Ignatian spirituality
The Exercises are intended to give the person undertaking them a greater degree of freedom from his or her own likes and dislikes, so that their choices are based solely on what they discern God's will is for them.
"In all things, to love and to serve" (Spanish: en todo amar y servir) was a motto of St Ignatius, who wanted to "be like St. Francis and St. Dominic", though better.
[2]: 23 For Ignatius, whether one was rich or poor, healthy or sick, in an assignment one enjoyed or one didn't, was comfortable in a culture or not, etc., should be a matter of spiritual indifference—a modern phrasing might put it as serene acceptance.
[7]: 25 Prayer, In Ignatian spirituality, is fundamental since it was at the foundation of Jesus' life, but it does not dispense from "helping oneself", a phrase frequently used by Ignatius.
Though the concept of devotion to Christ's mercy, as symbolized in the image of the Sacred Heart, goes further back, its modern origins can be traced to St. Marie Alacoque, a Visitation nun, whose spiritual director was the Jesuit St. Claude de la Colombière.
The Jesuits promoted this devotion to emphasize the compassion and overwhelming love of Christ for people, and to counteract the rigorism and spiritual pessimism of the Jansenists.
[11] St. Ignatius counseled people to receive the Eucharist more often, and from the order's earliest days the Jesuits were promoters of "frequent communion".
Ignatius made his initial commitment to a new way of life by leaving his soldier's weapons (and symbolically, his old values) on an altar before an image of the Christ child seated on the lap of Our Lady of Montserrat.
[12] Zeal for souls: This characteristic of Ignatian Spirituality comes from St. Ignatius's own intense apostolic desires and is certainly related to the purpose of the Society of Jesus, the religious order he founded.
Finding God in All Things: The vision that Ignatius places at the beginning of the Exercises keeps sight of both the Creator and the creature, the One and the other swept along in the same movement of love.
It presupposes an ability to reflect, a habit of personal prayer, self-knowledge, knowledge of one's deepest desires, and openness to God's direction and guidance.
Discernment is a repetitive process, yet as the person continues some choices should, of their own accord, fall by the wayside while others should gain clarity and focus.
Part of Jesuit formation is the undertaking of service specifically to the poor and sick in the most humble ways: Ignatius wanted Jesuits in training to serve part of their time as novices and in tertianship as the equivalent of orderlies in hospitals, for instance emptying bed pans and washing patients, to learn humility and loving service.
Jesuit educational institutions often adopt mottoes and mission statements that include the idea of making students "men and women for others",[17] and the like.
Jesuit missions have generally included medical clinics, schools, and agricultural development projects as ways to serve the poor or needy while preaching the Gospel.
Some groups who find the Ignatian "way of proceeding" helpful include the Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (RSCJ), the Faithful Companions of Jesus (FCJ), the Loreto Sisters (IBVM), the Religious Sisters of Charity (RSC), the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, and the Christian Life Communities (CLC).
[18] According to St Ignatius, the purpose of the Exercises is "to conquer oneself and to regulate one's life in such a way that no decision is made under the influence of any inordinate attachment.
"[2] In other words, the Exercises are intended, in Ignatius' view, to give the exercitant (the person undertaking them) a greater degree of freedom from his or her own likes, dislikes, comforts, wants, needs, drives, appetites, and passions that they may choose based solely on what they discern God's will is for them and their students.
