Seeking God: A Jesuit Retreat Series: Recent Episodes
The Jesuit Post
The Jesuit Post presents Ignatian preached retreats in podcast form. Each season will feature a series of talks based on the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola presented by young Jesuits. Each episode features a talk that guides you through the dynamics of the retreat, along with reflection questions to aid you on your spiritual journey.
Season 1: Holy Week Retreat 2020. Season 2: A Jesuit Anti-Racism Retreat Season 3: Holy Week Retreat 2021 Season 4: Lenten Retreat 2022
In the final talk of our Lenten Retreat, Damian asks once again, "Who do you say that I am?" In recognizing all that God has given to us, we express our gratitude by giving ourselves completely to God. This singular act of making God and God’s will central to our lives predisposes us to give everything good to those around us in the way God calls us to give.
Spiritual Exercises:
- Contemplatio: Contemplation to Attain Love
Suggested Scripture for prayer:
- 1 John 4:7-21
- Romans 8:31-39
- Colossians 3:5-17
Song:
- Take, O Lord, And Receive by Lorraine Hess
- With Every Act of Love by Jason Gray
- All My Praise by Ryan Ellis
Lenten Retreat 2023 Playlist:
- YouTube Playlist
- Spotify Playlist
Print or download the following PDF for helpful materials to help you reflect on the talk: https://bit.ly/LentenRetreatTalk8
Does God’s love for us ignite our head, heart, and feet to follow Christ? After taking a look at our sins we are met with a healthy and good dose of confusion for God’s immense love for us. And so we ask ourselves, are we disciples of Christ?
Spiritual Exercises:
- Colloquy with Jesus on the Cross
Suggested Scripture for prayer:
- Matthew 25:31-46
Questions for reflection:
- What am I doing for Christ?
- What have I done for Christ?
- What ought I do for Christ?
Song:
- How Deep the Father’s Love for Us sung by Anna Golden
- Lord, I Need You by Matt Maher
- A Safe Place to Land by Sara Bareilles (featuring John Legend)
BONUS:
- Oh Come to The Altar (an Elevation Worship cover) by Trey McLaughin and the Sounds of Zamar
Please feel free to contact Damian if you would like to share your experiences with him: dbotellosj@thejesuitpost.org.To download a PDF of reflection materials for this talk: https://bit.ly/LentenRetreatTalk7
In our on-going desire to seek God in all things, the further we can get from discovering the effects of our sinfulness. A pinnacle of the First Week of the Spiritual Exercises, we look deeply into our sins in order to see God’s profound love for us.
Spiritual Exercises:
- Meditation on Hell
Suggested Scripture for prayer:
- Luke 16:19-31
Song:
- Be Still by The Fray
- I Need You to Survive by Hezekiah Walker, Love Fellowship Choir
Print or download the following PDF for helpful materials to help you reflect on the talk: https://bit.ly/LentenRetreatTalk6
In this fourth week of our retreat, we delve into personal sins. After placing sin in its proper context in our history and in our world, we can look at how sin affects the humanity of our personhood. And, in looking at our sins, we discover that regardless of what we do, God loves us deeply and unflinchingly anyway.
Spiritual Exercises:
- The Triple Colloquy: Conversation with Mary, Jesus, and God
Suggested Scripture for prayer:
There are no specific scripture passages for this week's talk, but if you would like to reflect on scripture, consider the following:
- Judges 6
- Luke 18:9-14
- Luke 15
Song:
- Sabat Mater by Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles
- Kyrie Elesion by Monks of the Abbey of Notre Dame
Print or download the following PDF for helpful materials to help you reflect on the talk: https://bit.ly/LentenRetreatTalk5
In this fourth week of our retreat, we delve into personal sins. After placing sin in its proper context in our history and in our world, we can look at how sin affects the humanity of our personhood. And, in looking at our sins, we discover that regardless of what we do, God loves us deeply and unflinchingly anyway.
Spiritual Exercises:
- Meditation on Our Own History of Sin
Suggested Scripture for prayer:
- 1 John 1:5-2:2
- Matthew 5:21-24
- Psalm 130
Questions for reflection:
- Review the PDF below for three suggestions for prayer.
Song:
- If You Can Hear Me by Ben Rector
- Reclaim Your Sheep by Liturgical Folk
- Come Ye Sinners by Ordinary Time
Print or download the following PDF for helpful materials to help you reflect on the talk: https://bit.ly/LentenRetreatTalk4
In the 3rd talk of our Lenten Retreat, we continue to contemplate our identity and how much God loves us. To come to a profound awareness of this love, Ignatius desires us to put sin in its proper perspective: sin as systemic and all around us. We may not like to think about sin, but Damian reflects on what it reveals about God and ourselves. We are sinners, and we are sinners loved by God.
