Contemplation

of the Annunciation

See and consider the Three

Divine Persons seated on the

throne of Divine Majesty.

See our Lady and the angel

saluting her.

Hear what the Divine Per-

sons say, that is: “Let us

work the redemption of the

human race.”

Listen to what the angel and

Our Lady say.

Consider what the Divine

Persons do, namely, work

the most holy Incarnation.

Consider how the Angel

carries out his office of am-

bassador, and how our Lady

humbles herself, and offers

thanks to the Divine Majesty

Beg for the grace to follow

and imitate more closely our

Lord, who has just become

man for me.

St. Ignatius

The Spiritual Exercises

The season of Advent marks

the beginning of our liturgical

New Year. It is marked by a

spirit of expectation, anticipa-

tion, preparation and longing.

There is a yearning for deliver-

ance from the evils of this

world. The word Advent

means ―coming‖ or ―arrival,‖

The focus of the entire season

is the celebration of the birth of

Jesus the Christ, God becoming

Flesh and the anticipation of

the return of Christ in his Sec-

ond Advent. Advent also sym-

bolizes the spiritual journey of

each of us as individuals and

the Church as we affirm that

Christ has come, is coming and

will come again in power. This

acknowledgement gives us a

basis for a Kingdom ethics for

holy living, stemming from a

profound sense that we live

―between the times‖ and are

called to be faithful stewards of

what God entrusted to us as His

people.

In order for us to receive the

coming of Christ, John the

Baptist invites us to get ready

by coming out into the wilder-

ness. Wilderness is not sim-

ply a geographical concept in

the Scriptures. Wilderness

represents an aspect of relation-

ship. Wilderness is the place

where the people of God get

back in touch with God. We

get caught in a culture that

measures success by the num-

ber of presents under the tree

and how big the light and orna-

ment display is outside the

windows of our houses. So to

get ready for the coming of

Christ I need to go out into the

desert, step away from all my

distractions, my expectations,

my own agenda and let go of

what is supposed to happen and

how I am supposed to feel or

believe. There has to be an

emptying, a letting go. I have

to be empty to receive; I cannot

receive when I am full of my-

self. A journey into the wilder-

ness will change how I cele-

brate Christmas. It will be a

change for the better that will

affect how I live life. I can

become counter -cultural,

choosing the calm and love of

His Presence over the noise of

the rat race; valuing relation-

ships over money, position or

power; taking the attitude of a

servant over striving to be in

control. Christ is coming so let

us step away from temptation

and distractions and focus on

receiving Him

To all our friends and benefac-

tors, those we serve and those

who serve us, we wish you the

love and peace of His presence

in this holy Season.

Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!

From the Director

Ignatian Spirituality Centre of Montreal Winter 2006

Magis

Inside this issue:

Jesuit Guidelines For Spiritual

Directors

2

Ignatian Centre News 3

Book Review: The Dis-cernment of Spirits

Conferences and

Seminars

4

A Swim in the Deep End

Praying with Scripture

5

Missioning Day

Day of Reflection for Volunteers

6

Tips from Ignatius

New Books in Our Library

7

Winter-Spring 2006 Conference and

Mini-course

8

Magis:

I desire and choose

that which is more

conducive to the

end for which I

have been created.

Limited spaces available!

William Barry, sj Spirituality and Psychology Weekend Seminar

Richard Rohr, ofm Spirituality for the Two

Halves of Life Conference

And

Trinitarian Spirituality and

the Guidance of Souls Weekend seminar

See pages 4 and 8

for details.

Guiding Standards for Those Who Give the Spiritual Exercises

1. Personal Spiritual

Formation Those who would give

The Exercises to others will:

Have completed the full four ―weeks‖ of the Spiritual Exer-cises under annotation 19 or 20 (testified to by the director);

Be in personal spiritual direction and making an annual retreat for at least two years;

Have discerned a call to this min-istry;

Be a fully initiated Roman Catho-lic in good standing for at least three years or a similarly invested member of another Christian denomination who is respectful of, and comfortable with, Roman Catholicism.

2. Intellectual Formation Those who would give

The Exercises to others will have:

Received basic instruction on the structure and dynamics of The Exercises;

Familiarity with the ―text‖ of The Exercises;

A basic understanding of the study of Sacred Scripture, espe-cially of the New Testament;

A basic understanding of Theol-ogy (especially Theology of the Trinity, of Christ, of Salvation, of morality, and of the Church).

3. Professional Preparation Those who would give

The Exercises to others will have:

one-on-one mentoring2 and su-pervision3 by an experienced director through two retreats for those who give individually di-rected retreats;

mentoring by an experienced preacher for at least two retreats, for those who give conference retreats;

basic pastoral counselling skills;

training in preaching for those who give conference retreats.

