Ignatius Loyola - The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola: Three Retreats in Order by Day and Hour (illustrated)

The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola:
Three Retreats in Order by Day and Hour (illustrated)

by

St. Ignatius of Loyola

&

Rolf Jansen (Illustrator)

Your special Illustrated & Annotated edition includes

+ Brand new Exclusive Ink Carving Illustrations by generative artist Rolf Jansen highlighting Meditation of the Spiritual Exercises 11 in total!

+ Treatise on the Ferocity of the Jesuits with reference to Luther

+ The Spiritual Exercises Since 1990 Harvard Format

Day, Day and Day retreat

according to the classical arrangement

Imprint: The Christian Back-to-Basics Society

The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola: 30 Day Retreat in Order by Day and Hour (illustrated)

by St. Ignatius of Loyola

2014 Rolf Jansen, illustrations

All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-928116-08-0

This edition distributed by BookBaby

This ebook, including all its parts, is protected by copyright and must not be copied, resold or shared without the permission of the author.

B EING I NSTRUCTIONS FOR P ERSONS MAKING A R ETREAT , T EACHING THEM WHAT THEY ARE ABOUT TO DO , AND THE R ULES THEY SHOULD O BSERVE DURING THE E XERCISE

1. By Spiritual Exercises is understood certain operations of the mind and heart, such as the examination of conscience, meditation, contemplation, mental and vocal prayer, which are employed in order to free the soul from its irregular affections, and so to put it in the way of knowing and embracing the will of God towards it.

As it is the soul which is to be exercised in making a retreat, we must seek from our spiritual guide only what is necessary to enable it to act with uprightness and certainty. We must not expect from him many words or long explanations, nor to hear long sermons or interesting lectures. It is not the quantity of food, but a healthy digestion, which nourishes the body; so it is not the great amount of knowledge communicated, but the manner in which the heart receives it, and is nourished by it, that satisfies the needs of the soul. Moreover, experience proves that the heart will receive with delight, and with greater real profit, what it discovers for itself, either by its own reflections, or by the light shed upon it by Divine grace, than what is presented to its intelligence by lengthened discourses.

These Exercises engage both the understanding and the will of man. The understanding seeks by reasoning to obtain the full knowledge of the subject proposed to it; the will produces the various affections which result from the knowledge acquired. In these acts of the heart, wherein it approaches God and converses with Him, the faithful soul ought to be careful never to forget the inward as well as the external respect which the presence of the Divinity requires.

Although St. Ignatius has divided the Exercises into four series or weeks, each consecrated to a special work of reform, or a distinct study of our Lord Jesus Christ, it must not be supposed that these weeks are necessarily of seven days. Each one ends when its aim is attained: this happens soonest to the most diligent, and those whom the grace of God influences most quickly; later to those who, notwithstanding their good-will, are longer tried by contending feelings. Generally, the complete course of these Exercises requires about thirty days.

The person in retreat will find everything easy and himself wonderfully assisted by grace, if from the beginning he brings to God a large and generous heart, if he abandons himself with all his wishes and all his liberty to the action of his Creator; if he is disposed to allow his Sovereign Lord to order him, and all that concerns him, according to His good pleasure.

The rules which are given for the discernment of spirits will assist the soldier of Jesus Christsometimes consoled by Heaven as he will be, and sometimes a prey to desolationto know and avoid the snares laid for him by his enemies. If he neither feels consolation, nor sadness, nor other movements of the heart, he must examine himself carefully on the manner in which he performs these Exercises. Does he perform them at the time prescribed, and in the manner pointed out? Does he observe the method? and rules traced out for him? In moments of temptation and dryness let him encourage himself; let him reassure himself with the hope of soon being consoled; let him, moreover, have recourse to the counsels of his spiritual director.

It is well for the person in retreat to concentrate his thoughts on the subject presented to him at the moment, without preoccupying himself at all about the day or the week which is to follow. Let him give an hour to each of the Exercises of the day; and as the evil one uses every means to make us shorten this time, let him take care to be able to reassure himself always with the thought that he has lengthened rather than shortened it. The time will appear short if it pass in the midst of consolation, but very long in moments of desolation and dryness. It is at these times that it would be well to prolong the Exercise, to conquer ourselves, and to show the enemy that his attacks are not only resisted, but turned to the advantage of our souls.

When consolation is abundant, no vow or promise should be made without having taken time to reflect and consult. When the soul, on the contrary, feels inclined towards things inferior or less perfect, every effort must be made to elevate it and give it a contrary direction. To obtain this grace from the God of all goodness, besides assiduous prayer, let other pious exercises be added; beg Our Lord not to allow us to obtain or keep anything, whether honours, riches, or happiness, until our irregular inclination for these things has been reformed, and rendered subordinate to the interests of His service and glory.

That the director may guide with certainty the soul placed under his care, and judge of its spiritual progress, we must faithfully tell him, not precisely our own thoughts and opinions, or our sins (the latter will be told in confession) but the agitations and different movements which the Spirit of God, or the evil spirit, may produce in us.

In order that the number, the length, and the nature of the Exercises may be suited to the age, capacity, and inclination of the person in retreat; that no one may be overburdened, and all may have what is suitable to their particular dispositions and wants at the time,each one will receive from his director, at the beginning, a rule fixing the hours of rising, of meditation, of meals, and the other exercises and occupations of the day. His spiritual guide also will visit him as often as he thinks requisite, setting him the employment for each day as well as the directions, advice, and encouragement, which he judges to be suitable and useful. The author of the Exercises, like the Apostle, made himself all things to all men. To strong, able, generous minded men, and to those who are masters of their time and of their state of life, he recommends four meditations a day of an hour each; another meditation of an hour in the middle of the night; an examination of conscience in the middle of the day, and another before going to rest. Some relaxation will be allowed these persons, if required, during this laborious course. Persons who unite all these conditions, except the time, and who cannot give more than an hour, or an hour and a half a day, the rest of their time being occupied in their ordinary avocations, will receive directions how to occupy themselves each day for an hour. By these means they will advance more slowly, but nevertheless in order, and will secure the continuity of the Exercises by one or two repetitions of each meditation. The Exercises of the first week are those which are suited to the capacity and devotion of the greater number. Such will come out of the retreat with a deeper fear of God, having made a good general confession, knowing how to examine their consciences well, and to approach the Sacraments more regularly. Others again must be satisfied with less. To these the commandments of God and the Church, and the method of examining their consciences and going to confession, will be explained; they will he instructed n the three methods of prayer which are mentioned further on. It is desirable that such persons should devote half-an-hour every morning to these Exercises, and that they should approach the Sacraments every week or fortnight.