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Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (Latin), meaning "For the greater glory of God." It is the motto of the Society of Jesus.

A phrase that embodies the creative tension between Jesuits’ full embrace of concrete action and their attentiveness to where God may call them next. Lay organizations, such as the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, have also adopted this spiritual stance. In The Active Life, Parker Palmer writes, “Contemplation-and-action are integrated at the root, and their root is our ceaseless desire to be fully alive.”

(Latin), meaning care of the whole person. This fundamental value of the Society of Jesus involves three concepts, according to Brian McDermott, S.J.: Treating people as individuals and honoring their unique worth; caring for the “whole” person (including physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual health); and taking into account people’s backgrounds, including their family life, nationality, and culture.

A process of discovering God’s direction and guidance in the concrete reality of our day-to-day lives. . . Discernment is a prayerful “pondering” or “mulling over” of the options facing you. Your goal is to understand them in your heart: to see them, as it were, as God might see them. In one sense, there is no limit to how long you might wish to continue this. Yet as you continue the process, some options should of their own account fall by the wayside while others should gain clarity and focus. It is a process that should move inexorably toward a decision. (Brother Charles J. Jackson, S.J.)

Refers to the defining characteristics and ethos of the Jesuits (or Society of Jesus), which was founded by Ignatius of Loyola.

The first three letters, in Greek, of the name Jesus. These letters appear as a symbol on the official seal of the Society of Jesus, or Jesuits.