The 1997-2003 General Superior and Council for the Priests of the Sacred Heart

Fr. Virginio Bressanelli:
Re-elected to his second term as superior general, Fr. Bressanelli is originally from the Argentine-Uruguay Province. There, he served as provincial superior, was a teacher, worked in formation, served as the rector of a college and worked in parish ministry. He is 55, has been professed 35 years and ordained 30. The seventh superior general of the congregation, Fr. Bressanelli was elected to his first term at the 19th General Chapter in 1991. When asked about his re-election, he says that being superior is simply a "service for the congregation. It's not an honor, not an extraordinary burden -- others work harder than I do -- this is a service."

Fr. Umberto Chiarello:
Fr. Chiarello was the second councilor elected and later, he was elected to serve as vicar-general. He served for a brief period on the previous council, taking Fr. Antonio de Sousa Braga's place after he was named bishop of the Azores. A member of the South Italian Province, he is 66 years old, professed 49 years and ordained 38 years. He has taught in the seminaries, served as provincial superior and as a provincial councilor, and most recently, was the superior of the Italian inter-provincial novitiate. He also holds the distinction of having attended more General Chapters than any other delegate -- this was his sixth.

Fr. Carlos Alberto da Costa Silva:
Elected in the first round of voting, Fr. da Costa Silva was also a general councilor who was brought in to fulfill another's term. When Fr. Silvino Kunz died two years ago, Fr. Virginio Bressanelli asked Fr. da Costa Silva to join the council. As was Fr. Kunz, he too is a member of the South Brazilian Province. He has served as a formation director and theology teacher, was provincial superior for three terms and was a provincial councilor. He is 50, was professed in 1965 and ordained in 1971.

Fr. Tomé Makhweliha:
Elected as the third general councilor, Fr. Makhweliha, 52, is regional superior of Mozambique. He has been professed 31 years and ordained 24. Fr. Makhweliha has done studies in his home country of Mozambique, in Portugal and in Italy. Besides serving as regional superior, he has been a teacher, served as rector of the major seminary and as novice master. He is the first African to serve on the General Council.

Fr. Ryszard Mis:
In the fourth set of votes, Fr. Mis, 50, was elected to the General Council. He is a member of the Polish Province, has been professed 34 years and ordained 24. Fr. Mís has studied in Rome and in Poland, where he also taught and served as novice master. For the past several years, he has been a member of the Region of Finland, where serves as a regional councilor. There, he also does parish ministry and youth work, as well handles administrative duties for the diocese of Helsinki.

Fr. Hadrianus Wardjito:
A member of the Indonesian Province, Fr. Wardjito was the fifth councilor to be elected. He is 43 years old, was professed in 1979 and ordained in 1982. He has worked in youth ministry and formation, as a retreat director and in parishes. Fr. Wardjito also serves as a provincial councilor. At the first chapter in which all the delegates from Indonesia were Indonesians, Fr. Wardjito becomes the first SCJ from his country to serve on the General Council.

Fr. Thomas Cassidy:
Elected on the sixth ballot, Fr. Cassidy is the only original member of the past council to serve on the 1997-2003 General Council. Originally from the U.S. Province, he has served on the provincial staff as mission secretary and personnel director, as well as liaison to the ESL (English as a Second Language) Program. He worked for many years as superintendent of St. Joseph's Indian School in South Dakota and as principal of one of the province's minor seminaries. He is 54, professed his first vows in 1962 and was ordained in 1971.

Mary Gorski
mgiornal@scj.org
Rome, Italy