In celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States, St. Joe’s is offering a year’s worth of community events and courses to promote reflection on our nation’s history and future. Philadelphia is home to much of this history; both the Declaration of Independence and Constitution were signed in Independence Hall, and the city served as the first capital of the new nation. While the year of events and programming will highlight this, its main purpose is to engage students in dialogue surrounding our nation’s successes and failures through a Jesuit perspective.

If we don’t study the troubling aspects of our nation’s history, we are almost certainly bound to repeat it. At St. Joe’s, our Jesuit values encourage us to analyze our past in recognition of human dignity and create a better future for those who will inherit it. This cannot be done without first acknowledging past injustices and those who fought to right such wrongs. The Founding Fathers were not the only individuals who shaped our nation; suffragists and civil rights activists should be included in the celebration of our freedom. It is through them that the words “Liberty and justice for all” reach closer fulfillment.

As members of a Jesuit institution, we are called to advocate for those who have been repeatedly silenced throughout our nation’s history. One way of doing this is by engaging in the dialogue encouraged by events and programs. Through this dialogue, modern injustices, along with the rest of our nation’s history, can be examined to shape the world St. Ignatius of Loyola envisioned: one that is strong in faith, service oriented and compassionate toward all people.