Spiritual Excercises

The Structure of the Exercises

Ignatius organized the Exercises into four “weeks.” These are not seven-day weeks, rather stages on a journey to spiritual freedom and wholehearted commitment to the service of God.

First week. This is a time of reflection on our lives in light of God’s boundless love for us. We see what our response to God’s love has been and also where we are hindered by patterns of sin. We see that God wants to free us of everything that gets in the way of our loving response to God. The first week ends with a meditation on Christ’s call to follow him.

Second week. The meditations and prayers of the second week focus on how to follow Christ as his disciples. We reflect on Scripture passages: Christ’s birth and baptism, his sermon on the mount, his ministry of healing and teaching, his raising Lazarus from the dead. We are brought to decisions to change our lives to do Christ’s work in the world and to love him more intimately.

Third week. We meditate on Christ’s Last Supper, passion, and death. We see Christ's suffering and his gift to us as the ultimate expression of God’s love.

Fourth week. We meditate on Jesus’ resurrection and his apparitions to his disciples. We walk with the risen Christ and set out to love and serve him in concrete ways in our lives in the world.

Prayer in the Exercises

The two primary forms of praying taught in the Exercises are meditation and contemplation. In meditation, we use our minds. We ponder the basic principles that guide our life. We pray over words, images, and ideas.

Contemplation is more about feeling than thinking. Contemplation often stirs the emotions and enkindles deep desires. In contemplation, we rely on our imaginations to place ourselves in a setting from the Gospels or in a scene proposed by Ignatius. We pray with Scripture. We do not study it.

The discernment of spirits underlies the Exercises. We notice the interior movements of our hearts, and discern where they are leading us. A regular practice of discernment helps us make good decisions.

All the characteristic themes of Ignatian spirituality are grounded in the Exercises. These include a sense of collaboration with God’s action in the world, spiritual discernment in decision making, generosity of response to God’s invitation, fraternity and companionship in service, and a disposition to find God in all things. Spiritual integration is a prominent theme of the Exercises: integration of contemplation and action, prayer and service, and emotions and reason.

19th Annotation - Full Spiritual Exercises in Daily Life

The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola are a creative and flexible programme of prayer and reflection centred on the life of Christ. The method for this retreat in daily life is described in the opening paragraphs of the Exercises, note number 19 – so it is often referred to as a “19th Annotation” retreat. People from very different backgrounds or Christian traditions have found benefit in making the Spiritual Exercises. Many see it as an opportunity to deepen their relationship with God. Others may make the exercises because they wish to make an important decision about the direction in their lives. Others still come to Spiritual Exercises for less clear reasons, they just feel drawn to make them.

Doing the Spiritual Exercises

To get the most from the Spiritual Exercises you need:

An openness to spiritual growth and personal transformation.
A desire to deepen your prayer.
A desire to draw closer to Jesus.
You need to be able to pray for 30 minutes to one hour each day using materials provided by the person accompanying you.
This programme is a commitment of between 9 to 12 months.
As a participant in the Exercises, you commit to pray and reflect for a certain amount of time each day and meet regularly with your Spiritual Companion. These meetings usually take place once a week at a time convenient to you and your Spirtual Companion. You will share your experiences of the Spiritual Exercises. Your Spiritual Companion will offer you material for the coming weeks.

Spiritual Companion accompanying you

Spiritual Accompaniment, is an essential component of the Exercises. Through conversation with a spiritual companion in an atmosphere of trust, you are helped to arrive at a deeper awareness of the presence and movement of God in your everyday life. As you share your dreams, struggles, triumphs and fears, you open up to the deepest and wisest source of freedom and joy.

A spiritual companion helps you notice, savour and respond to the movement of God in your ordinary life. The companion is a listening and supportive person who creates an environment where you can look honestly at your relationship with God.

When: When you sign up

Time: 1 hour per week

Venue: On line and face to face

Registration:

To start the Spiritual Exercises please complete the Registration Form by clicking here. An interview will then be arranged.

Suggested Donation

CHF 595. However, do not let the price deter you from doing the Exercises. Bursaries are available.

Return to the Offerings for day to day Ignatian living page.

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