Recap- Session 1: January 11, 2009

Lessons From St. Ignatius

Born in 1491 in the Basque region of Northern Spain, Inigo de Loyola (Ingnatius Loyola) was an unlikely candidate to transform the world. But, as so often happens in salvation-history, God had a plan.

Not desiring to be a cleric, as was his family's wish, Ignatius became an officer in the military. At the age of 30, while defending Pamplona from the French, Ignatius was struck in the leg by a cannonball. Instead of going to prison, he was brought home to recuperate from his injuries. While on bed rest he read two novels, the only available reading material...The Life of Jesus Christ and a collection of the lives of the saints.

This became the start of his conversion as he came to the conclusion that in addition to intellect, emotions and feelings help us to come to a knowledge of the action of the Spirit in our lives. Europe at this time was undergoing the Protestant Reformation in addition to being on the cusp of the European Renaissance. These were exciting times to be considering the priesthood, but Ignatius was determined to follow Jesus so he embarked for Jerusalem via Barcelona.

Intending to stay only briefly outside of a town called Manresa, Ignatitus lived in a cave for 10 months. One morning, down by the river he had an "encounter with God as He really is"- all creation was seen in a new light and acquired a new meaning and relevance. This led him to another key point. By finding God in all things, all times are times of prayer.

Determined to enter the priesthood, Ignatitus returned to school. Eventually he made his way to Paris where he met six fellow students whom he instructed in the Gospel and how to pray. It was here that he formed his most influential work, The Spiritual Exercises. Not exactly welcomed by the traditional establishment as it challenged some of the long-held practices, Ignatius' method of contemplation found a footing in the hearts of his comrades.

He made his way to Rome to put himself at the disposal of the Pope. In 1539 he asked his friends to join him. All had been ordained and had been unable, due to the political climate, to make a life in Jerusalem, as was their hope while at the University of Paris. Together again, they formed the Societatis Jesu or the Society of Jesus commonly known as the Jesuits.

The Society was responsible for opening many colleges for laity and aspiring clergy alike. It was a time of difficult growth as the Protestant Reformation was in full swing. Ignatius became a key figure in the Counter-Reformation or Catholic Revival. He left his mark on all of Christendom with his approach to contemplation. In essence being- Your personal relationship with God must be lived in the world and derived through a process of continual prayer, reflection, and action.

To Sum Up

By examining the life of St. Ignatius Loyola we gain a better understanding of God's desire to have a personal relationship with us. Various hardships tend to reveal truths about ourselves- just as they did to Ignatius. Despite the obstacles in his life, he continued to seek to do God's will and in doing so truly transformed the holy catholic church.

We too can examine our lives and see where God's voice has been heard more clearly. Ignatius' goal was to have an on-going conversation with our Lord, such that He was a constant companion and that Loyola's actions were ad majorem Dei gloria or to the greater glory of God.

Our corporate vision statement is to "transform the world through the love of Jesus Christ". What an amazing goal! The world? Yes, the world. I believe that transformation begins in your heart- through reflection, prayer, and action....reflection, prayer, and action. This is the crux of Ignation Contemplation. You can't act as an agent of God if you don't know what He is asking you to do. You don't know what He is asking you to do if you don't have a conversation with him and reflect on what the Spirit is revealing to you. God longs to have that conversation with us. Isn't that amazing!

Over the next 10 sessions we will examine the steps to developing a truly discerning heart. We'll do all of this while growing closer together as a community and digging into scripture. Feel free to bring your Bible as we'll not only be studying what St. Ignatius says about a certain topic, but also what scripture tells us.

Below are three questions to reflect upon in order to deepen your understanding of today's topic. I look forward to your comments and seeing you next Sunday!

In Christ,

Julie

A Deeper Look

• Where have you seen Christ today?
• Reflect on the life of St. Ignatius. Are there any parallels in your life? Draw connections.
• Compare St. Paul and St. Ignatius's encounters with God. How has God revealed Himself to these two figures and what should we look and listen for in our own faith lives?