Spiritual Exercises:
- The First, Second, and Third Sin
Suggested Scripture for prayer:
- Luke 7:37-50
- Galatians 5:16-26
- Psalm 51
Questions for reflection:
- Take a moment to reflect on the three stories:
- The Sin of the Angels
- The Sin of Adam and Eve
- The Sin of Others
- How do you feel when you reflect on these stories?
- What emotions or thoughts come up for you as you read them?
- What do these stories say to you about sin?
Song:
- The Longing by All Sons & Daughters
- Shiloh by Audrey Assad
Please feel free to contact Damian if you would like to share your experiences with him: dbotellosj@thejesuitpost.org.
To download a PDF of reflection materials for this talk: https://bit.ly/LentenRetreatTalk3
Damian sets up the retreat by letting us know the focus of these 40-days of Lent will be on the First Week of the Spiritual Exercises. And as we begin, we discover that our entire life is a gift in which we have one goal. St. Ignatius posits this goal is also our identity. To help us understand our goal and our identity, Ignatius offers us the Principle and Foundation, which is the mission of our lives. Damian breaks open this Principle and Foundation and offers a suggestion on how we can better identify ourselves with God.
Spiritual Exercises:
- The First Principle and Foundation
- The Examen
Suggested Scripture for prayer:
- Ephesians 1:3-11
- Romans 8:35-39
- Isaiah 49:8-16
Questions for reflection:
- Who in my life has helped me on my faith journey? Write these names down, slowly and intentionally, see their face in your imagination, recall memories, and give thanks for their presence in your life.
- Who can I invite to join me on my faith journey? Remember, the Principle and Foundation is not about God and me, but rather about God, me, and all of creation. Who, if anyone, would you like to share the road of faith with? And then, maybe, reach out to them.
- Who have you excluded in your life, or, who could you love better in your life? Again, as my theatre professor said, if you want to know who you are, look at the people around you, and also, I would add, look at who isn’t around you. Why? Does this say anything about who you are?
Song:
- Deliverance by Strahan
- Your Ways by Salt of the Sound
Print or download the following PDF for helpful materials to help you reflect on the talk: https://bit.ly/LentenRetreatTalk2
This talk introduces the theme of the retreat, Who Do You Say That I Am. It breaks open St. Ignatius’s strategy of “Spiritual Exercises” and what was hoped for by someone taking on these Exercises. The foundation of the entire retreat is getting to see a little more clearly who God is and who we are in God’s eyes. Damian reflects on how God created us in God’s image and so knows us immediately before even forming us.
Verse: So God created humankind in God’s image, in the image of God, God created them, human persons God created them. (Genesis 1:27)
Spiritual Exercise: Annotation 1/2
Suggested Scripture:
- Ephesians 2:1-10;
- Isaiah 6:1-13;
- Psalm 139
Questions for reflection:
- Right now, today, in this moment, at the start of the retreat, who do I say that I am?
- Our faith life is not lived or experienced in a bubble, who are the people in my life who brought me to where I am today?
- Looking at all of creation, who does God say we are?
Song: Who Am I? NEEDTOBREATHE
Click here for more materials to help you reflect on this talk.
In the Fourth Week of the Spiritual Exercises, we focus on the risen Christ. He has passed through the suffering of the cross and entered into his glory. Desiring that others share his joy, he goes about consoling all who were deeply shaken by his death. David ponders several scriptural accounts of resurrection encounters, as well as an imagined reunion between Jesus and Mary. He concludes with a light-hearted story of his own prayer at the empty tomb in Jerusalem.
Verse: I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. (John 15:11)
Spiritual Exercise: Fourth Week
Suggested Scripture: Luke 24:13-35, John 20:19-29, Mark 16:1-8
Questions for reflection:
- When the risen Jesus meets his mother, what does he say? What is Mary’s response?
- Can I allow the risen Christ to touch my deepest pain and bring me complete joy?
- What are the main graces I’ve received in this retreat? Are there any resolutions I feel called to make in light of those graces?
Jesus laid down his life on the cross to save us from sin and death. We may experience different reactions to this greatest act of love. In this Third Week talk, David reflects on several of them. Given the suffering the world has seen these past few years, we may need to grieve before the cross. We could admire the way Jesus patiently suffered, always keeping his focus on others. We might imagine how those close to Jesus felt a spark of hope on Holy Saturday while waiting for the promised third day. No matter what our reaction is, David invites us to trust that God is leading our prayer.
Verse: No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. (John 15:13)
Spiritual Exercise: Third Week
Suggested Scripture: Luke 23:33-49, John 19:16-30
Questions for reflection:
- Is there anything in the world or in my life I need to grieve?
- Am I able, in the midst of my own struggles and suffering, to turn my attention to other people?
- Can I live with hope in the midst of my own sorrow?
