SPIRITUAL EXERCISES OF IGNATIUS
(Posted 2010-11-04 12:36:47 by ArchPaladin)

I have just recently finished reading the _Spiritual Exercises of Saint
Ignatius of Loyola_, which you can read here [
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/ignatius/exercises.html ] [ccel.org].

I admit this is a rather interesting read.  It is old, written in the early
16th century.  Notably being this old (ie. pre-Reformation era), there is a
lot of Catholic theology that is worth ignoring in the text, but once you
get past that there is value in it.

The text itself is an early devotional manual, providing a course of study
on the existence of sin, the holiness of God, and the history of Christ. 
By going through this material, spending scheduled times in prayer (also
detailed in the text), and with the oversight of a spiritual director, the
reader can use this as a guide to overcoming whatever temptation or vice
they are trying to improve on.

Because the text outlines a course of study, apparently there is not much
value in just reading it straight through like any other book.  A reader
really should participate in the study process to get the full benefit. 
Knowing this, I had intended to follow along with the text as I read it,
which I did for about a week until realizing that there were other areas of
my spiritual growth that I should be focusing on that weren't very amenable
to using the exercises, and decided to finish out the remainder of the book
just reading through it to know what it said.  As such, I can attest to
there being value really only when you participate rather than just read.

Perhaps what I found most striking about the text is certain portions where
Ignatius' sincerity for dependence comes through.  There are portions of
the exercises where he very plainly encourages the reader to pray that they
go through personal hardship, illness, financial ruin, or any other
calamity that might befall them if it were to bring them closer to God, or
inversely that God would cause such events to occur if there is spiritual
benefit to be gained.  It is a testament to Ignatius' own faith to take
this stance, and I admit I find it difficult to accept that a person would
pray for these things, as my own spiritual worldview currently equates
God's blessings with personal stability even if turmoil is going on. 
Perhaps he and I are saying the same thing, but I find it difficult to
express sacrifice in the same words he does in my own American mindset.

As to its modern-day relevance and use, I have two comments.  The first is
that because Ignatius draws very closely from Scripture for his exercises,
there is clearly some enduring relevance for the modern-day Christian.  The
second is that since the text uses the Gospel message as a vehicle for
transformation, the text is no more relevant for a particular person and
situation then any other text that uses the Gospel in the same way.  I want
to be clear here that I'm speaking about the _Spiritual Exercises_ as
opposed to any other Christian-based transformational text.  Selecting this
work over any other one that has been written in the past four hundred
years should depend on that particular reader's needs rather than anything
else.

Overall, a good read, and I recommend it for use given the right situation.
 I admit I was expecting more out of it - perhaps more of Ignatius' own
words and direction, but it was quickly clear that it was not his intent to
put his own mark on the text.  This I respect, and I do not hold it against
the work.

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