Mission

The mission of the Theology of Healing Earth in Action (THEA) Institute is to engage high school students in Ignatian spirituality focused on ecological issues, so that they might act as socially just leaders who care for creation in their local communities and around the world. 

Goals

The THEA Institute has five main goals: 

• Invite participants to discover and discern their gifts and vocation, drawing on the rich wisdom of sacred scriptures and Ignatian spirituality. 
• Awaken the imagination of participants through creative forms of prayer as a path towards discernment and leadership development. 
• Foster Ignatian values through critically examining environmental justice issues. 
• Honor the diverse and multiethnic makeup of the Catholic community. 
• Develop leaders who will lead integrated lives of faith and justice, empowering them to respond to contemporary challenges. 

Learning Outcomes

In light of our goals, we offer the following learning outcomes for our high school participants. At the end of the THEA Institute, participants will be able to: 

• Utilize tools of discernment and sacred scripture to recognize their own gifts and personal call to vocation 
• Express their own growing sense of spirituality through imagination, personal expression, music, and creative forms of prayer 
• Examine environmental justice centered on Ignatian values 
• Respond to contemporary environmental challenges through an integrated lens of science, ethics, faith, and justice