Note: A person who does not have all the formal training re-quired but has been competently practicing in this field for some years can be recognized as having equivalent competence, knowl-edge and experience.

4. Continuing

Education/Formation Those who would give

The Exercises to others will:

participate annually in a confer-ence, formal course, workshop, or other structured program on spiri-tual ministry;

do regular reading in spirituality and religion;

maintain on-going supervision4 (one-on-one, group, peer, or with the retreat director);

make a personal annual retreat;

continue to receive spiritual di-rection.

5. The Practice of Giving the Exercises Those who give

The Exercises to others will:

observe standard professional boundaries with regard to rela-tionships, setting, place, content, etc,

strictly observe confidentiality (as limited by mandated reporting laws); 6

consult and refer 7 when entering areas of unfamiliarity or non-competence (e.g. emotional or psychological disorder);

be faithful to the content of Igna-tius‘ Spiritual Exercises regularly reviewing the ―annotations‖ and ―rules‖;

evaluate each retreat carefully.

* * *

Notes

1 This document distinguishes the terms ―application‖ and ―adaptation‖

according to the vocabulary of the

Spiritual Exercises. ―Application‖ refers to the act whereby an exercitant

performs one or more of the specific

exercises as intended in Ignatius‘ text.

―Adaptation‖ refers to the practice of

modifying one or more of the exercises

or movements of the Exercises to fit the particular circumstances or capa-

bilities of the exercitant. Annotation 18

defines and encourages ―adaptation.‖

Jesuit Guidelines for Spiritual Directors

Page 2 Magis

THE JESUIT MINISTRY OF

THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES

IN THE USA & ENGLISH

SPEAKING CANADA

APRIL 19, 2005

From the Jesuit provincials of the

United States and Upper Canada

We, the Jesuit provincials of the United States Assistancy together with the Jesuit provincial of Upper Canada, recognized that the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius Loyola are a gift of the Holy Spirit to the whole Church… We realize that the Society of Jesus bears a special re-sponsibility to preserve this gift and promote its authentic use in its many applications and adaptations1 Care for and promotion of the Spiritual Exercises are collaborative efforts involving Jesuits and many others. The leadership, staffing, and govern-ance of Jesuit affiliated apostolic works, whether spirituality centres or educational institutions, are ac-complished by lay persons, Jesuits, clergy, and religious working to-gether.

We expect that Jesuit formation will include an understanding of the structure and dynamics of the Spiri-tual Exercises and the preparation to give them in one or more modalities. In addition, efforts must be made to assist our partners in ministry with appropriate formation in the Spiri-tual Exercises.

We encourage Jesuit sponsored ministries to collaborate with other associations engaged in the ministry of the Exercises, especially the Jes-uit inspired networks of lay persons who give the Spiritual Exercises in daily life. As far as possible, the Society of Jesus seeks to offer guid-ance, training, and support for these associations. The Jesuit Conference shall promote regular conferences and workshops on Ignatian spiritual-ity in general and on the adaptation and the application of the Spiritual Exercises in particular.

Finally, we ask those Jesuits and Jesuit affiliated works whose minis-try is giving the Spiritual Exercises to adopt the following guiding stan-dards.

2 ―Mentoring‖ is understood as the process whereby an experi-

enced retreat director coaches,

instructs, and guides a neo-

phyte director.

3 ―Supervision‖ is here used in

the sense the word is generally

used in the helping professions. It refers to a practice whereby

the retreat director reflects on

and processes with another professional his/her own inte-

rior experience while giving a

retreat.

4 See note 3 above.

5 The Jesuit Conference recom-

mends the Spiritual Directors

International Guidelines for

Ethical Conduct.

6 Nothing learned from the

directee may be disclosed to another without the directee‘s

permission. The director must

inform the directee that he or she (the director) is being su-

pervised and will make every effort to protect the directee‘s

identity.

7 When dealing with psycho-logical or emotional issues that

impair a directee‘s judgment

(e.g., trauma or addiction), the director may, with permission,

consult a professional or rec-

ommend that the directee see a

clinician or specialist.

“Whoever wishes

to help others

should first attend

to themselves,

enkindling in them-

selves the charity

they wish to

enkindle in

their neighbour.”

Ignatius

Ignatian Centre News

Page 3

A good part of the meeting was

about looking at how we can

increase the awareness of Spiritual

Exercises. We came up with a

plan to create a web site; consoli-

date our materials; look at con-

crete possibilities and times for

sharing resources among various

centres; and work on moving the

Spiritual Exercises ―out of the

Box‖ to more lay people.

We reviewed the Document from

the Jesuit provincials of the US

and Upper Canada, which sets

standards for all Jesuit retreat

Centers and for the training

of Spiritual Directors. (See a

selection from this document on

the previous page.)

