The Wisconsin Province Society of Jesus 50th Anniversary: 1955-2005 Jubilee Celebration
Carved out of the Missouri Province with the approval of then
Fr. General Jean-Baptiste Janssens, SJ in Rome, the Wisconsin Province
of the Society of Jesus inherited a number of educational institutions,
parishes, and other apostolates when it was established in 1955.
Creighton and Marquette universities, Marquette University High School,
Creighton Prep, Campion Jesuit High School, Gesu and St. John’s parishes, and the
Indian missions of South Dakota are some well-known examples. Others included
the Jesuit Retreat House at Lake Elmo, Minnesota, Saints Peter and Paul Parish in
Mankato, and St. Benedict the Moor, an African American parish in Omaha.
With energetic and imaginative Jesuits numbering 637 strong,
from the very beginning the Wisconsin Province was not content to stand pat.
Under able leadership and with willing men, the fledgling province
wasted no time in setting out to build God’s Kingdom and a better world.
