William H. Kreutz celeberates 50th year in the Society of Jesus

[jvp...@gmail.com]

FATHER WILLIAM H. KREUTZ, SJ CELEBRATES HIS 50th YEAR
IN THE SOCIETY OF JESUS

“Father Bill” as he is known to all his friends, shall celebrate his
50th year in the Society of Jesus on August 24, 2008 at the Ateneo
campus in Katipunan, Loyola Heights, Quezon City.

The Society of Jesus today form the largest religious order of priests
and brothers in the Catholic Church with 19, 216 serving in 112
nations on 6 continents, the largest number being in India followed by
those in the United States.

As a Jesuit, Father Bill who is of German descent and hails from New
York, has been working in the Philippines since 1963. He was only 28
years old when he came to the country and was first assigned to teach
High School students in the Ateneo de Manila University.

He has seen the martial law years and has stood up with his fellow
Jesuits and others for the return of democracy to the country. In
1980, Father Bill, Father. Noel Vasquez, SJ, Father Vic Labao, and Mr.
Jaemy See, founded the Jesuit Volunteers Philippines (JVP) recruiting
new graduates colleges and universities to serve in poor rural
schools, parishes, and NGOs throughout the nation at a time when such
efforts were unheard of and even considered subversive.

Father Bill and his fellow JVP founders saw the opportunity to help
bring some level of social justice to reality for many communities in
need and for many young men and women who wanted to help bring this
social justice to a reality.

Under Superior General Pedro Arrupe, social justice and the
preferential option for the poor emerged as a dominant theme of the
work of the Jesuits.

For 29 years now, the JVP has been recruiting graduates and young
professionals to forsake their well-paying opportunities to live and
work in areas like Samar, Mindoro, Bukidnon and other places that “may
otherwise have been forgotten”, according to Father Bill. Jesuit
Volunteers have lived with and worked for trash sorters, indigenous
peoples, farmers, and the rural poor, among others.

The JVP Foundation, Inc is a community that embraces 830 former
volunteers and 13 present volunteers living out the core values of
Spirituality, Simplicity, Service, Solidarity, and Social Justice.
These past and present volunteers have touched the lives of close to
200,000 Filipinos over these 29 years.

After his studies at the Loyola School of Theology and ordination to
priesthood in 1969, Father Bill taught mathematics at the Ateneo de
Manila University. He was concurrently college chaplain and later
director of the Office of Admission and Aid. It was during this time
in the latter office that he began the Ateneo Alumni Scholars
Association, where formers scholars of the Ateneo subsidize present
scholars.

In 1989, he was elected President of the Ateneo de Zamboanga. During
his tenure, in 2001, the college was granted the title Ateneo de
Zamboanga University.

Father Bill was also involved in peace and development efforts in
Western Mindanao during his years in Zamboanga City.

At present, Father Bill is the rector of the Jesuit Community of the
Ateneo de Manila University and assists with the ministry programs of
the students in residence on campus.

On the occasion of Father Bill’s 50th anniversary as a Jesuit, the
Jesuit Volunteers Philippines would like to invite his students,
colleagues and friends to join a celebration in his honor and on the
occasion of his 73rd birthday on August 24.


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For inquiries,
You may contact Tet Gallardo or Edlyn Kalman of the Jesuit Volunteers
Philippines Foundation, Inc. at 9279060 or 4265908.