For the holy Church of God throughout the world: may she announce courageously the gospel of salvation and witness joyfully to Christ crucified and risen, who gave his life for love of the world. For our Holy Father Francis: sustained by our prayer in his ministry the service of unity and mercy, confirmed us in faith, refreshed in hope and inflamed with charity towards God … [Read more...]
Gratitude – Source of Joy
Nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, than falling in love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you will do with your evenings, how you will spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your … [Read more...]
Communitas ad dispersionem
“In their own communal apostolic discernment which led to the founding of the Society, Ignatius and his companions saw this as their unique call, their charism: to choose to be with Christ as servants of His mission, to be with people where they dwell and work and struggle, to bring the Gospel into their lives and labours. As pilgrims on Christ’s mission, we are ready to be … [Read more...]
Ignatian hints for a fruitful Dialogue
From a letter of Ignatius to the Jesuits attending the Council of Trent. He gives instructions to Jesuits, so that interventions in big assembly can be more fruitful: Be slow to speak. Be considerate and kind, especially when it comes to deciding on matters under discussion, or about to be discussed in the council. Be slow to speak, and only after having first listened … [Read more...]
Co-workers of God
On the day of the feast of the dedication of the Lateran Basilica, the mother of all churches let us contemplate on being co-workers of God‘s grace. A text of Blessed Oscar Romero can help us. He gives a vision of our work in the Church which is not perfect and has not to be perfect, because we are not perfect. But in beeing sober it frees and motivates us to be creative, … [Read more...]
Shalom
Father Ignatius to the townspeople of Azpeitia about real peace (1540): Let me repeat that there is no desisting in my earlier desires that you continue to enjoy in this life peace and quiet of heart in the true peace of our Lord, not in the peace of the world. In the world there are many princes, great men and little men, who make truces and treaties in their external lives … [Read more...]
Holy Spirit – Consolator optime
Ignatius about spiritual consolation: „By this kind of consolation I mean that which occurs when some interior motion is caused within the soul through which it comes to be inflamed with love of its Creator and Lord. As a result it can love no created thing on the face of the earth in itself, but only in the Creator of them all. Similarly, this consolation is experienced … [Read more...]
Saints – Formed by the Grace of God
„There are very few people who realize what God would make of them if they abandoned themselves entirely to His hands, and let themselves be formed by His Grace. A thick and shapeless tree trunk would never believe that it could become a statue, admired as a miracle of sculpture ... and would never consent to submit itself to the chisel of the sculptor who, as St. Augustine … [Read more...]
Availability – The Strength of our Mission
Availability is the strength of our mission: “Availability is to be an attitude of the individual Jesuit and a characteristic of the whole Society: mobile, agile, responding to the needs of a fast-changing world.“ GC34, D21,1 “To be joined with Christ as his companions in obedience to the will of the Father allows us to become servants of his mission of evangelization. … [Read more...]
Boldness – A Fruit of Deep Trust in the Will of God
Today we celebrate Blessed Rupert Mayer, a German Jesuit who lived and worked mainly in Munich. In his town he was well known as helper of the poor, as a brave preacher against the Regime of the Nazis and as a defender of the freedom of the Church. For this he was arrested and imprisoned by the Gestapo, and then sent to a concentration camp. Later he was transferred to a … [Read more...]
All Souls Day
The encounter with Christ is the decisive act of judgement. Before his gaze all falsehood melts away. This encounter with him, as it burns us, transforms and frees us, allowing us to become truly ourselves. All that we build during our lives can prove to be mere straw, pure bluster, and it collapses. Yet in the pain of this encounter, when the impurity and sickness of our lives … [Read more...]
Holiness – A Way of Incarnation
In the early church “All Saints“ was celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost. So “All Saints“ was understood as an Epiphany of Pentecost. The Saints are fruits of the Holy Spirit, of his work of incarnation which is described by Teilhard de Chardin. This can be seen as an introduction into the meditation of the Beatitudes: “You can only convert that which you love: if a … [Read more...]
For our Brothers
From the beginnings the Society had conceived of itself as a universal “body”. This Pauline methaphor cf. 1 Cor. 12,12ff, much loved by Saint Ignatius and used frequently in the Constitutions to refer to the entire Society, expressed his idea of our vocation as both one and diverse. GC 34, D 7, 4 On the Feast of our Saint Brother Alphonsus Rogríguez we pray especially for our … [Read more...]
