Ignatius—The Pilgrim

Introduction & Welcome (1 min.)

I. Opening Prayer (5’)

Grace: To grow closer to God and one another through the Life of St. Ignatius

Use the grace or a suggested scripture above to create your own prayer, or use the one below:

Loving God, thank you for gathering us these weeks, for drawing us closer to you and to one another. Help us through this meeting to become friends in the Lord, people who are willing to trust one another and grow in intimacy as we support one another on our daily journeys. Help us to listen to what moves us about the story of your beloved friend Ignatius and how you likewise seek our friendship. Amen.

II. Check-In (5 min.)

• What were some of your high and low points of the week?

III. Focus Exercise (40 min.)

Materials Needed:

• CLC journal booklet
• Picture of St. Ignatius
• Life of St. Ignatius
• “Ignatius Grab-Bag Game”
  • Use either game cards or beach ball or other item with game questions written on it
  • Cut out the cards or prepare the item beforehand
• Optional: Laptop to show a video of his life from YouTube

Introduction

CLC is rooted in the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuit order and the patron saint of all the Jesuit Universities. In order to better understand and see how CLC can be a place to grow in our own spiritual journey, we are going to spend some time this meeting learning about St. Ignatius. We’re going to briefly look at some of the main events of his life, and play a game that will help us share about our own lives in relationship to St. Ignatius.

Exercise: “Ignatius Grab-Bag Game”

1. Place the picture of St. Ignatius in the center of the room or glue it to the paper bag so all the members can see the photo.
2. Go over the Life of St. Ignatius by verbally highlighting key points.
   • (Other options: Have members prayerfully read his life or show a video from YouTube.
   • Note: You may skip this step and jump to the next step. If you skip it, make sure that you read a short description of his life before reading each game question.
3. Have members take turns pulling out game cards from the paper bag (or tossing the item with the questions). The game cards should have the questions only. It is up to you how the game progresses (i.e. answer the question you pull from the bag or that faces you as you catch the item, ask it of another member, etc.).

Sharing

The initial sharing for this meeting takes place as each person answers a question during the game. Encourage members to elaborate and not just give one-word answers.

Listening Deeper

• What has struck you as you have been listening to others share? Do you notice any patterns or commonalities?
• How have you been feeling during the meeting? Comfortable? Anxious? Curious?
• Is there anything you would like to share after listening to another person share?

IV. Moving Forward (10 min.)

Wrap-Up: Thank members for attending the meeting. Remind them that we are going to have a CLC Initiation after meeting #5, which is two weeks from now.

Action:

1. Continue to pray and reflect on the CLC Commitment handout during the week.
2. Pay attention to building-names, statues, and any other elements of campus related to the story of St. Ignatius and the Jesuits.

Announcements: Topic for next meeting and upcoming CLC events. Switch prayer partner.

V. Closing Prayer (5 min.)