All Creatures of Our God and King
February 23, 2012 | III.Grace: To love and serve God with an undivided heart, and to value all created things inasmuch as they lead me to God.
Text for Prayer: Romans 1:20
Reflection: God does not do anything by accident; “coincidence” is not in His vocabulary.
“Yet just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but shall do what pleases me, achieving the end for which I sent it.” (Is. 55:10)
Each one of us and all created things, living and non-living, have been purposefully formed according to God’s plan.
St. Ignatius is calling each one of us to praise, reverence and serve God our Lord not solely in a vertical experience of personal prayer but in the midst of our world and in the presence of all of creation. The people we interact with on a daily basis, the buildings and streets we pass, the conversations and topics we engage in, and even the technology we constantly use are all avenues to become aware of the Trinity closely accompanying us. This felt-awareness permits us to respond with generosity, modeled in particular ways of praising, reverencing and serving the Trinity.
Everyone and everything that we encounter is a new and God-given opportunity to live this three-fold purpose. God deems all that He has created to be good (cf. Gen. 1). Therefore, our natural world can aid us in fulfilling what God has designed us for. Even seemingly secular concepts such as sports, the media and entertainment, and yes—even blogs—can also aid us in our three-fold purpose.
But the caveat is all of these things that were just said to be able to aid us in our relationship with God can also be obstacles to fulfilling our purpose. Ignatius calls us to pray for the grace of indifference so that we may not fall into this trap. On first glance, it would seem contradictory to engage the wonderment of God’s creation and the goodness present in our world if we are devoid of feelings and passion. While a common mistake, this is not what Ignatius is suggesting. Rather, he is calling us to passionately love God such that nothing – person, place or thing – could ever get in the way of this relationship. Only with this disposition can our attitude towards the things of this world be modeled by a true spirit of indifference: loving all things not for themselves but loving God first and foremost in relation to these things. As Ignatius wrote in a letter in 1553, “For all goodness sought in [God’s] creatures is present with much greater perfection in Him who created them” (Monumenta Ignatiana, 5, p. 488). This permits us to have a rightly-ordered love for both God and created beings.
All of creation and what we encounter in this world are not ends in themselves but a means, for God is our one, true and only end. Hence, these things should be valued inasmuch as they lead us to God, and disavowed inasmuch as they lead us astray. Ignatius proposes that we love God in all created things by stripping ourselves of all love for created things (cf. Constitutions of the Society of Jesus). Again, Ignatius promotes this not because creation is bad and sinful but because it cannot take the rightful priority of God’s place in our lives.
The disposition of indifference is complementary to one of the aims of the Lenten Season – seeking to grow closer to God and discerning and removing any obstacles to this growth. Freedom from these obstacles permits a greater freedom for the service of both God and neighbor.
We are called to give God our full and undivided attention by offering to Him a whole and undivided heart; to love God with our whole heart, our whole being and our whole strength (cf. Deut. 6:5). In seeking this grace, it would be helpful to grow in the awareness that God gives each one of us His full, complete and undivided attention. There is nothing that stands in the way of God’s love for us. His joy and delight for each one of us is abundant.
As we reflect on the aim of created beings, let us permit our hearts to overflow in melodious fashion and join the choir of creation in praising, reverencing and serving our God and King.
Questions: When have creation and the things of this world aided me in praising, reverencing and serving God? When have they been an obstacle to this three-fold pursuit? How am I growing in the awareness that God is presently giving me His full, complete and undivided attention, and is inviting me to respond to His generosity?
Posted by Mr. Matt Kappadakunnel, S.J. in III.The Compass for our Lenten Pilgrimage
February 22, 2012 | II.Grace: That my intentions, actions, and entire life might be purely ordered to the praise and service of my Creator and Lord.
Text: Ps 117
Reflection: Today we receive ashes on our foreheads and head into the desert for 40 days. What will guide us along the way?
