Saint Ignatius of Loyal was a master of the spiritual life and gifted with discernment of spirits. Turning from a life of active military, St. Ignatius used his gifts and talents to help others reach God in a personal way through the use of the intellect and will. He developed the Spiritual Excises as method of discernment and spiritual enrichment. Just as person is inclined to exercise their body and mind, so should a person exercise their soul.
Although the original method was designed to be done by an individual on a retreat guided by a director, it has since been widely accepted as an appropriate guide for all people in any walk of life. The translator, Fr. Thomas Corbishley, SJ points out the importance of keeping in mind, wherever a person may be, the exercises are intended to be prayed not read.[1] The layout is simple, beginning with a brief description of what the "Fundamental Principles" are including guides to examinations of conceince, confession and communion. The method proposed by the saint is intended to increase the retreatants awareness of ones sins, the greatness of God and knowledge of the Divine Will in ones life. This knowledge in not an intellectual pursuit but a "to foster the experiential knowledge of (or even better the desire for) God that is expressed through the movement's of the heart."[2] The movement's of heart are the ultimate fruit of proper discernment.
After the introduction, the book breaks up four weeks with each days agenda. The general layout involves a subject of mediations and special considerations. He begins with a detailed explanation of different ways of praying with the material as a guide for the recipient. Additionally he gives some caveats to those struggling and how the director should pursue should the individual find himself too far from the course. As this may be an indication he is either not ready or not suitable for these sorts of exercise's.
In the back of the book, Ignatius provides and index of "Rules for Discernment" that accompany each each week. These provide further assistance in the retreatants experience of God and the evil one. In order to progress forward, one must be aware of the threats and counter attacks. These "Rules" describe "consolation" vs "desolation" depending on the state of soul the person is in and how the "good spirits" and "bad spirits" will influence. Interestingly though, the influence that Ignatius described is not in the affect or feeling but the "interior motion" these spirits have on the souls.[3] The significance in this is that the individual will be able to use their intellect to discern which spirit is acting on them and then utilize their will to act according to Gods will. All relationships require effort and practice. This book is a simple but profound enrichment to any person to takes their spiritual life seriously and desire to enter into the fullness of a personal relationship with God.
[1] Ignatius of Loyola, The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, trans. Thomas Corbishley, (Mineola, New York: Dover, 1963), 9.
[2] Peter Tyler, "Raising the Soul in Love: St. Ignatius of Loyola and the Tradition of Mystical Theology," Religions 13 no 11 (2022): 6, at MDPI, http://www.mdpi.com/journal/religions.
[3] Kevin Leidich, "Every Increase in Faith Hope and Charity: Understanding Ignatian Consolation", The Way 61 no 2 (April 2022): 62, at The Way, http://www.theway.org.uk/
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