With this talk, we move to the Third Week of the Spiritual Exercises. Jesus’ public ministry threatened the power of the religious authorities, and they now move to suppress the threat. It is easy to accompany Jesus in the good times, but it’s much tougher to accompany him in hard times. We do it because he is our friend. David proposes three places for prayer: the table where Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, the Garden of Gethsemane where he prayed in agony, and the jail cell where he spent a long, lonely night.
Verse: I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. (John 15:15)
Spiritual Exercise: Third Week
Suggested Scripture: John 13:1-30, Luke 22:39-46
Questions for reflection:
- Who are those people in my life who I find tough to love? How can I imitate Jesus in loving them unconditionally?
- Am I showing fortitude and courage in my life? Do I opt for the easy way too often?
- If you sit in the jail cell with Jesus, what do you do? What do you say?
Jesus commands his disciples to love as he loved. In order to fulfill this commandment, we need to be intimately familiar with how Jesus loves others. In the final talk of the Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises, David highlights seven episodes where Jesus demonstrates his love. By encountering the sorrowful, the sick, the stranger, the shamed, the sinner, the settler, and even the religious superior, Jesus gives us an example of expansive, inclusive love.
Verse: This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. (John 15:12)
Suggested Scripture: Luke 7:11-17 (the sorrowful), Luke 5:12-16 (the sick), John 4:4-30 (the stranger), Luke 19:1-10 (the shamed), Luke 7:36-50 (the sinner), Luke 7:1-10 (the settler), Luke 7:40-56 (the religious superior)
Questions for reflection:
- Do any of these stories give me new insight into Jesus’ love?
- Who in my life needs my love right now?
Jesus says that he is the true vine. That must mean there are false vines out there as well. In this talk, David introduces the meditation on the Two Standards in the Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises. There are forces in the world that draw us toward serving Christ. But there are also forces that draw us away from serving Christ. Sometimes, it’s tricky to know which is which. Using examples from his life, David describes how he sees Jesus drawing him to service by the path of poverty and humility.
Verse: I am the true vine. (John 15:1)
Spiritual Exercise: The Two Standards
Suggested Scripture: Mark 6:7-13, Matthew 6:24-34
Questions for reflection:
- Where are my riches, honors, and pride?
- Are there any ways, big or little, in which these are drawing me away from the service of Christ?
- Is it possible to see how poverty, contempt, and humility lead to service in the kingdom of God?
- Is there any adjustment or change I want to make in my life to pursue the path of poverty and humility?
With this talk, the retreat transitions to the Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. Jesus Christ came to bring the kingdom of God to us. He calls us to work alongside him in building that kingdom. It’s a long-term project, and it can be challenging to keep motivated for that work. Pope Francis advises us to revisit our memories of the initial excitement of following Jesus. Mary’s use of memory, treasuring everything that happened to her in her heart, provides a model for us.
Verse: It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain. (John 15:16)
Spiritual Exercise: Contemplation on the Kingdom of Jesus Christ
Suggested Scripture: Luke 2:1-19, John 1:35-51, Luke 5:27-32
Questions for reflection:
- Are you at a place in your life where you feel enthusiastic and generous?
- Or do you feel lukewarm and have a complaining spirit?
- Are you excited about the kingdom of God coming into your work, your family, and your community?
- What do you need to do to stoke your passion for answering Jesus’ call?
In this talk, David reflects on the First Week of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Jesus tells us that God the Father prunes the disciples who live as branches on the vine. He does this so that our discipleship is more effective. The pruning process can be painful, but most experiences of true growth are. The key is to let our loving Father be the one doing the pruning, not ourselves. St. Peter provides a model of a pruned branch for all Christians.
"He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit." (John 15:2)
Suggested Scripture: Psalm 51, John 21:1-19
This talk introduces the theme of the retreat, the Vine and the Branches. It explores what St. Ignatius of Loyola meant by “spiritual exercises” and what he hoped the retreatant would get out of doing them. The foundation of the entire retreat is a heartfelt trust in God’s love for us. With examples from Jesus, Elijah, and his own life, David reflects on how God communicates God’s love by speaking to the heart.
Verse: As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. (John 15:9)
Spiritual Exercise: Annotation 1/2
Suggested Scripture: Psalm 23, Psalm 103
Questions for reflection:
- When has God spoken to your heart in silent sounds?
- Who are the people in your life that bring you joy?
- What personal gifts do you have that have enabled you to persevere in those tough moments of life?
Join Deacon David Kiblinger, SJ, for our 3rd annual Online Lenten Retreat. For the past two years, we have presented online retreats during Holy Week. This year, we wanted to offer a retreat that would last throughout the Lenten Season. A new talk will be released each Saturday in Lent and two during Holy Week. The retreat begins on March 5th.
The theme of this year’s retreat is The Vine and the Branches from Chapter 15 of the Gospel of John. Each talk will pull a theme from this discourse between Jesus and his disciples so that we might learn how to follow Jesus more closely.
