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WISDOM LANGUAGE
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5. The relevance of Ignatian
Spirituality
It is at this point that we see the enormous relevance that
Ignatian Spirituality and Ignatian Laity have for the church and
the world. The Church needs a spirituality that fosters wisdom
and depth in order to respond to the need of today. Ignatian
spirituality trains us for reflection and meditation, for
sorting out what is superficial and banal from what is deep and
real. This is what Ignatian spirituality does for us – it trains
us to be sensitive, to discern. Not everything that happens is
the will of God, not everything that we have around is good for
humanity. Who is going to discern? We need people trained
precisely to discern.
Again, it is the Pope himself who gives us a hint. He celebrates
daily Mass at the chapel in St. Martha in the Vatican, and the
chapel is filled with people who want to hear his homilies. This
has become a new trend, and even people who have left the Church
now take his homilies and read them at home to the children to
learn something for their lives. He gave a particular homily
about Our Lady, and as usual he had three points. (People say
this shows he is a Jesuit. So on purpose, sometimes I give four
points, sometimes two – numbers do not define a person). Anyway,
the Pope said there are three key words to understand Mary –
Listening, Discernment and Action. Later on, Fr. Spadaro, the
director of Civiltà Cattolica, said that this homily helps us to
understand the Pope because it defines the way he thinks. He is
listening now during Spring. He will be discerning during the
summer, and he will act and take decisions in Autumn. So look
forward to many important decisions that will come out soon!
This is all very Ignatian. We start with Listening which is
crucial and I would also add Seeing (after being in Japan for
many years). Listening is very European while Seeing is very
Asian. Hence we Europeans have eyes which seem different and
when we look at things, the eyes go like arrows. Asian faces are
more contemplative; there is harmony in the face and there is a
contemplative way of looking at the other. I believe that St.
Paul – if he were a Japanese – would have said faith comes from
listening and seeing. Anyway, this brings in the ears and the
eyes. Then we have discernment, which is where the heart comes
in. And then Action brings in the hands and feet. So the whole
body is involved.
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