Provincial Assistant for Pastoral Ministries
Through nine parishes and five retreat houses across the U.S. Central and Southern Province’s 13 states, Jesuit pastoral ministries are communities of faith doing justice and formation in Ignatian spirituality.
“Our parishes come with a Jesuit flavor,” says Fr. Dan White, SJ, provincial assistant for parishes and retreat ministry. “That means, hopefully, we’re doing collaboration. We’re coming from a place of Ignatian spirituality. And we’re doing real outreach to the marginalized.”
Father White is responsible for supporting the provincial in maintaining these distinctive communities and spaces of prayer, sacramental life and pastoral care. As the liaison between individual works and the province, Fr. White strives to “keep the lines of communication running.”
His work is shaped by his own extensive experience in pastoral ministry and his familiarity with the unique needs and challenges of parish life, particularly in contexts where pastors may be under-resourced.
“Most of my ordained life as a Jesuit has been in parishes,” says Fr. White. From his first pastoral assignment at St. Francis Xavier Parish in Kansas City, Missouri, Fr. White moved to Belize, where he served as pastor at St. Martin de Porres for four years, and later to St. Louis, where he served as pastor at St. Francis Xavier College Church from 2012 until his appointment as provincial assistant in 2023.
Above all, he says, his experience in parishes taught him the importance of collaboration and respect for the local community.
“Pastors come and go, but the community remains,” says Fr. White.
“You want to have a great pastor, that’s important, but it’s hard for me to think of a good parish where it’s just, ‘Well, that’s what Father does.’ None of our places are like that; it is more of a collaborative effort,” he says. “It’s not about being a dictator but fostering involvement and ownership. It flows from the pastor.”
In his role as provincial assistant, Fr. White visits each parish and retreat house annually to ensure that this collaborative effort is fostered on all sides. This includes ensuring pastors understand what collaboration looks like, and that the lay members of the parish see their role as integral to the life of the community.
“I try to be a listening ear and gather information to provide a comprehensive report to the provincial,” he says.
He also offers support and recommendations to pastors and parish staff, often rooted in his own experience in pastoral leadership.
“What it might look like is [parish councils] asking, ‘We’d like to do this, but we don’t know how,’” he says.
When the parish council at St. Francis Xavier College Church in St. Louis reached out to him about how to conduct a performance review for their lay director of the work – a unique position for a layperson – Fr. White solicited information about best practices from other parishes across the country who have a similar role.
“I’m not someone they ask for approval or opinion; I’m a resource,” explains Fr. White.
The unique challenges of each of the province’s parishes and retreat houses are rooted in differing local contexts, and require creative solutions to promote and continue their Jesuit missions.
“A parish in Punta Gorda, Belize, with multiple villages is very different from a parish in El Paso. The Catholic culture in South Louisiana is different from Colorado, so retreat houses need to meet people where they are,” he says.
“We want to hold on to these places because they offer something unique to the wider church,” he says of Jesuit retreat houses.
Continuing to do that amid contemporary challenges, including the declining number of Jesuits, requires creativity and commitment. Fr. White is up to the task.
“It’s about evolving to meet the needs of people,” he says. “It’s about meeting people where they are and providing a place for connection.”