In this preview episode, David offers a few helpful tips to prepare for the retreat:
1 – Read over the passage on the Vine and the Branches in Chapter 15 of the Gospel of John.
What stands out to you as you read over this verse? What is Jesus trying to tell you?
2 – Familiarize yourself with Ignatian Contemplation.
We’ll be engaging in this form of prayer throughout the retreat. If you’re not as familiar with this type of prayer, check out this article on Ignatian Contemplation from our Jesuit 101 series.
3 – Make a plan.
How much time do you plan to spend in prayer? Can you carve out 20 minutes of silence? Maybe 30 minutes or more? Do you have a space where you can pray with limited distractions? You can choose whatever is most comfortable for you, but it is helpful to make a plan ahead of time so that it becomes part of your routine.
This episode draws us into the Fourth Week of the Exercises and explores a question Jesus asks of all of us: do you love me? We begin this episode in Jesus’ tomb and consider the Paschal path – that path of success, misunderstanding, suffering, death, and redemption that we all experience. We witness Jesus resurrected and allow him to continue transforming our lives through the gifts of joy and consolation that the resurrection offers. And, to conclude our retreat, we engage the Contemplation to Attain Divine Love, a prayer made in gratitude that inspires us to continue our journey of partnership with a good and loving God.
Suggested texts:
- John 21:15-17
- John 20:1-29
- Luke 24:13-35
- Matthew 28: 16-20
- The Suscipe Prayer:
Take Lord, receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, my entire will - all I have and possess. You have given all to me, and I give it all back to you, God - it’s all yours. Do with it what you will. Give me only your love and your grace - that’s enough for me.
Points for reflection:
- Where do you find yourself on the Paschal Path right now?
- When have you found yourself or someone near you in the tomb?
- When Jesus asks you if you love him, how do you respond?
- When you contemplate God’s love for you, what consolation arises? What gifts do you recognize? What do you feel called to give back?
This talk considers Judas’s question to Jesus at the Last Supper: Surely, it is not I, Lord? Given our Holy Week experience, it moves us into the Third Week of the Exercises, and explores the suffering of Jesus on the cross as an essential part of the Paschal mystery of the Christian faith. In facing that suffering, we will also consider the ways we cause suffering, we experience suffering, and we accompany suffering. Using the story of Jesus’ Passion and death, we are invited to feel more deeply the fullness of our relationship with him by walking with him on the way of the Cross.
Suggested texts:
- Matthew 26:20-25
- Luke 22:39-65
- Luke 23:26-49
- John 19:31-42
Points for reflection:
- What lingers with you as you consider the Passion and death of Jesus? What parts of the story resonate? What images come to mind as you accompany Jesus?
- Where have you encountered suffering in your life? How can Jesus be a companion for you in that suffering?
This talk continues our experience of the Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, exploring the public ministry of Jesus and the relationships he formed with the people he served. It focuses on the question, “What do you want?” By engaging in imaginative prayer, we will explore more deeply who the person of Jesus was as a minister, and how in relationship with him we come to receive the abundant grace that God offers us. This episode will also explore a key meditation in the Spiritual Exercises – The Two Standards – and help us consider how we can align ourselves more fully to Jesus and his call – the call to follow him in his way of serving the world.
Suggested texts:
- Mark 10:46-52
- Mark 5:21-42
- Mark 2:1-12
- Mark 6:34-44
- Matthew 14:22-33
- John Monroe on The Two Standards
Points for reflection:
- What do you truly desire in your life? How do you invite God to share in that desire?
- Who is Jesus as a minister? How did he treat the people who came to him for help? And, who in my life best exemplifies Jesus?
- In what ways am I deepening my friendship with Jesus?
- In what ways do I struggle to follow the way of Jesus?
This episode considers the question, “How can this be?” It hearkens Mary’s response to the angel Gabriel and begins our entry into the Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. In considering the Incarnation, the Nativity, and what are sometimes called the ‘Hidden Years’ of Jesus’ life, we are invited to consider how it can be that God chooses to participate fully in the human experience, and how we can be in relationship with God as a result.
Suggested texts:
- Luke 1:26-38
- Luke 2:1-14
- Luke 2:41-52
- Denise Levertov – “Annunciation”
Points for reflection:
- What unexpected news have you gotten in your life? How have you been able to find God at work in that news?
- When you consider the Nativity of the Lord, what images come to mind? How do you imagine the scene of the birth of Jesus?
- What has happened in the course of your whole life? Given your own experience, what might Jesus’ first thirty years of living been like?
This talk explores the second question God asks humanity in the sacred scriptures: who told you that? It considers the First Week of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola, which centers around God’s boundless love for us. It invites us to consider sin, and the ways that God’s love and mercy help us to move beyond our sinfulness and into greater freedom.
Suggested texts:
- Psalm 51
- Genesis 3:10-13
- John 8:1-11
- Romans 7:13-23
Points for reflection:
- In what ways do you miss the mark regarding how you want to live?
