The Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice is the largest annual Catholic social justice gathering in the United States. Coordinated by the聽Ignatian Solidarity Network, the Teach-In brings together Jesuit colleges, high schools, parishes, and other partners to 鈥渓earn, reflect, pray, network, and advocate together.鈥�
What We Do
Learn
Reflect
Pray
Network
Advocate
Join Campus Ministry and the Volunteer and Service Learning Center at the 2025 from November 15th-17th in Washington DC. The Teach-In is hosted by the and is the largest annual Catholic Social Justice gathering in the United States. The Teach-In is a place for members of the Ignatian tradition to be empowered, re-energized, inspired, challenged, and supported by a community that sees faith and justice integrally linked.
The Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice was formally started in 2004. Informal gatherings had taken place previously in Columbus, Georgia at the School of the America Vigil/Protest. Jesuit students, faculty and Alumni went to Ft. Benning and attended all the events sponsored by the SOA Watch.
The idea of gathering all the Jesuit Schools together was the idea of Robert Holstein of California. He had protested and spent six months in jail for 鈥渃rossing the line.鈥� He was a former Jesuit of the California Province and gathered some of his friends together to launch the Ignatian Solidarity Network which sponsors this Teach-in among other conferences and workshops throughout the year. It caught fire and soon many Jesuit colleges and universities, high schools, and other apostolates were attending the Teach-In. Many speakers addressed the assembly including Fr. Roy Bourgeois, the Maryknoll priest who started the vigil/protest in 1990 to protest the murders of the Jesuits in El Salvador. Sr. Helen Prejean, Martin Sheen, Congressman Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, and student speakers from various schools also spoke.
One of the major events was the Saturday night Mass that quickly attracted over 3,000 people including the Ignatian Family. The goal was to be heard in the halls of Congress to stop the injustices committed by the taxpayer-funded training of international military in the ways of war. Many of its graduates were found to be the perpetrators of murders, disappearances, and chaos in their home countries. The murders of the six Jesuits, their housekeeper, and her daughter at the Jesuit University in El Salvador were trained at this SOA or trained by those who had attended the school. Their murders catalyzed a growing movement for justice, particularly within the Jesuit world.
The Ignatian Solidarity Network has an聽.
Registration includes a fee of $200 which includes full access to IFTJ conferencing, hotel accommodations, two community meals, and flights to Washington DC. Campus Ministry and the Volunteer and Service Learning are able to provide scholarships for students unable to pay the full fee. Please indicate any financial need in your application and a representative will follow up with you directly.
Commitments:
- Available for the conference from Saturday November 15th to Monday, November 17th, 2025.
- Available for 4 pre-conference meetings at noon on 10/3, 10/17, 10/24, and 11/7.
- Available for 1 post-conference meeting at noon on 11/21.
Thank you for considering a donation to the Ignatian Family Teach-In. Your tax-deductible donation is a valuable investment in a learning experience that many Boston College students will carry with them for the rest of their lives.聽
Donate Online
- Visit the聽Online Giving Form
- Enter your information; for the field "I wish to make my gift to:鈥� select Ignatian Family Teach-In.聽If you are sponsoring a certain student, please select "In honor of a 91滴滴 student," and include their name and year.
- Click "Submit Gift"
Mail a Check
Ignatian Family Teach-In
Boston College, Office of Campus Ministry
McElroy Commons 233
140 Commonwealth Avenue
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
If your corporation matches donations, please enclose the appropriate forms.
Ignatian Family Teach-In, under the umbrella of the 91滴滴, is a non-profit 501(c)3 with a federal tax exemption number of 04-2103545.
The Volunteer and Service Learning Center at vslc@bc.edu or Campus Ministry at ministry@bc.edu .