An Interview with Father Peter Bisson SJ

by Gordon Nary

Gordon: When and where were you born? Please tell us something about your family.

Father Peter: I was born in Edmundston, a small French Canadian paper-mill town in northwestern New Brunswick Canada, on the border with Maine in the US. My family was a combination of English Canadian and Franco-American cultures and languages, all very Catholic, and I grew up surrounded by family that included aunts, uncles and cousins. It was a great place to grow up, and I am still in touch with some of my school friends, teachers and, of course, relatives.

Gordon: When did you attend Pontifical Gregorian University, what degree did you earn, what was your favorite course, why was it your favorite, and what is one of your favorite memories when you were there?              

Father Peter: I attended the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome from 1997 until 2002, when I received by ThD, Doctor of Theology. My favourite course was in Eastern Soteriology. I liked it so much because it was a different way of understanding salvation, one that seemed to integrate spirituality and rational understanding with ease and grace, where beauty was theologically important.

Gordon: When did you receive your vocation, with whom did you discuss it, and what was their advice?

Father Peter: While my vocation had roots in childhood reading about the Jesuit martyrs of North America, the inner experiences that led me to the Jesuits came while I was a graduate student at Union Theological Seminary and Columbia University in New York City from 1 980 to 1983. I discussed my experiences most with a Canadian Jesuit, Fr. Peter Larisey, SJ, who at the time was finishing a PhD in Canadian art history at Columbia. I also discussed it with friends and family, but I went into the most detail with Fr. Peter.

Gordon: Where did you attend seminary, what was your favorite course, and why was it your favorite?

Father Peter: I did my Master of Divinity, Bachelor of Sacred Theology and Licentiate in Sacred Theology at Regis College, the Jesuit theology faculty at the University of Toronto. I loved my courses, but my favourite one was a year-long seminar on Insight, one of the major works of Bernard Lonergan, SJ, one of the great theologians of the twentieth century. The professor was Fr. Robert Doran, SJ. The course was intellectually exciting and rigorous, and opened up many horizons for me.

Gordon: Why did you decide to be a Jesuit?

Father Peter: I felt called to be a Jesuit in order to be with Jesus on His mission in a Jesuit way, and to be or to become available for any mission my superiors might want to send me on. As I suggested above, in my childhood I admired the example of the Jesuit martyrs of North America, especially St. Isaac Jogues, and the love they must have had to endure great hardships to tell people the good news about Jesus.

Gordon: When and where did you serve as Assistant professor of religious studies and what were your primary responsibilities ?

Father Peter: I taught religious studies at Campion College at the University of Regina from 2001 to 2008 and I think I became assistant professor, with tenure, in 2004, give or take a year. My main duties were to teach religious studies to undergraduates, with an emphasis on socially engaged forms of religion, which was my main academic interest.

Gordon: You recently held two positions - Provincial superior (president) and Socius vice-president. What were your primary responsibilities of each position?

Father Peter: I served as socius or assistant to the provincial superior of the Jesuits in English Canada from 2008 to 2012. Then I was appointed provincial superior of the Jesuits in English Canada in 2012 and completed my mandate in 2018, when our Jesuit province and the French Canadian Jesuit province were both suppressed in order to make the new, single province of the Jesuits of Canada. When I was provincial superior I worked a lot on issues of truth and reconciliation with Indigenous people, preparing the new bilingual Jesuit province of Canada, and discernment in common, among other things. Right now I support the social justice work of the Jesuits of Canada as associate assistant to the provincial for justice and Indigenous relations.

Gordon: Who is your favorite author and book and why are they your favorite?

Father Peter: A tough question. I think my favourite author is Simone Weil, and my favourite book is her "The Need for Roots". One of the things I especially appreciate about the book is her recognition of needs of the soul in all aspects of life.

Gordon: Thank you for a greet interview: