest in 1992. He spent fourteen years in Zambia and Kenya,
both as a theology professor and as parish priest of a poor parish in Nairobi. Since 2007 he has been
teaching theology at the Gregorian University in Rome