Jesuits – Servants of Joy
Pope Francis said to us at the beginning of this week: “The Jesuit is a servant of the joy of the Gospel.” and “The Good News ought not to be given with a sad face, but rather, with joy!” Furthermore he said: “Joy is not only decorative, it is also a clear indicator of grace, it shows that love is active, working and present.” But how do we find this deep Joy? Pope Francis … [Read more...]
For Vocations
Pedro Arrupe said to a young man who wished to join the Society of Jesus: Stay at home if the idea of becoming a jesuit makes you unsettled or nervous. Do not come to us if you love the Church like a stepmother rather than a mother. Do not come if you think that in so doing you will be doing the Society of Jesus a favour. Come if serving Christ is at the very centre of your … [Read more...]
For our Superiors
El sentido comunitario ha sido esencial en la Compañía desde el mismo momento de su nacimiento. El grupo inicial de Ignacio y de sus “amigos” en el Señor se amplió de inmediato con otros que quisieron seguir el camino que ellos habían tomado. Pidamos para nosotros, sus sucesores en la llamada de Dios, el sentido verdadero y la estima profunda de la vida comunitaria en … [Read more...]
Community life
A group of students intending to enter the Society had formed a community in Louvain. Ignatius wrote them a letter in 1547. In his letter we read about community life: „You have laid upon yourselves a heavy obligation to live holy and pious lives: having separated yourselves from others in your residence and way of life, you will be under everyone’s observation and on … [Read more...]
Make me a channel of your peace
Saint Mother Teresa had all her life a deep relationship to ignatian Spirituality. As a Business Card she liked to distribute the following words, which can be seen as an unfolding of the contemplativus in actione: The fruit of silence is prayer. The fruit of prayer is faith. The fruit of faith is love. The fruit of love is service. The fruit of service is peace. Saint … [Read more...]
The Good Shepherd
Franz van de Lugt SJ, a member of the Near East Province, lived and worked in Syria, mainly in Homs as spiritual guide especially for the youth. He was killed on the 7th of April 2014, aged 76. In him we have the image of a Good Shepherd: his hope in the resurrection strengthened him in his ministry. In March 2014 he wrote: “Just as I have shared with the Syrian people their … [Read more...]
Magnificat
When God is in the midst of people, relationships are full of life. We see this in the encounter between Elizabeth and Mary: there is so much joy, appreciation, sharing, understanding, movement, life, freedom, peace and uplifting of the soul to praise God. There is no room for envy, jealousy, hate, violence, numbness, narrowness... We find the same dynamic of uplifting the … [Read more...]
Miserando atque Eligendo
GC32 states: "What is it to be a Jesuit? It is to know that one is a sinner, yet called to be a companion of Jesus." D 2,1 These words are echoed in the answer Pope Francis gave to the question „Who is Jorge Mario Bergolio: "The best summary, the one that comes more from the inside and I feel most true is this: I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.” And the Pope … [Read more...]
Arrupe’s Heritage
After his resignation was accepted Fr. Arrupe gave a final message to the Society. Let us listen to those concluding words, expressed by Fr. Pedro before he entered into the silence of his personal surrender to God. "To each one of you in particular I would love to say – tantas cosas: so much, really. From our young people I ask that they live in the presence of God and grow … [Read more...]
Ite, inflammate omnia
Legend has it that Saint Ignatius, when he sent Saint Francis Xavier to the East, told him: “go, set the world alight”. With the birth of the Society of Jesus, a new fire was lit in a changing world. A novel form of religious life came about, not through human enterprise but as a divine initiative. The fire that was set alight then continues to burn in our Jesuit life today, … [Read more...]
An instrument of the Lord
The joy of the gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness. With Christ joy is constantly born anew. I dream of a “missionary option”, that is, a missionary impulse capable of transforming everything, so that the Church’s customs, ways of doing things, … [Read more...]
Imprint our hearts with your name
Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Ignatius, bishop of Antioch. Traditional iconography depicts him holding a heart, which is inscribed with the golden letters “IHS.” Iñigo got to know the martyr bishop during his convalescence in Loyola while reading the lives of the Saints. One legend about this bishop that Iñigo was bound to have come across would have been when … [Read more...]
Prayer of the Faithful – Mass of the Holy Spirit
Let us lift up our common prayer to the Father so that the Holy Spirit may guide and enlighten the minds and the hearts of those entrusted to his work of sanctification. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia That through the Spirit of fortitude and of wisdom, you give to all the baptized the courage to proclaim that “Jesus is the Lord”, so that the message of salvation bears fruit … [Read more...]