- Who or what supply the voices in your life that lead you away from God?
- How have you felt God’s love and mercy present to you, even in the midst of difficulty and struggle?
- What tools do you have that help you carry on in the face of hardship and the recognition of sin?
This first talk explores a foundational question in the spiritual life: where are you? It serves as an introduction to the broad theme of this retreat, which is framed around asking six key questions in the spiritual life. It includes a brief overview of the life of St. Ignatius, as well as an introduction to the retreat’s host, Eric Immel, SJ. Finally, it presents a key to Ignatian spirituality: the ‘First Principle and Foundation.’
Suggested texts:
- Psalm 139
- Genesis 3:1-10
- John 1:1-5
- The First Principle and Foundation:God created human beings to praise, reverence, and serve God, and by doing this, to save their souls. God created all other things on the face of the earth to help fulfill this purpose. From this, it follows that we are to use the things of this world only to the extent that they help us to this end, and we ought to rid ourselves of the things of this world to the extent that they get in the way of this end. For this it is necessary to make ourselves indifferent to all created things as much as we are able, so that we do not necessarily want health rather than sickness, riches rather than poverty, honor rather than dishonor, a long rather than a short life, and so in all the rest, so that we ultimately desire and choose only what is most conducive for us to the end for which God created us.
Points for reflection:
- Where are you? Where do you find yourself on your spiritual journey these days?
- How would you describe the goal and purpose of your life? Where are you in honoring that goal and purpose?
- In what ways do you struggle to choose goodness and spiritual freedom? Where are you in moving beyond that struggle? Where do you feel called to change for the better?
Join Eric Immel, SJ, for a week-long online retreat starting on Monday, March 29 and lasting throughout Holy Week. In this retreat we'll explore themes of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola as we prepare to celebrate the Resurrection at Easter.
Episodes will be available daily in both video and podcast format. You can find the podcast in this feed and the videos are available on our website (www.theJesuitPost.org) and our YouTube Channel (@theJesuitPost). Join us!
God never stops laboring for us and for our world, laboring for justice, reconciliation, and the end of racism. We clearly see this in the awakening that has spread throughout the world after the “lynching” of George Floyd. At the end of the Fourth Week of the Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius invites us to respond in gratitude to God’s unceasing love for us. In the last talk of our Jesuit Antiracism Retreat, Michael Bachmeier explains how this gratitude manifests in our willingness to surrender ourselves and join the labors of God through the marginalized.
Verses for Prayer:
Matthew 28:16-20 - The Great Commission
Reflection Questions:
- How can I be a better ally? Whose voices do I need to listen to? Do I trust the experiences of people from BIPOC communities?
- What am I going to do differently after this retreat?
- How is God calling me to be a co-laborer in the fight against racism?
- Imagine Jesus missioning you from this retreat. Is there something specific Jesus is sending you to do?
The Eucharist, which is the source and summit of our faith, completely defies the logic of racism. Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, Jesus’s breaking of the bread impulses us toward our community with renewed hope and consolation. Peter Bell reflects on letting the Body of Christ renew our antiracist commitment to one another.
Verses for Prayer: Luke 24:13-35 - The Walk to Emmaus
Reflection Questions:
- How do I see myself moving from the muck and despair into action?
- How might contemplating the Eucharist help me in my antiracist journey?
- What do I need to give thanks for over the course of this retreat, what truth have my eyes been opened to?
- Do I, like the disciples, need help to see Jesus at work in the world, and if so, how might I seek that help and be open to it?
Where is the Risen Lord in the racism we’ve been confronting for so long? Jesus conquered sin and death as He rose from the dead. But his wounds were still there when He showed up to his disciples. In the beginning of the fourth week, Eric Couto reminds us that our hope and joy as Christians comes not from naivete, but from our faith that Jesus walks with us, as we transform the painful realities of our world.
Verses for Prayer:
Matthew 28 - The Resurrection of Jesus
Reflection Questions:
- What does the message of the Resurrection mean for you?
- What gives you hope and consolation about this mission towards antiracism?
- Where do you find the Risen Lord consoling you?
Grieving with others is not the only way we commit to solidarity. Becoming aware of one’s participation in the oppression of others, is another way of opening the eyes of the heart and deciding to be responsible. Brian Engelhart, SJ, describes the apathy White people often exercise when dealing with the realities of racism that affect Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), and finishes the third week of our “Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat” with one contemporary example, as well as with an invitation to get rid of indifference.
Verses for Prayer:
Matthew 26:17-27:56 - The Passion of Jesus According to Matthew
Reflection Questions:
- What is the pain Jesus feels at this stage of the Passion?
- Am I staying with Jesus in his suffering, or am I looking for ways to escape and reduce my own pain?
- What do I feel as I realize that Jesus is suffering on account of my sins?