To give the Exercises is not just to

move people through a text. A

deeper understanding of the mean-

ing of the text is fundamental to

the experience. However, one

person commented: ―If a spiritual

director‘s approach is instrumen-

tal, the Spirit may be impeded.

There may be many who would

like more mapped out retreat ex-

perience simply because there‘s

less challenge, less demand to

respond to the Spirit and less

chance of ―falling into the hands

of the Living God.‖ We should

note the early Society who moved

outward with fervor, strong in the

conviction that they could change

the world. The Holy Spirit is the

dynamic principle of all we do

with the Spiritual Exercises. We

need to know the rules but be

formed by the Spirit. We need to

remember that the real director is

the Holy Spirit. We are simply the

instrument.

Continuing Education:

Seminars,

Conferences

and Mini-

courses

We also had a eve-

ning with Fr Max

Oliva sj on Spirituality in the

Workplace co-hosted by Faith

Experience Ministries. Fr Max

also led our directors retreat on the

Beatitudes at Villa St Martin.

Our commitment to providing

We have experienced a very busy

6 months at the Centre, and all of

the activity is a sign of the Lord‘s

continued blessing upon our

ministry in the Montreal area.

Visitors to the

Centre Many visitors come to

the centre to see how

we work, as well as to

share their way of proceed-

ing. We had a visit from Wendy

Miller an assistant Professor

of Spiritual Formation at the

Eastern Mennonite University in

Va. USA. We had a wonderful

exchange on spiritual direction

and resources. we gave her The

Prayer Companions‘ Handbook

and she will be sending us a book

titled Jesus –Spiritual Director.

Rosemary Moffat from Cornwall,

England, spent a day with us

exploring our programs and how

we proceed. She has the support

of her bishop in Cornwall to

begin setting up a centre there

and start training directors. She

received the 9-month training

program at Loyola House in

Guelph. She also spent 6 weeks

at Boston College taking a course

in Spiritual Direction and Art.

We ask you to remember her in

your prayers as she begins to set

up a centre to give the Exercises.

We were also visited by

Fr. George Leach sj who is be-

ginning to set up a centre in Hali-

fax. We had a wonderful ex-

change with him. He shared how

they work in the Maritimes and

hopefully took some useful infor-

mation back to N.S. with him.

Reflecting on

the Ministry of

Spiritual

Direction I was in Toronto at

the Spiritual Exercises Commis-

sion meeting Sept 15-16. The

Commission is made up of peo-

ple in the apostolate of giving the

Spiritual Exercises throughout

Canada. Three lay women, as

well as Jesuits, are part of this

commission.

continuing education for spiritual

directors continues to unfold.

Coming up in the spring we are

looking forward to Spirituality

and Psychology, a weekend semi-

nar to be given by Fr William

Barry sj. Fr Barry has written

numerous books, including Find-

ing God in All Things.

Our last speaker is Fr Richard

Rohr a Franciscan of the New

Mexican Province. He lives in a

Franciscan community in New

Mexico performing local pastoral

work, preaching and teaching

around the world. He considers

the proclamation of the Gospel of

Jesus to be his primary call and

uses many different platforms to

communicate this message. Fr.

Richard‘s latest book is Every-

thing Belongs: The Gift of Con-

templative Prayer. He will be

with us for three evenings. The first

two evenings are on Trinitarian

Spirituality and the Guidance of

Souls and the last evening is on

Spirituality for the Two Halves of

Life. (See the announcement be-

low.)

We are also offering a Mini-Course

on Spiritual Accompaniment of the

Sick and Dying. This course will

be given by Don Pare, PhD and it

begins on March 2. This course

would be good for anyone who

visits the sick or is in pastoral

work.

A New Look

for

the Centre Over the summer

we have created a

whole new office. Four teenagers

volunteered and removed all the

old carpeting and painted all the

office and hall area. Complete new

office furniture was donated, floors

were sanded and varathaned.

Bathrooms and offices on the first

and second floors were repaired

and renovated. New self-locking

locks were added to the side and

front doors to increase security.

New Technology

at the Centre

A network server for the computers

was installed in the library. This was

also donated so we are very fortunate

and grateful for all this generosity.

The server will help us to coordinate

our administrative tasks more effi-

ciently.

All the Blessings of the

Season to our generous

supporters—

To those who made donations and;

To the young people who gave

their time and effort to make our

Centre a beautiful place.

Thank you!

By Reta Desfosses

Thank You!

to our

volunteer

paint

crew!

Corey

Ashley

Mike

Ceejay

To people who are unfamiliar with

what is called ‗the discernment of

spirits‘ it is often imagined as some

esoteric doctrine or practice having

more to do with remote mystical

phenomena than with the spiritual

experience of ordinary faithful

Christians. But with the rise of the

charismatic movement after Vati-

can II we have seen a renewed

awareness of the relevance of spiri-

tual discernment in everyday life,

and attempts have been made by

various religious authors to draw

this practice back into mainstream

spirituality where it surely belongs.

