Feb. 4, 2005 From Constitutional Author to Marianist By Dennis O'Connor ARCHDIOCESE — Many will remember the dramatic scenes from the movie "Blackhawk Down," when Somali war lords pointed skyward, and their militia shot down an American helicopter with small arms fire. The scene below, on the streets of this battered African nation, akin to a distorted Picasso-like vision of some dark reality, was rife with bombed-out buildings and terrorists running or driving about in pickup trucks and wind blowing debris across the streets as if in some weird scene from a Western. This is the landscape that was once home to Marianist Brother Isaak Ige, who now continues his formation with the Society of Mary's novitiate in Dayton. But it is a scene that he sadly acknowledges might not have been, should not have been. Brother Isaak, you see, once was part of a democratic movement in Somalia, and he also was one of the authors of a failed Constitutional government that was launched — and withered — several years ago. " I was involved in the rewriting of the Constitution when we ousted the military regime in 1989-91," Brother Isaak said. The native of the now Islamic nation, orphaned very young, was raised by Franciscan missionaries and eventually traveled with them to Italy, where he would receive his formal education — culminating in a Ph.D. in International Relations from the University of Milan. If not for the Franciscans of Milan, he said, he would have been raised a Muslim. It was during those heady days in Milan that Brother Isaak became more and more involved in the fledgling government back home. As he was involved in writing the constitution, he also was appointed consul general of Somalia in Milan, where he administered Somali general affairs and took care of government business in that bustling Italian city. He became president of the Somalia-Italian Friendship Society, entertaining and meeting with business people from both countries. "In those capacities, I lived in Somalia sporadically from 1987 to 1990," he said. But during that period, he also saw conditions deteriorating in his native land. The police force began to collapse and anarchy prevailed. And along with the anarchy came along an extreme brand of Muslim fundamentalism. "The bishop was killed, along with two priests," Brother Isaak remembered. "Two major churches in Mogadishu were looted. Eventually, it was clear that I had to flee my own country for fear of being killed." The road to Muslim fundamentalism in Somalia was paved by a turbulent 20-year period that was not untypical for post-colonial African nations. Following the strict rule of a military dictatorship from 1969 to 1989, secular rule prevented any kind of insertion of Muslim fundamentalists into the country. But after the collapse of the military regime, Brother Isaak said that Muslims who had been oppressed before found a ground ready for them to plant the seed of their beliefs. " They did that violently," Brother Isaak said. "And force was the only way they could do it. They imposed Sharia law. Women had to cover themselves from head to toe, and they imposed the Koran as the court of law in the land." In effect, the entire country was engulfed in this new ideology, backed by Muslim fundamentalists. "Prior to this, Somalia had always been known as a country that had a separate of church and state," he said. "Most of the politicians were war lords, but they believed in and upheld separation. Their thinking was that Muslims shouldn't have influence in running the affairs of society." But in the aftermath of the Cold War, when the balance of power between the West and the Warsaw Pact disintegrated, a vacuum of power was created in much of the world, and Muslim fundamentalists were waiting in the wings to take advantage of that situation. "Unfortunately, Somalia got swept into it all right away." Brother Isaak noted that even in countries where religion was not a major factor for governance, Muslim fundamentalism has taken hold. "More and more countries in subSaharan Africa have fallen under the conservative Muslim leadership," he said. "Sharia law has taken hold in the north of Nigeria. People feared they would be killed if they didn't state their allegiance to the new Muslim regimes. So now, for example, in Sudan, Muslims are imposing their rule without any outside interference. Africa, I'm afraid to say, is going backwards, unless we — the Americans and their allies — will back the efforts to help out in the education and culture and technical assistance in those countries. Sadly, oil money is hidden in Muslim fundamentalism." In Brother Isaak's homeland, the resulting fruits of this Muslim fundamentalism have been that many have been killed in Somalia, women try to leave the country and chaos reigns. In the wake of that scenario, Brother Isaak reluctantly said farewell to his homeland. Then, in 1996, Brother Isaak was granted asylym for religious persecution in 1996, a path that would eventually lead the young man to the United States and the Marianists. For a time, Brother Isaak lived in Phoenix, where he created his own nongovernmental organization called Somalia Intellectual Heritage. He remained engaged in that endeavor for six years, "but I found that my spiritual hunger was flowing more and more. At that point, I began looking at religious orders, I was seeking the right place. And I ended up in a Benedictine monastery in the Mojave desert." He also searched for a spiritual director, and found a Marianist priest in Los Angeles who eventually would help the Somali intellectual discern the way to the Society of Mary. "I really connected with them," he said of his meeting with priests and Brothers from the Society of Mary. "I met them in California, where I was living in 2001. What attracted me most was their willingness to be aware of the needs of people, not just being enclosed in religious houses," not emerging to interact with the world. "Most of my life I wanted to do something for people in a religious manner, and this became a great opportunity for me to explore." Now in his second year as a novice, Brother Isaak will be professed in May. He already has displayed his penchant for activity and religious reflection in his short time with the Marianists. In Dayton, while living in the novitiate, he tutored students at the University of Dayton in Italian. For a few months, he worked for Catholic Social Services in Cincinnati, helping to settle refugees in the region, especially those who have suffered trauma in their bids to escape persecution — a field in which he is well versed from the days at home in Somalia. As Brother Isaak reflects on his homeland and the problems there, he also looks to the future as a Marianist Brother. One of the last Christian vocations to come out of the country, Brother Isaak says he probably cannot return home. So instead, he will work in the Society of Mary's various missions. He looks forward to opportunities back in Africa, though, including missions in Nairobi, Zambian and Malawi. "Mission to me not only means bringing material solace but a witness to people who need help," he said. "I think that we need to be giving people hope, letting them know that God will send them more of a refreshing air. Just being one of these people shows that you don't have to go to America to find your heaven. You can find it in Africa, and you can live to your potential. "As you can tell," he said, "going to back to Africa is one of my great desires."
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