We might be inclined to draw up an itinerary for ourselves: I hope to get this, this, and this out of the Lenten retreat. But even if the things we name are good in themselves, we instantly recognize how artificial it all sounds. We did not decide to go into the desert on our own, but only because our Lord went first. And so we have to follow his lead. Plus, we know from experience how quickly we run up against our own limitations and how often we have abandoned our good intentions in the past. How can I count on myself any more this year than last?
The words we hear as the ashes are being traced on our foreheads point the way forward: “Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.” While we are prone to forget the fact, Lent always reminds us that we are creatures. And if creatures, then not isolated individuals. Our very existence points beyond us to our Creator. He alone is the answer to our questions. He alone establishes the itinerary of our pilgrimage and gives us the grace to complete it. (more…)
Posted by Mr. Matthew Baugh, S.J. in II.Let us start small… but not too small.
February 21, 2012 | I.Grace: To be free from the obstacles in our lives and in ourselves that prevent us from knowing God and to trust that God will meet us when we sincerely seek Him.
Text for prayer: Ps 91
Reflection: Many years of St. Ignatius’s life were poured into the development of the Spiritual Exercises. This work, though, was not the labor wrought of some saintly theologian academically prescribing a rigid method of prayer. Rather, Ignatius gives us his own journey to God. Before the Saint and before his education, he found a path to God. His years were first spent on the journey and then later refining it so that it could be shared. These exercises are recognized as such a great gift because they work for all of us, whether one is a pauper or papal. If we enter this time with sincerity and an open heart, then there is little reason to fear that we are not going to do it right, for these exercises are not written just for theologians or spiritual giants, but for humans who seek God.
As we enter this Lenten Season, we should seek to enter with freedom. Many think that Lent simply means that we need to pray harder, longer, or go to an extra Mass or two. In this way it might feel much like an obligation or a duty. However, this time is better thought of as an invitation. It is an invitation into the realization of God’s life and the knowledge that God is with us. We are free to simply accept God as an obligation, but our lives are much more enriched when we realize that God is also an unconditional gift who deserves more than just obligatory respect.
Posted by Mr. Stephen Kramer, S.J. in I.A Familiar New Face
January 27, 2012The Spiritual Exercises blog might have a new face, but the content that we have produced over the past few years is all still here. We hope that you like the new look and are as excited as we are about the start of our Lenten journey again this year.
When we resume posting on Ash Wednesday (February 22), the format will be much the same as it was in years past: daily meditations based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius that will go throughout Lent and the first week of Easter. And, just like last year, you don’t need any familiarity with the Exercises to follow along. If you are new to the blog, please be sure to read the Getting Stated page first. From there, you should be able to follow along as each new post comes out.
Posted by Mr. Michael Wegenka, S.J. in UncategorizedConclusion
April 27, 2011With this, we end our time with the Exercises over Lent and Easter. We pray that while reading these posts, you have been able to develop your relationship with the Lord, and come to know and love Him more fully. While we won’t be putting up any new material until next Lent, we will keep the posts up so that you can go back and draw fruit from them as much as you like.
As you continue praying and getting to know the Lord in everyday life, you may wish to keep praying in the way recommended by St. Ignatius. There is a post from last year that gives a good introduction to Igantian prayer.
Posted by Mr. David Paternostro, S.J. in UncategorizedContemplation to Attain the Love of God
April 26, 2011 | XXXX.Grace: An intimate knowledge of the many blessings received, that filled with gratitude for all, I may in all things love and serve the Lord.
Text for Prayer: Spiritual Exercises no. 230-237
Reflection:
The retreat, as Ignatius envisioned it, is a time of receiving many graces. Ignatius, though, was not content simply with receiving graces; he wanted us, after receiving generously from the Lord, to make an offering in return. Ignatius’ ideal was to be a ‘contemplative even in action,’ to allow the knowledge given in prayer to find expression in service. And so the final meditation of the Spiritual Exercises is the Contemplation to Attain the Love of God. One of the graces of the retreat is to allow things we all know about God to sink into our hearts, to become ‘felt’ knowledge.
