The Superior General of the Society of Jesus, Very Rev. Fr Arturo Sosa, SJ, has urged Ghanaian students to use their education to promote justice, reconciliation and national development.
Interacting with students and staff of St Ignatius of Loyola Catholic School at Baatsona, Accra, on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, he said Jesuit education should go beyond academic achievement to foster compassion, responsible leadership and service to humanity.
The visit formed part of his engagement with the Jesuit mission in Ghana, which is marking 50 years in the country.
The order’s formal long-term mission in Ghana dates to the arrival of Fr Patrick J. Ryan, SJ, in 1974.
The Society of Jesus, commonly known as the Jesuits, is a Catholic religious order founded by St Ignatius of Loyola in 1540. Its mission includes education, spiritual formation, pastoral ministry, missionary work and the promotion of social justice.
Rev. Fr Sosa, who was elected the 31st Superior General on October 14, 2016, is the first Latin American to lead the order.
Justice
He expressed the hope that the students would contribute to building a humane and reconciled Ghana, where justice was part of everyday life and everyone could live with hope.“
I hope you will be part of the process to help Ghana to become a real human country, a reconciled country, where justice can be really part of the ordinary human, and where everyone can find a place to live, and to live hopefully,” he said.
Rev. Fr Sosa explained that his visit was also an opportunity to learn from the students and understand their experiences of Jesuit education.
Jesuits college
While in Ghana, Rev. Fr Sosa will visit the proposed site of Jesuits College at Gomoa Buduatta in the Central Region.
The proposed institution is intended to become Ghana’s first Jesuit college, combining academic excellence with character formation, faith, ethical leadership and social responsibility.
Rare opportunity
The Parish Priest of St Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church, Rev. Fr Emmanuel Kofi Agyapong, described the visit as a rare privilege and a source of pride for the school community.
He said the school was established in 2004 to respond to the educational needs of the growing Baatsona community, where educational facilities were limited and there was no Catholic school.
He said the school’s formation was rooted in the Jesuit tradition and Ignatian pedagogy, which seek to develop learners’ conscience, competence, compassion and commitment to God, their work and the country.
Rev. Fr Agyapong described meeting the Superior General for the first time as a significant personal experience.
He said the visit also reinforced the school’s connection to the wider Society of Jesus, whose members, despite serving in different parts of the world, share a common mission of promoting faith, justice, peace and Ignatian spirituality.
Writer's email
