Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J.
Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J. was born in Cambridge, England in 1979 and moved to South Africa in 1983. He studied at St Stithians College and Rhodes University, earning a BBusSci and MCom in Information Systems. In 2005 he entered the Society of Jesus and undertook formation in England, Ireland, Zambia, Kenya, Tanzania, Canada, the United States, and Australia, completing studies in philosophy, theology, and spirituality. He holds graduate degrees in Philosophy (London), Theology (Toronto), and a Licentiate in Systematic Theology (Regis College).
Ordained in 2016 at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, he served as a curate in Johannesburg during the #FeesMustFall protests and later at the Jesuit Institute South Africa. He also taught Scripture at St Augustine’s College. Since the creation of the Southern Africa Jesuit Province in 2021, he has worked in Zambia as Communications Director, Acting Treasurer and Acting Socius, and since 2025, serves as Development Director in Harare, Zimbabwe.
Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J.
Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J. was born in Cambridge, England in 1979 and moved with his family to South Africa in 1983. He studied at St Stithians College and Rhodes University, where he earned a BBusSci and MCom. His research focused on ethics in information systems curricula. During his student years, he served as SRC President, National President of the Association of Catholic Tertiary Students, and was inducted into the Golden Key International Honour Society. He competed in national and international debating and was awarded the Sir Abe Bailey Travel Bursary.
He entered the Society of Jesus in 2005. His novitiate included service at a L’Arche community in Galway, chaplaincy work in Edinburgh, and a pilgrimage across Spain. He professed perpetual vows in 2007 and went on to complete studies in Philosophy at Heythrop College (London) and theology at Hekima College (Nairobi) and Regis College (Toronto). He earned advanced degrees including an MA in Philosophy (London), a ThM in Theology (Toronto), and a pontifical STL in Systematic Theology. He was elected to Alpha Sigma Nu, the Jesuit honour society.
Ordained in 2016 at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Johannesburg, he served as curate during the #FeesMustFall protests and later worked at the Jesuit Institute South Africa, focusing on spirituality and communications. He also contributed to spotlight.africa and lectured in Sacred Scripture at St Augustine’s College.
With the creation of the Southern Africa Jesuit Province in 2021, Matthew was appointed Director of Communications in Lusaka, Zambia. In 2024 he completed his Tertianship in Melbourne, Australia, before briefly serving as Acting Treasurer of the Province. Since May 2025, he has served as Development Director in Harare, Zimbabwe.
Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J.
Early Life and Education
Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J. was born in Cambridge, England in 1979 and moved with his family to South Africa in 1983. He completed his schooling at St Stithians College, later graduating from Rhodes University with a BBusSci and MCom. His research investigated ethics in the South African information systems curriculum.
At Rhodes, he was elected SRC President and National President of the Association of Catholic Tertiary Students, inducted into the Golden Key International Honour Society, and awarded the Sir Abe Bailey Travel Bursary. He also taught Information Systems, served as a Residence Warden, and worked with Anglo American Platinum during holidays.
Jesuit Formation and Novitiate
He entered the Society of Jesus in 2005 at the Birmingham novitiate. His “experiments” included:
- A 30-day retreat in Dublin
- Service with single mothers and children in Galway
- Living in a L’Arche community in Galway
- Hospital chaplaincy in Edinburgh and Waverley Care
- Volunteering with the Little Sisters of the Poor in Birmingham
- and a traditional begging pilgrimage in Spain
After pronouncing perpetual vows (2007), he studied Philosophy at Heythrop College, taught at Canisius Secondary School (Zambia), and part-time at Dominican Convent (Johannesburg) and Loyola Secondary (Tanzania).
Advanced Studies and Research
He pursued theology at Hekima College (Kenya) and Regis College (Canada). His degrees include:
He was elected to Alpha Sigma Nu. He also interned with Loyola Productions in Los Angeles and completed management training at Loyola University New Orleans.
Ordination and Early Ministry
Ordained in 2016 at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Johannesburg, he served during the #FeesMustFall protests. He later worked at the Jesuit Institute South Africa, focusing on spirituality and communications, contributed to spotlight.africa, and lectured at St Augustine’s College.
Service in the Jesuit Province of Southern Africa
In 2021, the Southern Africa Jesuit Province was created. Matthew was missioned to Lusaka as Director of Communications. In 2024 he completed Tertianship in Melbourne, then returned to Lusaka as Acting Treasurer. Since May 2025 he has been Development Director in Harare, Zimbabwe.
Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J.
Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J. was born in Cambridge, England in 1979 and moved with his family to South Africa in 1983. He completed his schooling at St Stithians College, later graduating from Rhodes University (in Makhanda) with a Bachelor of Business Science (BBusSc), receiving medals and prizes, and a Master’s degree in Information Systems (MCom). His research investigated the increasing need for a formal ethics component in the information systems curriculum in South Africa. Whilst at Rhodes University Matthew was elected SRC President, served as National President of the Association of Catholic Tertiary Students, and was inducted into the Golden Key International Honour Society. He participated nationally and internationally in the Debating Society, and was awarded the prestigious Sir Abe Bailey Travel Bursary. Whilst studying, he worked at the University lecturing Information Systems, was invited to be part of the Brightest Young Minds intake, and served as a Warden in the Residence System. During university holidays, Matthew undertook vacation work at Anglo American Platinum but felt God was calling him to something more.
He entered the Society of Jesus in 2005 at the novitiate in Birmingham, England as a member of the South African Region. This was a time for him to confirm his vocation and to learn to pray while experiencing various short ‘experiments’. In Ireland he made a silent retreat according to the 30 day Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius Loyola in Dublin; he helped create ‘happy memories’ by serving single mothers and their children from poor and abusive backgrounds in Galway, who could otherwise not afford it, at a beach holiday, and lived in a L’Arche community in Galway as an assistant caring for individuals who were intellectually and physically disabled; he apprenticed as a hospital chaplain at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary’s child oncology unit, and in Waverley Care, a counselling centre for predominantly gay men with HIV/AIDS or Hepatitis-C, many suffering from a heroin addiction, under the tutelage of a female Episcopalian Priest in Scotland; he volunteered at the St Joseph’s Old Age home in Harborne, Birmingham, run by the Little Sisters of the Poor; and completed a five-week begging pilgrimage in Spain walking from Santander to Barcelona visiting various Ignatian places. After being invited to make his perpetual vows of poverty, chastity and obedience in the Society of Jesus in January 2007, he completed the usual Jesuit formation: with studies in Philosophy at Heythrop College (London, England); a school regency at Canisius Secondary School (Chikuni, Zambia), where he taught high school mathematics and computer science for 2 years; and a part-time job teaching English at Dominican Convent School (Belgravia, Johannesburg), and computer science at Loyola Secondary School (Dar es Salaam, Tanzania). He pursued theological studies at Hekima College (Nairobi, Kenya) and Regis College (Toronto, Canada). He holds advanced graduate degrees from the University of London in Philosophy (MA), where he examined the role of pleasure in the Natural Law theories of Timothy Chappell and John Finnis, and the University of Toronto in Theology (ThM), where his thesis focused on the image of God, and looked at the African understanding of Ubuntu, and the Holy Trinity, based on the works of Hans Urs von Balthasar and Bernard Lonergan. He also holds a pontifical licentiate in Systematic Theology (STL) from Regis College where he was elected into the Jesuit International Honour Society, Alpha Sigma Nu. During this time his superiors requested that he also complete an internship on film and video production at Loyola Productions in Culver City, Los Angeles, California and attended an intensive executive education course in management at Loyola University New Orleans, Louisiana in the United States. His Jesuit formation has taken him to live and work in Canada, France, Belgium, Holland, Ireland, Kenya, Spain, Tanzania, the United Kingdom, the United States, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and most recently Australia. For various lengths of his formation, he mastered forgetting bits of Zulu, Chitonga, Swahili, French, Hebrew, Greek and Latin, thus affirming that he really only had a passing knack for computer languages.
After ordination to the priesthood in September 2016 at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Braamfontein in the Archdiocese of Johannesburg, he served as a curate there, beginning his ministry during the #FeesMustFall protests. He was then missioned to work at the Jesuit Institute South Africa in Auckland Park, Johannesburg where his main area of work was in Spirituality and Spiritual Direction, but he also served on the staff of the online (later shutdown) digital publication, https://spotlight.africa . He is a member of Spiritual Directors International and is registered as a Religious Specialist Affiliate of ACRP, and lectured in Sacred Scripture as a part-time lecturer at St Augustine’s College in Linden, Johannesburg.
On the 25 March 2021, Fr General suppressed the Region of South Africa, and the Provinces of Zimbabwe-Mozambique, and Zambia-Malawi, and erected the new Province of Southern Africa in the Society of Jesus. Matthew was missioned to Lusaka, Zambia as the Director of Communications in the new Province Curia. In January 2024 Matthew was missioned to Melbourne, Australia to complete his Tertianship, the formal final part of his formation as a Jesuit (though formation is always ongoing!). Upon his return, he was temporarily missioned back to work as Acting Treasurer in the Curia of the Southern Africa Province, based in Lusaka, Zambia, before taking up the role of Development Director in Harare, Zimbabwe from May 2025.
Fr Matthew Charlesworth, S.J.
BBusSci MCom (Rhodes), MA (London), BTh (CUEA), ThM (Toronto), STL (Regis).