IGNATIAN SPIRITUALITY
An Introduction
ST. IGNATIUS
of Loyola
IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA was born in
1491 into a noble Basque family in northern
Spain. He became a soldier in the service of
the Spanish king. During the defense of the
fortress at Pamplona in 1521, a cannonball
shattered his leg. During a long and painful
convalescence, Ignatius experienced a
life-changing conversion. He went from
dreaming of knightly glory to wanting to
serve Jesus. He left Loyola and set out as
a pilgrim to the monastery at Montserrat.
There he spent all night in prayer and
offered his knight’s sword to Our Lady.
Dressed as a beggar, he spent the next few
months living in a cave in nearby Manresa.
With much prayer, he reflected on the life
and teachings of Jesus. The notes of his
experiences in prayer became the basis of
a small book called The Spiritual Exercises.
Ignatius used this book to lead others to a
knowledge of God through meditation on
the life of Jesus.
Ignatian spirituality is the cornerstone of the
Finding God: Our Response to God’s Gifts faith
formation program for kindergarten through 8th
grade. By engaging the whole person—mind,
heart, body, and soul—Finding God enables
catechists, teachers, and parents to develop
devoted disciples of Jesus in the Ignatian tradition.
www.FindingGod.com
Discernment and
GOOD DECISIONS
Ignatian spirituality has long been
associated with discernment—
the art of discovering how best
to respond to God in daily life.
For centuries, people have used
St. Ignatius of Loyola’s rules for
discernment to help make wise
choices and sound decisions.
Ignatian discernment rests on
the conviction that God speaks
directly to each of us.
We can have confidence in
our own experience of God
as we develop eyes to see
and ears to hear.
For more information, please visit
www.ignatianspirituality.com.
Characteristics of Ignatian Spirituality
1. Finding God in all things for justice and human dignity are
2. Personal relationship with Christ missing
and love for the Church 7. A positive, energetic, and
3. Reflection (self-awareness/ engaged vision of God’s constant
discernment) leading to gratitude interaction with creation
which leads to service (linked to 8. Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
becoming a “man or woman for (for the greater glory of God)—
others”) praising God and dedicating
4. Contemplation in action—not a oneself to participate in God’s
healing work in the world
monastic existence, but an active
one that is, at the same time, 9. Flexibility and adaptability—
infused with prayer respecting people’s lived
5. Inner freedom—the result of experiences
self-awareness and discernment 10. Union of minds and hearts—
listening for the God who is
6. Faith that does justice—the
realization that there can be no true present among us, admitting
expression of faith where concerns no division
PRAY WITH YOUR IMAGINATION
Put yourself in a Gospel story.
Choose which character you’re going to be, and walk right into a scene where Jesus heals someone,
delivers a teaching, or feeds thousands. You can be a main character in the story, or a bystander, or
friend that you simply invent for this prayer. Don’t get distracted by trying to be historically accurate—
this is not about interpreting Scripture in a scholarly way. The point is to encounter Jesus. Ask the Holy
Spirit to guide this very spiritual function, the human imagination, to where you need to go.
Finding God in all things is at the core of Ignatian spirituality and is
rooted in our growing awareness of what is happening in our daily lives. God is not lost
and doesn’t need to be found. God constantly finds us. It is we who gradually learn
to find and love God in all things, because God is in everything we see, hear, and do.
God labors in all things, creating them moment
by moment, giving them life and beauty. The
yearning to find God in all things makes us more
Inner Freedom aware of what is happening all around us, and
we grow in an awareness of God’s presence in our
God wants us to be our true lives and become more attentive to God’s desires
selves—joyous, aware, and than to our own.
living each moment to the
fullest. When we are free, we Sometimes it is a real struggle to find God. We
have to put aside our egos, our fears, and our
have freedom to love, freedom
for service, and freedom to be prejudices and really trust that God will teach
in an intimate relationship and us something valuable. All we are doing is giving
dialogue with the God who leads God a chance to open our hearts wider.
each of us toward life.
God desires inner freedom for
us:
• To grow in self-knowledge to become
more aware of our authentic selves and
THE EXAMEN
The Examen is a method of reviewing your day in
to live out of that authenticity.
the presence of God. It’s an attitude more than a
• To see ourselves through the loving
eyes of God.
method, a time set aside for thankful reflection
on where God is in your everyday life. It has five
• To accept loving relationships. steps, and usually takes 15–20 minutes per day.
• To grow in friendship with Jesus. Here it is in a nutshell:
• To follow the promptings of the
Holy Spirit.
1 Ask God for light. I want to look at my
day with God’s eyes, not merely my own.
• To discover what God is asking of us.
• To respond with an open heart to
Give thanks. The day I have just lived is a
God’s invitation. 2 gift from God. Be grateful for it.
• To enter into a right relationship with
all of God’s creation. Review the day. I carefully look back on the
• To look clearly at ourselves and the 3 day just completed, being guided by the Holy Spirit.
world around us, rejecting evil and
rejoicing in virtue. Face your shortcomings.
©LOYOLA PRESS
• To work actively for peace, justice, 4 I face up to what is wrong––in my life and in me.
and compassion.
• To give generously to those in need.
5 Look toward the day to come.
• To become disciples. I ask where I need God in the day to come.
Version of the Examen from A Simple, Life-Changing Prayer by Jim Manney. © LOYOLA PRESS