by Fr. Jerry Cobb, SJ

Pat Lee, SJ, the newly named Provincial of the Oregon Province, has a number of qualities that should console, encourage, and attract anyone who is currently considering a vocation to Jesuit life. Pat entered the Society of Jesus in August, 1969, and I had the privilege of beginning the great adventure of religious life alongside him at that time.

Pat combines the best qualities of a friend, a counselor, a teacher, and a person of discernment. He has a wonderful sense of humor and a ready laugh; he is very generous when it comes to being a supportive listener to his friends—if you had a dollar for every time someone has approached Pat to say, ― “Can I talk with you for a few minutes?” you would be a wealthy person. Pat is a highly empathetic listener, and he comes by this trait both naturally because of his personality, and also because he has a degree in counseling.

One could say that all of the ministry assignments that Pat has had throughout his life have in a sense prepared him for this new assignment as Provincial. He has had an exceptionally strong career working with young adults’ faith-formation, having worked at Gonzaga University’s Counseling Center for two years, and then having worked as Socius to the Novice Director and then Novice Director for about ten years. I’m not sure how many novices and current scholastics he has helped in discerning their vocation, but I’m sure it is the vast majority of the younger Jesuits in the Oregon Province.

Pat has also had significant international experience, beginning with the junior year of college that he spent in Florence, Italy. He has spent significant time in Africa, and this past two months he has been in Rome as the Oregon province’s elected delegate to the General Congregation. So he will be taking up his duties as Provincial on July 31 with a very fresh and powerful sense of the international context of the Jesuit mission and vision. The job he will leave in order to become Provincial is the post of Vice President for Mission at Gonzaga University—this is a role in which Pat has been a key conversation partner in discerning the coporate mission and vision of Gonzaga. His new position will combine that type of strategic planning with the cura personalis or personal care of individual Jesuits seeking to discern God’s will in their lives.

Pat has a number of quotable phrases and anecdotes that I suspect will emerge in the coming weeks and months as people start to realize what a blessing he will be in their lives in this new role of leadership. We could not be in more sure hands, and I expect that he will be a powerfully prophetic voice to us, revealing the true implications and scope of what it means to be a companion of Jesus.