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AJCU President Honored with “Robert M. Holstein: Faith Doing Justice” Award

Contact: Melissa Collins Di Leonardo
(202) 862-9893   mdileonardo@ajcunet.edu

Washington, DC – On October 20, the Ignatian Solidarity Network (ISN) presented Fr. Charles Currie, SJ, president of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU), with the “Robert M. Holstein Award: Faith Doing Justice” award.  Fr. Currie was the first recipient of the award, which recognizes an individual who exhibits a commitment to the Ignatian values of leadership, service and social justice.

The late Bob Holstein, a former Jesuit, a labor lawyer, and a fierce advocate of social justice, was one of the founders of the Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice.  The Teach-In has been held in conjunction with the annual gathering of the School of the Americas (SOA) Watch, which supports the closing of the “school” where 19 of the 26 soldiers participating in the November 16 killings of the Jesuit martyrs had received training before the murders.

In organizing the Teach-in, Holstein laid the foundation for the Ignatian Solidarity Network whose mission is “to facilitate communication and collaboration among Jesuit sponsored high schools, universities, parishes, and other affiliated organizations throughout the U.S. to advance the service of faith and the promotion of justice”. Each year, the ISN sponsors three teach-ins that bring the Ignatian family together to focus on a current or emerging social justice issue.  These gatherings combine spiritual reflection with leadership trainings in community organizing and advocacy.

Fr. Charles Currie, S.J.

Ann Magovern, Loretta Holstein & Bill Masterson

Fr. Currie was a co-founder of the ISN and has kept alive Holstein’s vision of educating students to stand in solidarity with those that are suffering, poor or marginalized.

“Bob combined a strong passion for justice for the poor and marginalized with a remarkable ability for bringing people together. He truly walked the walk for all of us,” said Fr. Currie in his remarks upon receiving the award.

Among those in attendance at the event were Congressmen Jim McGovern (D-MA) and Alan Mollohan (D-WV), who offered their congratulations to Fr. Currie for his leadership and his work on behalf of social justice.

 “I have never met a man more committed to social justice, and all causes that are good, than my dear friend Charlie Currie,” said Congressman McGovern. “His work with the Ignatian Solidarity Network inspires new generations to serve all humanity.” 

“Whether he is ministering to our individual needs – attending to us when we’re born, when we marry, when we fall ill, and when we die – or pursuing social justice in the larger world, Father Currie is a priest’s priest,” said Congressman Mollohan. “He’s a man of uncommon strength and profound compassion.  He carries with him both a vision of a better world and a commitment to make that vision reality.”
 
E.J. Dionne, Jr., the Washington Post columnist, was unable to make the event, but he sent a statement, which was read by Ann Magovern, ISN executive director. “Solidarity is a noble idea and a great discipline,” part of the statement read. “Charlie lives the idea of solidarity, understanding its obligations and its joys and its capacity to change the world.”

In his acceptance speech for the award, Fr. Currie noted that Holstein’s good work was being carried out by several individuals, including Ann Magovern, Bill Masterson, ISN board chair, and Loretta Holstein, Bob’s wife. He noted that Bob would be very pleased with how far the ISN and the Teach-in had come.

“The imagination and magnanimity [of the ISN] continues to live on in Loretta Holstein, Bill Masterson, Ann Magovern and folks like you,” said Currie. “Our agenda embraces the whole world, and we have a great patron in heaven urging us on.”

Photos courtesy of Mary Pat Michel