Brillaire Délices, SJ, 37, one of eight children, was born in Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, but raised in Trou-du-Nord. His family is deeply religious, and from a very young age, Délices was involved in his local parish and was a member of the Eucharistic Youth Movement. From the time he was a young boy, Délices was educated in Catholic schools and attended a Salesian Fathers’ high school in Port-au-Prince. He was always drawn to the Jesuits and admired both their intellectual rigor and their commitment to social justice. Although he began journalism studies after high school, Délices felt strongly called to the Society of Jesus. He found the Jesuits to be men who worked for the transformation of society, which matched his own desire to serve Christ and the underprivileged, especially in Haiti. Délices entered the Jesuits in 2003 and as a novice worked with the elderly in Port-au-Prince and with Haitian migrants in the Bateyes, the banana plantations in the Dominican Republic. Missioned in 2005 to Instituto Filosofico del Centro Bonó in the Dominican Republic, Délices earned a diploma in philosophy. He then returned to Haiti for two years to the Collège Saint Ignace in Croix-des-Bouquets, where he taught Spanish and philosophy and then served for one year in Ouanaminthe with Jesuit Documentation Services. In 2012, Délices was missioned to Quebec City to study theology at Laval University, where he completed his bachelor’s degree in pastoral theology as well as a diploma in spiritual accompaniment. Délices was ordained to the diaconate in May 2015 at the Église Saints-Martyrs-Canadiens in Quebec City, where he served as a member of the Mission Committee and the Refugee Committee. The most significant part of his Jesuit formation was his four years of studies in humanities and philosophy, which opened up his mind to many schools of thought and offered him a window to the world. Following ordination, Délices will serve on the staff of Fe y Alegría in Haiti, an international organization devoted to transforming communities through education.
(French Canada Province)