As in the middle of a balance
“It is necessary to keep as my objective the end for which I am created, to praise God our Lord and save my soul. Furthermore, I ought to find myself indifferent, that is, without any disordered affection, to such an extent that I am not more inclined or emotionally disposed toward taking the matter proposed rather than relinquishing it, nor more toward relinquishing it rather … [Read more...]
Drawing on the Audacity of the «Unexpected»
May the Lord grant you the grace, throughout your reflections and discernment, to be guided, to be brought to life, in this audacity to make explicit through your commitments, your words, your solidarity, the always unexpected voice of the One who hopes in the world, who overcomes death and establishes life, the One to whom you seek to give the greatest glory. (...) It is … [Read more...]
Infuse your breath in me, O Holy Spirit
God, gather and turn my thoughts to you. With you there is light, you do not forget me. With you there is help and patience. I do not understand your ways, but you know the way for me. Dietrich Bonhoeffer In regard to the qualities which are desirable in the superior general, the first is that he should be closely united with God our Lord and intimate with Him in prayer and … [Read more...]
Silence – Adoration
Come, You Spirit of Quiet. Guide me into your Stillness that I might hear in myself the Word you speak. Free me from all Fear hat all which binds me leaves me and leaves me to who I am. Open as a vast chalice I want Your wonders, Your fullness, Your holy presence gently to seize me. Come You Spirit of Breath, breathe your breath into my thoughts, into my feelings. Come and … [Read more...]
The grace of discernment
“We decided to come together for some days before separating, to discuss with one another our vocation and manner of life. After doing this for several days, we were divided by different ideas and opinions concerning our state of life. There was unity of mind and purpose: to seek the gracious and perfect will of God according to the scope of our vocation; but there were various … [Read more...]
The Blessed Virgin Mary Mother of the Society of Jesus
God, gather and turn my thoughts to you. With you there is light, you do not forget me. With you there is help and patience. I do not understand your ways, but you know the way for me. Dietrich Bonhoeffer For Ignatius the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary was an essential part of his spirituality. At crucial points in his life Ignatius had recourse to her … [Read more...]
Make my heart like unto yours
Our earliest companions, even though they considered themselves weak and fragile and originating from many different places, found the will of God together amid great diversity of opinion. What enabled them to find God’s will was their “decided care and alertness to initiate a completely open way” and to offer themselves fully to it for the greater glory of God. Thus they began … [Read more...]
Friends in the Lord
Father, in the Holy Spirit, inflame the hearts of all your sons in the Society of Jesus with the fire that our three founding fathers, Ignatius, Francis Xavier and Peter Faber, drew from the Heart of Jesus, your Son, Our Lord, Saviour and King. Give us, Lord, the wisdom of our Father Ignatius so that we may recognise – and respond to – the call of the Spirit in our lives, … [Read more...]
In search of the Magis
Those who wish to give greater proof in their love, and to distinguish themselves in whatever concerns the service of the Eternal King and the Lord of all, will not only offer themselves entirely for the work… but make offering of greater value and of more importance. Ex. Sp. 97 The magis is not simply one among others in a list of Jesuit characteristics. It permeates them all. … [Read more...]
The name of Jesus our Salvation
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil 2,9-11) In the name of Jesus we are united in prayer, to praise God and to give him thanks for our … [Read more...]
Veni Creator Spiritus
Spirit of wisdom and understanding, deepen our silence so we may seek and find you in all things. Spirit of right judgment and courage, breathe in us the desire and zeal to bring justice and mercy to your people. Spirit of knowledge and reverence, guide us in the footsteps of Jesus along the pathway of the Kingdom. Spirit of wonder and awe, open our eyes to the mystery of … [Read more...]
Blessing of the new aula for the General Congregation
On September 22nd, a few days before the beginning of the GC, Father General, in the presence of a large number of the General Curia team, blessed this beautifully renovated room where the members of the General Congregation will meet from October 2nd. Here is the prayer that has been prepared and was used for the occasion. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the … [Read more...]
Never be tired to shine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVF0i5FHwnE … [Read more...]
Prayer for GC36
God our Father, almighty and merciful, You sent Your Son Jesus, Your living Word, to save the human race by His life, death, and resurrection, and You send Your Holy Spirit to inspire and accompany Your pilgrim Church on earth. With confidence, we pray for the Society that bears the name of Jesus: Grant the 36th General Congregation openness to hear your … [Read more...]