- How does my reaction to Jesus’ Passion compare with my reaction to the sufferings of BIPOC today? Can I recognize that pain, sit with it, and acknowledge my role in it?
Some realities in life can only be known through tears. The participation of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) members in antiracism is not a hobby or an optional venture: it's a matter of survival. They do not have the luxury that White people have to retire from the conversation of racism and flee from its painful realities. Matt Briand, SJ, invites us to put aside our fear to weep with those who weep because of racism, for true Christian love suffers along the beloved, and commits to justice.
Questions and Verses for Prayer:
- Ask God for this grace that St. Ignatius encourages for the Third Week of the Spiritual Exercises: “ask [God] for grief with Christ in grief, anguish with Christ in anguish, tears and interior pain at such great pain which Christ suffered for me.”
- Read John 19:16-30 two or three times.
- Meditate on the scene by offering your imagination to God. Be patient and let God reveal the scene to you. Engage your senses. Imagine standing with Mary, Mary Magdalene and John. What do you see? What do you hear? What do you feel?
- After contemplating the scene, have a conversation with Jesus. Ask him, “Lord, how are you still suffering in the bodies of black people, indigenous people, and other people of color? And how am I to love those in my own community or city and resist the structures and forces that cause them to suffer?”
Feeling grief for the suffering of others is one of the first steps toward a commitment to serve them. It helps us to have a greater sense of urgency for justice, as well as a deeper understanding of what is at stake. When we accompany those who suffer from racism in their mourning, we walk with our neighbors and bear witness to our Christian vocation. River Simpson, SJ, introduces us to the third week of our “Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat,” and invites us to remain faithfully present to the agonizing Jesus, through our accompaniment of the victims of racism.
Reflection Questions:
- How do I handle disappointment, feelings of hopelessness amidst great suffering and specifically as it relates to racism? Where or to whom do I turn for consolation during these moments?
- What does it mean to stand in witness to another’s pain, another’s suffering, particularly within the context of racial injustice? Moreover, what does it mean to grieve?
- How can I credibly and appropriately lament another’s suffering, perhaps, even my own? What feelings do these reflections rouse in me?
Verses for prayer:
Mark 14:32-42 - The agony of Jesus (The episode says Mark 13, but it is actually Mark 14. Sorry for any confusion.)
Humility plays a vital role in anti-racism work. Intellectual and moral humility allows individuals to admit complicity in a culture of racism and commit themselves to the ongoing struggle of anti-racism. By looking at the Call of Simon Peter, contemplating the story of Martha and Mary, and meditating on what it means to be “childlike,” Sullivan McCormick, SJ, invites us to reflect on where in our lives we might need more humility as anti-racists.
Reflection verses and questions:
- Where do I need more humility (intellectual and/or moral) in my life as an anti-racist?
Call of Simon the Fisherman (Luke 5: 1-11)
- How is Peter a model for moral humility in anti-racism work?
- How can I learn from Peter?
The Praise of the Father (Matthew 11: 25-27)
- What does it mean to be a “childlike” anti-racist?
Martha and Mary (Luke 10: 38-42)
- How can I look to Mary as a model of intellectual humility in anti-racism work?
When I speak about racism, am I generally more worried about how white people will feel, react, or think of me than I am about how people of color will?
Does my Church, my workplace, my classroom consider mainly the sensitives, comfort and concerns of white people?
Billy Critchley-Menor, SJ, points the antiracism conversation in the right direction when he explains that it is about White people being held accountable to People of Color. White supremacy has shaped society around the accountability of White people. Antiracism refocuses our attention so we are held accountable by the oppressed in our society; those in whom Jesus lives according to the Gospels.
Although Solidarity is one of the values of Catholic Social Teaching, it is easily forgotten that it is not just a feeling of sympathy with those who suffer. Solidarity is a constant effort to create a society centered on equity and justice. Kevin Kuehl, SJ, gives us four characteristics of true solidarity and asks us to consider with whom do we practice solidarity in our following of Jesus: with those who are fighting for justice or with those who are perpetuating oppression?
Reflection texts:
- Philippians 2:1-11
- Luke 10: 25-37
- Two Standards Meditation from the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius (https://www.ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-prayer/the-spiritual-exercises/an-ignatian-prayer-adventure/week-5/) Go to Day 4
Race is a social construct originally framed to create hard boundaries that could not be crossed by people of different skin color and for the purpose of segregation. “Black”, Indigenous, and “People of Color” (BIPOC) are still discriminated against and abused because of the color of their skin. Although race as a social construct was abusively imposed as a biological determinant of skin color, our society must not fall into the trap of colorblindness as it prevents one from seeing the suffering of “BIPOC” members. Fr. Armel Setubi, SJ, asks us to imagine a society without race, while warning us about the common mistake of thinking that colorblindness is the solution to racism.
