September 2012 – Where’s Fran?

FSM Migrant Survey Results

Over the past several months, some of us have been working on a survey of Micronesian migrants to the US and its territories.? The point of the exercise was to put numbers to what we all know has been an explosion of emigration from the islands. Since there has been no increase in jobs in the islands, people are bringing their families abroad to find employment there. Read More

Oh Yeah! Now I Remember Why I Missed the Islands So Much!

Reflections of a recent returnee to Pohnpei:

Basketball games every afternoon, not just with guys my age but with speedy, sharp-shooting 20-somethings who won?t give away anything to a geezer.? If you are lucky enough to have one of them on your team, you might win a game or two.? But even without them, you?re playing with old friends.? Afterwards, the return home with shirt sweat-soaked and lips parched.? What a way to prepare for dinner!
Walking into a US Embassy reception at a local hotel and being able Read More

Why So Many Rules?

If you think that Ten Commandments are more than enough, you should read more of the Old Testament.? There are whole books of the bible, like Leviticus and Deuteronomy, that add a few hundred more detailed instructions on what to do and Read More

Francis X. Hezel, SJ, is a Jesuit priest who has lived and worked in Micronesia since 1963. At different times he has served as high school teacher, school administrator, pastor, and regional superior to the Jesuits of Micronesia. He spent thirty years directing the Micronesian Seminar, a non-profit, non-governmental organization based in Pohnpei, Micronesia.

He has written and spoken widely about social change and its impact on island societies. He has also written several books on Micronesian history, including The First Taint of Civilization, Strangers in Their Own Land, and The New Shape of Old Island Cultures. His most recent book, Making Sense of Micronesia: The Logic of Pacific Island Culture, is available through University of Hawaii Press.

Archive - September 2012