 "Photo: photo Courtesy of the BC")
By Lai-Yan Tang
Heights Editor
You've seen his face by now. The collared man who stars on the hit parody The BC is a real Jesuit, a fact that outsiders can't seem to believe. For those within the Boston College community, however, it is only fitting for Rev. Donald MacMillan, S.J. - "Father Don," as he is affectionately known - to be playing this comedic role. Though his on-screen persona sings karaoke at Roggie's, dances to a salsa cell phone ring, and jams to Usher, MacMillan's role also reflects the serious ways he mentors the BC community.
The epitome of the often-clichéd Jesuit slogan "Men and women for others," MacMillan devotes himself to students with everything from The BC and advising the Band programs to his quest for social justice, which includes leading the School of the Americas (SOA) protest and the Pedro Arrupe Immersion trip to Cuernavaca, Mexico.
Humility abounds for the Boston native and triple Eagle (BC High, BC '66 and '72), who is called "hilarious," "honest," and "a champion for the underdog" by the students he loves."Father Don is one of the most important people at BC," says John Xeller, GLSOE '06, who has worked with MacMillan in Campus Ministry for four years.
"He's the sun on a cloudy day, he's the order in the universe, he's a rock star," says Joe Sabia, A&S '06, who looped MacMillan into The BC. "But seriously. He goes above and beyond what Jesuits are called to do."
As he reclines in his office in the first floor of McElroy, the faces of these students flash on his computer screen, line his door, and fill dozens of photo frames. His conversation is filled with talk of other people - the Jesuits who encouraged him to enter priesthood, the Mexican families who inspire him with kindness, and the students who have defined his 10 years at BC.
He speaks of the needs of other people and particularly the injustices and poverty in the world. One of the topics closest to his heart is protesting the SOA, a combat training school for Latin American soldiers. Every year, MacMillan leads a contingent of students to Ft. Benning, Ga., to join thousands in this cause.
In a few weeks, he will make the trip for the seventh time. Though he looks forward to the experience, he hopes this year - just like every year - that he won't have to make the trip again. The Jesuit who was tear gassed in Harvard Square for protesting the Vietnam War is frustrated with the camp that he says trains Latin Americans to kill. "Here we are in the '90s trying to say, 'What have we learned?'"
He knows the reality of the struggle. Even if the SOA closes, it's already in existence at other camps, he says. "The symbolism is that that's the first one, that's where people were trained and started assassinating anyone who was working with the poor. The guilt of it all lies right on our doorstep."
Under the gaze of Oscar Romero, who watches from the corner of the office, MacMillan defends justice in the name of the Jesuits who were assassinated in El Salvador.
He fights not only through protesting the SOA, but by inspiring students to make lasting changes in their lives that will affect the lives of others.
The Pedro Arrupe Immersion trip that he leads to Cuernavaca, Mexico has given him this chance for 10 years. For two weeks each summer, the group visits squatter settlements and indigenous peoples in the mountains, and speaks with clergy, health care officials, and social workers in the area.
"When you meet people who live minute to minute, you can't help but be touched," he says. While the trips have an immediate "band-aid" effect of helping the poor, what is more important is what happens when students return to Boston.
"The real work of justice is back in the U.S., because we hold the purse strings and the policy strings. Students need to learn what else can be done so that the amount of poverty and hunger can be reduced. How do we get into the driving force that will change the picture of the planet?"
These are the questions he asks himself and the students he mentors, questions that don't have an easy answer. The experiences in Georgia, Mexico, and in the scores of other trips that students take are "internships for life," he says.
While he immerses himself in national and international causes, he still has plenty of work left on the Chestnut Hill campus.
What began as a conversation with Sabia over ice cream in the Dustbowl two years ago has sprung into a television series garnering attention from the likes of Sony and Disney. MacMillan has received attention as "the man who plays a priest" on the show.
It's no wonder his role has audiences curious.
In the latest trailer, MacMillan dances and sings, "1863, a bunch of Ignatians made a college invasion / two years after 2003, our claim to fame we set the world aflame," to the tune of Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire."
As he does with all aspects of his life, MacMillan sees the spiritual in The BC experience. "No matter where I go, I'm doing ministry at all times," he says. "This is another way of encouraging them."
The momentary fame is irrelevant, he believes. What's more important is the relationships he's developing, and the bridge he is building between priests and students. "This shows people that we're human beings," he says.
Sabia agrees. He summed up MacMillan's devotion to his students with an anecdote from last year, when The BC crew was scheduled to shoot a scene following the presidential election. MacMillan came in 10 minutes late, saying "Sorry, I'm late. The Kennedys just invited me over their house."
"Why didn't you go?" the crew asked.
"Well, we're filming, right? How could I miss this?" MacMillan said.
"Father Don refused to accept an offer to have a post-election reception with the Kennedys to film a three-minute scene of a TV show no one really knew about, that extras didn't even show up for," says Sabia. "His life is for students."
MacMillan describes the experience as a privilege and honor to work with students. "In the lives of a handful of people, I'm making a difference. We're all making a difference in lives together."
He sits up and cups his hands, as though forming a miniature globe.
"Wouldn't it be nice if the whole world could work this way?" he asks.
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