Before entering into this contemplation, Ignatius calls to our attention two points. First, love ought to manifest itself in deeds more than in words. Second, love consists in a mutual sharing of goods, where the lover shares everything with the beloved, just as every good is shared between the Father and the Son in the Holy Spirit.
Posted by Mr. Stephen Wolfe, S.J. in XXXX.Appearances
April 25, 2011 | XXXIX.Grace: to be glad and rejoice intensely because of the great joy and the glory of Christ our Lord.
Text(s): See below
Reflection: The Gospels and other new testament writings provide many accounts of different encounters between the Risen Christ and His disciples. Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene (Mk 16:1-11), Mary the mother of James, Salome and Mary Magdalene (Mt 28:8-10), Peter (Luke 24:9-12, 33-34 and John 20:1-10), the disciples on their way to Emmaus (Luke 24: 13-35), to the disciples (John 20:19-23), to Thomas (John 20:24-29), on the shore of Gennesaret (John 21:1-17), on Mount Tabor (Mt 28:16-20), and forty days after the Resurrection and to St. Paul(1 Cor 15:6-8). After all this, he ascended into heaven (Acts 1:1-12).
After seeing the pretty extensive list above, perhaps picking one that draws your attention and praying with it would be the best bet. The following considerations should be taken into account during the prayer.
Posted by Mr. Mikey Wood, S.J. in XXXIX.The Resurrection: The King in Glory (Easter Sunday)
April 24, 2011 | XXXVIII.Grace: to be glad and rejoice intensely because of the great joy and the glory of Christ our Lord.
Text for Prayer: Spiritual Exercises no. 218-225, and 299.
Reflection: Today we begin celebrating the Resurrection of Christ Our Lord. In fact, liturgically the Church considers the entire week that follows, called the Octave of Easter, to be one prolonged Sunday. We ought to ask the Lord that our rejoicing in Him today be deep and full. His victory is final and utterly complete.
St. Ignatius had the sense that the first person to share in the joys of the Resurrection would be the one who had most loved, trusted, and served God in her earthly life – Mary. So St. Ignatius encourages us in the Spiritual Exercises to consider Jesus meeting His Mother on the Resurrection morning.
Posted by Mr. Andrij Hlabse, S.J. in XXXVIII.Christ: King and Victim
April 23, 2011 | XXXVII.Grace: A deep desire to have sorrow and compassion for Jesus, to suffer with Him because He is going to His Passion for me.
Text for Prayer: Mt. 27:27-50
Reflection: In today’s passage from Matthew’s Gospel, we are confronted by the scandal of a God who stoops so low as to allow Himself to be stripped naked before a crowd of soldiers, whipped and wounded without mercy, and then hung up on a tree to die.
Through all of this, what causes Jesus the most pain? Is it the physical suffering, which approaches the very limit of all that a human body can take before falling unconscious? Is it the shame of being completely naked before a host of one’s enemies, of feeling entirely vulnerable and helpless? Is it the pain of being abandoned by one’s closest friends, a group of men who all promised their unwavering fidelity only a few hours before?
Posted by Mr. Michael Wegenka, S.J. in XXXVII.Before Caiphas, Herod and Pilate: the Perils of Complex Intentions
April 22, 2011 | XXXVI.Grace: To be with Christ as he faces those who indict Him unjustly. Their indictments say more about their character than Jesus’.
Text for Prayer: Matthew 26:59-68, Luke 23:7-11, Matthew 27:11-26
Reflection. GK Chesterton once wrote that man longs for simplicity, but tends toward complexity. So it was with the intentions of earthly powers in Jesus’ day, and so it is with us today. We pray with the Jesus who is feared, reviled, and made a pawn of others’ machinations and impurity of heart. It is easy and comforting to distance ourselves from their actions; but they reflect common responses to unwelcome truths of Jesus’ mission.
Caiphas and the Sanhedrin are the fearful ecclesiastical leaders, who are concerned not with the truth but with quashing the apparent Messiahship of Jesus which threatens their authority. Where do I find this pernicious abuse of power employed to quash unpleasant truths?
Posted by Mr. Joseph Simmons, S.J. in XXXVI.