CLC's Ignatian Spirituality
 

Ronald Rolheizer in his recent book, "The Holy Longing," describes spirituality as how we handle the deep longings of the heart. We find there an unquenchable fire, a restlessness, a longing, a disquiet, a hunger, a loneliness, a gnawing nostalgia, an untamed wildness, a congenital all‑embracing ache lying at the center of the human experience to be united to the Divine Energy whom we call God. Spirituality is about how we channel these desires. St. Augustine in simpler language says that our hearts are restless until they rest in God. Spirituality is the set of disciplines and habits we use to handle this inner fire.

For St. Ignatius, we look at our deepest desires to find Christ's desires for us. The energy of Ignatian spirituality is the energy of Christ. His Spiritual Exercises help identify the inner affective movements that are from Christ. Spiritual renewal and Spirit‑filled decision‑making are the fruits of this quest. The immediate experience is always the direct encounter with God in Jesus Christ.

Ignatian Spirituality develops a sensitivity to God's way of approaching and dealing with us. This spirituality is a way of living. It does not outline a specific program of action. It is a call to share in Christ's mission of revealing his Father's love for all creation. It is a process, a pedagogy, which guides us to discover for ourselves how we are called to further the reign of justice and peace for all people.

The heart of Ignatian Spirituality is found in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. It is a patterned process that describes his conversion and serves as a model for ours. They describe his travel with Jesus and how he met him at the heart of the human adventure. Ignatius' apostolic energy was released in his person‑to‑person, heart‑to‑heart encounters that revealed to him human replies to divine questions. Ignatian Spirituality is a way of Christian life.

These Exercises can be made in a number of ways ‑ in a series of short weekend retreats, 8‑day retreats, in daily life over a period of seven to eight months, and in a 30‑day format. Inasmuch as they are called Spiritual Exercises they are to be done, like physical aerobics. The experience is not about getting into Ignatius' experience, it is about getting into our own. They are our spiritual exercises. Using scripture as its point of reference, the Exercises guide us not only to be with Christ, but to be like him.


Larry Gooley, SJ
Guideposts - A Resource Handbook for Christian Life Community, 2006

 

 
     

 
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