Hanging stoically over students passing through the hallway between the senior and prayer courtyards, twelve new banners display the names and lifespans of the earliest Jesuits. Among these banners, two feature portraits of St. Ignatius, founder of the Jesuits, and St. Aloysius Gonzaga, one of the order’s first members. These banners will attempt to bring us closer to the men whose examples we strive to follow.
Fr. Jay Hooks, S.J. and Jonathan Harmon, S.J. worked together to bring the banners to Jesuit to “give people a sense that the saints are still here,” says Fr. Hooks. The inspiration came from the banners at St. Joe’s Prep in Philadelphia, whose curriculum “[teaches] a lot about the Jesuits,” as Fr. Hooks hopes to teach the Dallas Jesuit students about their Jesuit roots as well. Just as the banners watch above us, so do the Jesuit men.
Mr. Harmon says they serve to “give us a sense of our past, where we began” and hopefully “where we’re headed.” For the two portraits, he used the art app Procreate to create the head shots on the banners. He says that for the portraits they “wanted an old style meets new style,” which he accomplished by designing St. Ignatius classically, “like an old icon,” and St. Gonzaga in a more modern style, where he “took some liberties you wouldn’t typically see.” Fr. Hooks S.J. and Mr. Harmon S.J. hoped that this contrast between old and new will inspire students to aspire to be like the saints but with their own spin on it.
Students at Jesuit have reacted positively to the new banners, enjoying the new additions. Sophomore Jake Carlson ’18 says they “represent the Jesuit culture accurately” and make him “proud to be a Jesuit student. The banners certainly do add a sense of depth to our Jesuit faith, compelling us to remember the hardships and sacrifices many Jesuits have made to get to the place we are at now.” Josh Betanzos ’18 adds that they are “beautiful and very nice, and [he] welcomes the change.” Connor Thomas ’18 takes comfort, “Knowing that a member of our own Jesuit Community [Mr. Harmon S.J.] created the drawing makes them very special.”
The banners, with any luck, will compel freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors alike to take a deeper look that their Jesuit past, and appreciate the many opportunities these incredible men have opened up for them and be grateful that they go to a school where we are encouraged every day to live our lives like them.