Inspired by St. Ignatius, Armel asks us to ponder God’s call to be anti-racist with three important questions: what have we done to fight the sin of racism, what are we doing now, and what will we do in the future.
Link to the NYT article by Nikole Hannah-Jones referenced in the video: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/06/24/magazine/reparations-slavery.html?auth=login-google
Racism is not just violence and big displays of oppression. It manifests in everyday situations and in the mundanity of our lives. Jorge Roque shares some instances where the idea of white superiority affects how White people are racist toward BIPOC members in a covert and harming way. Deciding to work against these harming habits requires conversion. Jorge asks to allow ourselves to be scandalized and to pray with Jesus’s lament over Jerusalem.
Racism manifests itself as white supremacy in the United States. Ángel Flores Fontánez introduces these and other concepts, summarizes the history of white supremacy, and identifies white fragility as a great obstacle to defeat the sin of racism. He also invites us to imitate Jesus in his ability to accept correction and convert from wrong ways.
Reflection questions:
- How have you contributed to White Supremacy?
- How has White Privilege made your life easier in comparison with BIPOC members?
- Is White Fragility preventing you from growth? How so?
Bible verses for reflection:
- Mark 7: 24-30
- Luke 10: 25-37
For this 2nd Season of "Seeking God: A Jesuit Retreat," the Jesuit Post presents “Know Justice, Know Peace: A Jesuit Antiracism Retreat.” In this trailer episode, Ángel Flores Fontánez introduces you to this four-week retreat which seeks to assist Christians in their growth as antiracist followers of Jesus, based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It will consist of twelve short talks published on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday starting on August 3, 2020.
The grace of the Fourth Week is to enter into the joy and consolation of Jesus as he savors the glory of the Resurrection. The episode reflects on the reactions of the disciples of Jesus to his death: pain and heartbreak, fear and anguish, doubt and uncertainty, and disappointment. The Resurrected Jesus takes on the role of “consoler,” and brings joy and consolation to all his disciples in the resurrection accounts. The episode concludes with the Contemplation on Divine Love. We pray for the grace of intimate knowledge of all the goods which God lovingly shares with us, that filled with gratitude, we might love and serve the Lord. This final contemplation inspires us to set off anew on our journey of faith at the conclusion of this retreat experience.
Suggested texts:
- John 20:1-29
- John 21:1-19
- Luke 24:13-35
- John 15:1-17
- Matthew 28:16-20
Points for Reflection: Enter into the joy and consolation of the Resurrection. Contemplate God’s love, and be filled with gratitude, so as to love and serve the Lord.
- What are the experiences of new life that stand out to you in your life?
- When has Jesus been a consoler for you? When has he brought you joy and consolation?
- What gifts has God given the world? What gifts has God given you? Say “thanks.”
- How can you give back to God, not just with words, but in action? How can you give back to God, who has given you everything?
Suscipe Prayer:
Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will- all that I have and call my own. You have given it all to me. To you, Lord, I return it. Everything is yours; do with it what you will. Give me only your love and your grace. That is enough for me.
The grace of the Third Week is to have sorrow and compassion for Jesus, to suffer with him because he goes to his passion for us. This episode begins by discussing the Paschal Path, which is where the Lord is leading us, and a path that all of us will have to walk in this life. It includes success, misunderstanding, suffering, death and loss, waiting in suspense, and new life. Jesus modeled this path for us, and we other examples in our lives of people who have modeled it for us too. When we recognize where we are on the Paschal Path, we recognize how we are in solidarity with Jesus. This episode ends by shifting the focus to Jesus on the cross. St. Ignatius encourages us in the Third Week to pause before the cross and spend time there, to place ourselves with Jesus on the cross.
Suggested texts:
- Matthew 16:24-28
- Matthew 27:33-56
- Mark 15:22-41
- Luke 23:33-49
- John 19:16-37
- Or any of the full Passion accounts from the Gospels
Paschal Path: Success – Misunderstanding/Rejection – Suffering – Death/Loss – Waiting – New Life.
Points for Reflection: Reflect on where you are on the Paschal Path and spend time with Jesus on the cross.
- Where do you find yourself on the Paschal Path right now?
- Who has modeled the Paschal Path for you?
- Use your imagination or sit in front of a crucifix. What does it look like? How does it make you feel?
The Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises is split into two episodes. This second one focuses on how we can stay on the path to God on our journey of faith. The episode begins by outlining the discernment of spirits as a way to be attentive to the different spirits that pull us in one direction or another. Along with sharing lessons from St. Ignatius’s story, this episode offers concrete methods to help us respond to the urgings of the good spirit in our lives and resist the movements of the false spirit. Later in the episode, it shifts to friendship, beginning with our friendship with Jesus. An important component of the Second Week is praying over the life of Jesus and asking for the grace to know him more intimately, to love him more devotedly, and to follow him more completely. The technique of Ignatian Contemplation is introduced, which can help when praying with Gospel stories of Jesus. The episode also reflects on the many friends in faith who help inspire us and guide us, including friends of Jesus in the Scriptures, the Communion of Saints, and our own family and friends.
