"Saint Ignatius of Loyola"

We Celebrate today the Feast of one of the Great Masters of Spirituality. The Entire Thirty Day Retreat that He Formulated, is Complely Dedicated to Growth in Divine Love.

The path is simple, there are Four Stages, that if applied in our Daily Examination of Conscience and Prayer, will most certainly be a positive influence in our progression on our Pilgrimage toward our Eternal Home.

The First Week, is Dedicated to the Recognition that I AM A SINNER, and that I NEED REDEMPTION. This Must be The Foundation of what follows, for without an Honest reflection as to Who and What I am before God, there is no hope for True Progress in the Spiritual Life.

This can be quite Difficult, only because The Truth of one's own wickedness can seem to be a burden too heavy to bear, and it is the time during the Exercizes that, faced with the evil one may find within themselves, some run away, but if they would only gather the Courage to go on, they will find that the Second week instills within the Soul a more Profound Gratitude and Love for what Our Saviour Offers to each and every one us, for,

The Second Week, focuses on The Life of Christ and His Message of Forgiveness and Mercy, as well as His Call to The Attainment of Perfect Love. By studying His Incarnation in The Womb of His Mother Mary, all the way to His Last Supper, we begin to Really Know This GOD MADE MAN, and thus are able to Fall more Deeply in Love with Him.

The Third Week Centers on Our Lord's Passion and Death, and the Key is that He did not Embrace His Passion for "The Collective," but for "ME," Not Humanity as a whole, but for each Individual Soul, as if You were the ONLY Person He Ever Created. This Week therefore, Makes clear to the Heart and Mind that Salvation is PERSONAL, and Requires a Personal Response.

And Finally, The Fourth week is Dedicated to The Resurrection. This is the Week of Hope and Preparation in order to return to the outside world. It is during this time that usually the Gift of Tears is given, tears of Sorrow, mingled with Gratitude and Joy. The shortest of the Weeks, for Ignatius knows, that if one has Applied themselves faithfully to what has gone before, the Retreatant should, by this time, be Soaring to the Heights of Contemplative Love.

God Bless You