Father General has appointed Fr. Jean Luc Enyegue as the new Provincial of the West Africa Province (AOC) of the Society of Jesus. Fr. Jean Luc takes over from Fr. Mathieu Ndomba, who has served in this role since early 2020.
Fr. Jean Luc has been serving as Director of the Jesuit Historical Institute in Africa (JHIA) and Lecturer in Church History at the Jesuit School of Theology, Hekima University College. His appointment is both an honor for the Society and a moment of pride for the Hekima and JHIA fraternity.
In a heartfelt message to the Hekima family, Rev. Marcel Uwineza, S.J., Principal of Hekima University College, expressed gratitude and encouragement:
“While this appointment may be seen as a loss for Hekima University College (HUC), it also stands as a humble sign that HUC has some good men to offer to the Society and to the Church.
We wish Fr. Jean-Luc every blessing in his new mission. May the Lord grant him wisdom to discern rightly, strength to lead with vision and fairness, and a heart that always inspires those entrusted to his care to keep their eyes fixed on God and the spirit of our Institute.”
Fr. Marcel invited the team to join in prayer for Fr. Jean Luc as he begins this new mission, trusting that “the Lord who has begun this good work will surely bring it to completion.”
A Life of Scholarship, Service, and Mission
Born in 1979, in Awaé, Cameroon, Fr. Jean Luc studied history at the University of Yaoundé I before entering the Society of Jesus in 2002. His novitiate years were spent in Cyangugu, Rwanda, after which he moved to Kimwenza in the Democratic Republic of Congo to study philosophy from 2004 to 2006.
He spent two years of regency in Lomé, Togo, as the Director of the Loyola Cultural Centre, then went to Spain to study theology at the Universidad Pontificia Comillas in Madrid. He was ordained a deacon in 2011 and continued his studies at Boston College, completing a licentiate in theology. On 7 July 2012, he was ordained a priest in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
Fr. Jean Luc subsequently returned to Boston for further studies, and he earned a doctorate in Church History and Hermeneutics in 2018. He was then missioned to Hekima College in Nairobi, where he taught Church history and served as Associate Director of the Jesuit Historical Institute in Africa. After completing his Tertianship, he pronounced his Final Vows in Nairobi on 31 October 2020.
Since then, Fr. Jean Luc has been serving as the Director of the Jesuit Historical Institute in Africa and as spiritual father of the community of Hekima University College in Nairobi. In 2021, he coordinated the Ignatian Year celebrations for the West Africa Province and was elected Procurator of the Province.
His appointment as Provincial takes effect on 3 January 2026, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Name of Jesus.
Messages of congratulations, prayers, and goodwill may be sent to jean.enyegue@hekima.ac.ke.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam.
