Arusha, Tanzania — December 2–7, 2025 | The annual meeting of Jesuit Novice Masters and Vocation Promoters from across the Jesuit Conference of Africa and Madagascar (JCAM) opened in Arusha with a strong call to deepen formation and safeguard vocations amid the global crisis of attention affecting young people today.

In his welcome address, JCAM President Fr. José Minaku, SJ, expressed gratitude for the gathering and emphasized the importance of this yearly moment of fraternity and shared discernment. He thanked the Provincial of the Eastern Africa Province (AOR), Fr. Kizito Kiyimba, Fr. Charles Mnubi, and the Novitiate community for their warm hospitality and thorough preparation. He also welcomed newcomers, especially Fr. Deogratias Rwezaura, SJ, participating for the first time as the new JCAM Delegate for Formation.

Fr. Minaku offered special tribute to the JCAM Socius and outgoing JCAM Formation Delegate, Fr. John the Baptist Anyeh-Zamcho, SJ (“JB”), whom he described as the architect of JCAM’s renewed approach to formation, acknowledging his willingness to accompany the group, stepping in for Father Deogratias, who is traveling to Rome for the formation meeting. He also honoured Fr. Charles Mnubi, SJ, novice master for the Jesuit Eastern Africa Province (AOR) who begins a well-deserved sabbatical after many years of dedicated service.

While rejoicing in the vocations the Society of Jesus continues to receive, Fr. Minaku cautioned against complacency. He reminded participants that vocation is a divine gift entrusted to the Society with great responsibility. “We must pay close attention to the quality of the men the Lord entrusts to us,” he said. “The future of the Society of Jesus depends on us.” He stressed that this gathering is a privileged moment to share, support one another, and revisit last year’s resolutions from Cyangugu-Rwanda. At the same time, it is an opportunity to confront the urgent formation challenges facing Jesuit communities today.

At the heart of these challenges is a pressing concern: the diminishing capacity for attention and focus among young people entering religious life. Drawing insights from Chris Hayes’ book The Call of the Sirens: How Attention Became the World’s Most Endangered Resource, Fr. Minaku invited the assembly to explore how today’s fragmented digital culture undermines the essential qualities required for Ignatian formation.

One of the first areas he highlighted is the threat to interior attention, which is foundational to the novitiate. Discernment of spirits requires time, interior stillness, and the ability to notice one’s inner movements. Yet today’s digital culture disperses and drains attention, making it difficult for novices to “taste and feel things interiorly,” as St. Ignatius expected.

He also noted that the sustained attention required for prayer has become rare. Long periods of meditation, silence, and the rhythm of the Spiritual Exercises demand focused concentration, but many novices arrive conditioned by habitual digital distraction. This forces novice masters to begin formation by re-educating the mind toward contemplative focus.

Another concern is the impact on community life, which depends on genuine presence, deep listening, and mutual attention. Fr. Minaku warned that modern patterns of multitasking and digital overstimulation weaken the quality of presence essential for healthy religious fraternity. Simply removing devices is insufficient; what is needed is a cultivation of attentiveness as a habit and virtue.

He further observed that Ignatian indifference, the interior freedom that allows Jesuits to be fully available for mission, is increasingly challenged by hidden digital dependencies. Many young people enter formation already “tied to the mast” not through discerned choice, but through attachment to the distractions of modern culture. This weakens their capacity for apostolic availability.

The challenge also extends to the long-term nature of Jesuit life. Formation unfolds slowly and demands perseverance, yet contemporary culture is shaped by immediacy and instant gratification. Fr. Minaku asked how young people can sustain a lifelong calling when the culture around them weakens the very ability for long-term desire.

Despite these difficulties, he insisted that the crisis of attention also presents a prophetic opportunity. Deep focus becomes a countercultural witness, genuine listening in community becomes a sign of hope, and contemplative prayer becomes a transformative act in a world that fragments the human spirit. He encouraged the development of a formation that is “more intentional, more ascetical, and more deliberate than ever before.” In his words, “the central spiritual battle of our time is the fight for attention.”

As the meeting continues through the week in Arusha, participants will reflect on these themes, share experiences across provinces, and discuss practical strategies for nurturing attentiveness, interior freedom, and apostolic readiness in the next generation of Jesuits.

The days ahead promise rich dialogue and renewed commitment as the Society of Jesus seeks to form men who can listen deeply, discern faithfully, and serve generously in a world where attention itself has become endangered.