Xavier School welcomes new president

MANILA, Philippines - Fr. Aristotle C. Dy, SJ was installed as president of Xavier School during a Mass attended by members of the school community and the Society of Jesus on Aug. 3. The head of the Jesuits in the Philippines, the Rev. Antonio Moreno, SJ, officially confirmed the appointment of Father Ari. His Eminence, Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, DD, Archbishop of Manila, presided over the Mass and joined Johnip Cua, chairman of the board of trustees, in administering the oath.

Fr. Ari Dy is an alumnus of Xavier School (Class of 1989), graduating with the school’s highest distinction, the Xavier Award. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1993, right after finishing a BS degree in Business Management (Honors Program) from the Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU). He obtained two master’s degrees from the Ateneo, in Philosophy in 1999 and in Theological Studies in 2004. He also completed a master’s degree in Buddhist Studies from the University of Hong Kong in 2009. He has just earned a doctorate in the Study of Religions (Chinese Buddhism) from the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies.

As a Jesuit, he has served in various capacities, starting as a teacher of Conversational Chinese at Sacred Heart School (Ateneo de Cebu) in 1998. He was assigned at Jesuit Communications from 2000 to 2008, serving as executive director from 2004 to 2008, and was director of the Jesuit Music Ministry from 2001 to 2004. He also worked at the Ateneo as lecturer for the Chinese Studies Program (2000-2008), as the program’s OIC (2004-2005), as associate director of the Confucius Institute (2006-2008), and as associate director (2005-2006) and director (2007-2008) of the Ricardo Leong Center for Chinese Studies.

His interest and expertise in the Chinese-Filipino ministry were further developed outside the academe. He worked for the Chinese-Filipino Apostolate National Office as national executive secretary (2004-2008), and the Jesuit Philippine Province Chinese-Filipino Apostolate Cluster as convenor (2008-2012) and current chairman.

He has written extensively on the spirituality of Chinese Filipinos. Among his published works are Weaving A Dream, Reflections for Chinese-Filipino Catholics Today (2000), Building a Bridge, Catholic Christianity Meets Chinese-Filipino Culture (2005), and various contributions to publications here and abroad.

The Xavier School community welcomes the appointment of Fr. Ari Dy, the second homegrown president of the school, following his immediate predecessor, Fr. Johnny Go from the Class of 1979. Father Ari was ordained in 2004 and will serve Xavier School for an initial term of three years.