Suggested texts:
- 1 Thessalonians 5:14-22
- Psalm 34
- Luke 10:29-37
- Matthew 6:19-21
Points for Reflection: Reflect on the movements of the good spirit and the false spirit in your own life, and on friendships that help you stay on the path to God.
- How does the false spirit try to lead you astray in sneaky and subtle ways?
- Where do you most clearly see the good spirit at work in your life? How are you responding?
- How are you deepening your friendship with Jesus?
- Who are the friends in faith that inspire you and helps you stay on the path to God? Reflect on friends of Jesus in the Gospels, your favorite Saints, and friends and family.
3 Methods of Discernment: (1) pros and cons list, (2) imagine giving advice to a friend (3) imagine reflecting back from some time in the future.
The Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises is split into two episodes. This first one focuses on why we walk this particular path on our journey of faith, and not another. It begins with the Meditation on the Incarnation, and how God looks on the world with love and enters into it. Similarly, God enters into the messiness of our lives and enters into it. We constantly find evidence of God at work in our lives. Then this episode moves on to the Call of the King, a meditation in which we reflect on the compelling call of the voice of Jesus in our lives. Lastly, this episode presents the Meditation on the Two Standards, which sets up the competing calls in our life to “riches, honor, and pride,” or to “poverty, dishonor, and humility.”
Suggested texts:
- John 1:35-45
- Luke 5:1-11
- Matthew 9:9-13
- Matthew 4:1-11
Points for Reflection: Reflect on God’s activity in your life and the different voices that call out to you.
- Meditation on the Incarnation: How does God enter into the messiness of your life? Where do you find evidence of God at work? In the silence of prayer? In the busyness of your everyday life?
- Call of the King: Imagine a worldly leader, and then imagine Jesus. Where do you hear the voice of Jesus in your life? Where is Jesus calling you?
- Two Standards: When are you tempted to pursue riches, honor, and pride in an unhealthy way? How is Jesus inviting you to deepen in poverty, dishonor, and humility?
This episode is titled “The First Week: Obstacles on Our Journey of Faith.” The grace of the First Week of the Spiritual Exercises is to feel a deep and intense sorrow for my sins, shame and confusion that my sinfulness is an obstacle between myself and God. This episode will focus on four primary types of obstacles faced on our journey of faith: sin, false idols, attachments, and self-doubt. Reflecting on the obstacles that we face always has to be framed within the context of God’s infinite love and mercy. We are sinners, loved by God. So, this episode also includes praying for the grace to experience the profound joy of being forgiven by God.
Suggested texts:
- John 8:1-11
- Luke 18:9-14
- Matthew 6:19-21
- Romans 7:13-23
- Psalm 51
Points for Reflection: Reflect on the obstacles on your journey of faith.
- Sin: What leads you to turn away from God and go the wrong way?
- False idols: What distracts you on your journey and causes you to lose your focus on God?
- Attachments: What are the things that you cling to that weigh you down?
- Self-doubt: Are you facing a daunting obstacle right now? Can you offer that up to Jesus?
This episode is titled “Introduction to the Journey of Faith.” It includes an introduction to the Spiritual Exercises and the guiding theme of this retreat, which is framed around our faith as a journey. The host, Brian Strassburger, will introduce himself, and will share from the life of St. Ignatius of Loyola and his conversion. This episode will also present a key bedrock of Ignatian spirituality called the “First Principle and Foundation.”
Suggested texts: Psalm 139 – Psalm 23 – Isaiah 55 – First Principle & Foundation – Luke 18:18-23
First Principle and Foundation:
God created human beings to praise, reverence, and serve God, and by doing this, to save their souls. God created all other things on the face of the earth to help fulfill this purpose. From this, it follows that we are to use the things of this world only to the extent that they help us to this end, and we ought to rid ourselves of the things of this world to the extent that they get in the way of this end. For this it is necessary to make ourselves indifferent to all created things as much as we are able, so that we do not necessarily want health rather than sickness, riches rather than poverty, honor rather than dishonor, a long rather than a short life, and so in all the rest, so that we ultimately desire and choose only what is most conducive for us to the end for which God created us.
Points for Reflection: Reflect on your journey of faith, your freedom, and holy Christian indifference.
- Do you ever make yourself the center of the universe? How might God be reminding you that you are a supporting actor?
- How do you exercise the freedom to choose the good? When do you struggle to choose the good?
- What are the things in your life that are out of your control? How are you growing in holy Christian indifference as you approach those things?
The Jesuit Post is happy to bring you an Ignatian preached retreat in podcast form. This introductory episode will explain the format of the retreat. We will begin on Monday, April 6 and a new episode will come out each day of Holy Week. Join us to listen, reflect, and pray.