Novices in the English Canada Province of the Society of Jesus have the opportunity to experience cultures different than their own, oftentimes those outside of Canada, during what is referred to as the novitiate “Long Experiment”.  The Long Experiment is a 4-5 month assignment that is completed in our second year.  It is a critical step in each Jesuit’s formation.

During this time, novices are sent to live and work in Jesuit communities in an environment quite different from their own.  Assignments might be in the developing world or in remote parts of Canada but are almost always in an unfamiliar culture.  One of the primary goals of this formation step is for the novice to live the realities of the Jesuit mission: “to deepen their understanding of the call to serve faith, promote justice and dialogue with culture and other religions”(1). 

It is also an opportunity to experience firsthand the poverty present in our world and to better appreciate the challenges of those most vulnerable.  The length of this experiment permits somewhat of an immersion into this unknown culture and allows the novice to connect in a deep way with this community and the work being done by its members. 

I am very fortunate to have been missioned to the African Jesuits AIDS Network (AJAN) for my long experiment and will spend the next four months living and working in Nairobi, Kenya with Fr. Paterne Mombé, SJ and his team.

A wise Jesuit once told me that when he first arrived to work in Africa, he was so struck by the differences and challenges of his new reality that he felt he could write a book on his observations and opinions of all that was happening around him.  Upon completing his first year, he realized that he had learned enough to write a chapter or two.

After 10 years of living and working in Africa, he felted he had enough insight to cobble together a couple of sentences on the subject.  Twenty years later, after 30 years working day after day with the people of his little village in rural Africa, immersed in this complex culture and environment he had nothing to say and just smiled.

With this in mind, I will make this a rather short entry…

I arrived in Kenya on December 30.  I happened to be sitting beside a priest from Australia on my flight over, who coincidentally had studied 6 years with the Jesuits and was full of praise and stories (it all made for a very interesting Examen that evening) – a very reassuring way to begin this adventure. 

This is my first time traveling to Sub-Saharan Africa.  Before entering the Society of Jesus, I studied physiology and virology and then worked for 12 years at a pharmaceutical company.  I held several different positions during my time there, principally in the fields of vaccine development and marketing.   This afforded me the opportunity to travel throughout much of the world and to have exposure (albeit with some biases) to many aspects of public health and medication access. 

AJAN is an umbrella organization that supports Jesuit apostolates across 30 countries in Africa who are working with individuals and communities living with HIV and AIDS.  My experiences and interest in this area made the possibility of working at AJAN very appealing to me.

When I arrived in Nairobi it was +24°C with a soothing breeze and the sky ablaze in a beautiful sunset – a stark contrast to when I left Montreal 24 hours earlier, where it was grey, -10°C and everyone was busily digging out of the heaviest snowfalls in our history (45cm in 24 hours).  I must admit that the weather and the beauty of this country are two of the great perks of this experiment. 

Nairobi is just south of the equator and has an elevation of 1795 m above sea-level giving it one of the most amazing climates on earth (at least from my perspective).  I am here during the sunniest and warmest part of the year with temperatures typically in the mid-twenties during the day.  And like Camelot, it only rains at night!!

AJAN is located in the Kangemi slums which I struggle to describe: dirt roads lined with wooden shacks with tin roofs and tons of people, kids, goats, dogs and chickens running everywhere.  What is hard to imagine is, that despite what must be very challenging living conditions, the people are clean, dressed well, so friendly and seemingly happy – not what you would expect at first sight.  The extremes are heart-breaking: great wealth and beauty surrounded by this unbelievable poverty. 

I am somewhat of a novelty for the young kids in the neighbourhood.  They have not met many white people so they love to run up to me on the street and hug me and practice their English by saying – "How are you?" over and over again.  The Jesuit Parish, St. Joseph the Worker, is less than a kilometer from AJAN.  It’s a trek I am getting to know quite well. 

When I arrive at my destination – either AJAN or the church, depending on my direction – I usually have 6 or 8 kids walking with me, laughing and trying to engage in some limited conversation: little English on their part, much, much less Kiswahili on mine.

The people at AJAN are very welcoming and accommodating.  There are three Jesuits working here: Fr. Paterne Mombé, the director of the project; and Patrice and Ernesto, both scholastics (i.e. still in formation) completing their “regency”, the assignment between philosophy and theology studies. 

There is also a young man named Fred who is a candidate (he is hoping to be accepted to the Jesuit Novitiate in Tanzania this June) and a woman, Anna, a social worker from Budapest who decided to take a year off work to volunteer.  There are also many locals on the staff: a cook, house-keeper, security guards and administrative staff – all absolutely amazing people. 

Despite being half way around the world, many things seem rather familiar (I am learning to appreciate the consistencies in “our least society”).  Many things, that is, except the food.  It is excellent but very different from what we eat in Canada (except for the Sour Cream and Onion Pringles at pre-prandials).  It is my first time eating fish heads and goat intestine – both truly outstanding!!

As I am just beginning my work here at AJAN, I look forward to providing further updates on my experiences in Kenya and with the people I will meet throughout my time here.  I hope that you will stay-tuned!!  Hadi wakati mwingine!

(1) 35th General Congregation Society of Jesus, 2008, Decree 3