Those who have had the opportu-

nity to attend weekend seminars

conducted over the last few years

by Fr. Gallagher will easily recog-

nize in this new book his gentle,

patient, and thorough teaching style

as he elucidates step by step the

‗Rules for the Discernment of Spir-

its‘ of St. Ignatius. Each of the

fourteen rules of the ‗First Week‘

rules is a subject of a separate

chapter and is discussed in depth

(the author hopes soon to publish a

book on the ‗Second Week‘ rules.)

This is not a technical book for

specialists or scholars, but one

aimed at making this venerable set

of ‗rules‘ a coherent and helpful

instrument for anyone who is seek-

ing to grow spiritually. It seeks to

combine both accessibility and

completeness. It makes ample use

of examples drawn from actual

spiritual experience, illustrative

quotations, skilful exposition of the

material, and incisive commentary

to make the rather bare and laconic

language of St. Ignatius come alive.

This book would be a very effec-

tive study tool in helping to make

the practice of spiritual discern-

ment both understandable and ac-

cessible to people in a parish com-

munity. Perhaps a future revision

would include pertinent study

questions at the end of each

chapter that would facilitate this

kind of shared study.

I highly recommend The Dis-

cernment of Spirits both

for students of the Spiritual Ex-

ercises of St. Ignatius and for

those who simply are looking for

wise and helpful spiritual

guidance to apply to their

daily lives.

Book Reviews

Page 4 Magis

Conferences and

Weekend Seminars

For Spiritual Directors

or Pastoral Workers

2005-06

Spirituality and

Psychology This weekend seminar explores

the inter-relationship between

spirituality and psychology.

Especially appropriate for spiri-

tual directors and those in-

volved in pastoral counseling

or listening relationships. Facilitator:

Fr. William Barry, sj Date: February 25-27, 2006

Cost: $150 for the weekend

The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide

For Everyday Living By Timothy M. Gallagher, omv,

Reviewed by: Paul Empsall

(Crossroad, N.Y., 2005, 210 pages)

“These (interior affec-

tive movements) exist

in us all. All of us are

affected by them.

Yet without a helpful

sense of instruction

regarding them we

tend to have only a

generic and vague

sense of their exis-

tence in us.

Because we do not

know clearly what we

are to look for

“within,” we find it all

the more difficult to

“be aware.”

This is the need that

Ignatius meets with

unique practical clar-

ity in his rules for dis-

cernment of spirits.”

Prologue

Spiritual

Accompaniment

of the Sick and Dying Don Paré, PhD

Dealing with soul-pain, death and

healing, this course gives an

overview of the spiritual dynam-

ics of illness and preparation for

death. Appropriate for those ac-

companying a sick person or

family member through these

difficult transitions. Highly inter-

active lecture and role-playing

format. Six sessions

Begins: March 2, 2006 Thursday nights: 7pm

Cost: $120

Living with

Darkness By Fr.

Richard Rohr, omf

―Spiritual transformation is

often thought of as movement

from darkness to light. In one

sense that is true, but in an-

other sense it is totally false.

We forget that darkness is

always present alongside the

light. Shadows are required

for seeing. God alone lives in

perfect light. (James 1:17)

In a certain sense you could

say that we know the light

most fully in contrast with its

opposite—the dark. Christian

theology has traditionally

talked about the ―happy

fault,‖ the idea that if Christ

had not been crucified, he

would have not have experi-

enced the Resurrection.

Again, we see that there is

something you can only

know by going through the

―night sea journey‖ into the

belly of the whale, from

which you are spit up on a

new shore…‖

Excerpt from Hope Against

Darkness: The Transforming

Vision of Saint Francis in an Age of Anxiety, Cincinnati: St. An-

thony Messenger Press, 2001,

163.

Trinitarian

Spirituality and the

Guidance of Souls Fr. Richard Rohr has found that

the central doctrine of the Trinity

is also central for understanding

what is happening in our inner

lives and in the world.

Speaker:

Fr. Richard Rohr

ofm, conv Date: May 8-10,

2006 Cost: $75

By Vivian Lewin

I spread myself thin.

Full-time job, Ignatian Centre

courses, parish, friends. At 60, I

thought to make my first eight-day

directed retreat.

Eight days. Silent. Where?

My director suggested Manresa in

Pickering, Ontario. I phoned,

wrote, chose dates, booked time

off work. Made list of what to

pack. No computer, email, cell

phone. Left car behind, to travel

light, arriving by train and taxi.

I brought my long list of uncer-

tainties. At the outset, the possi-

bilities for my life suddenly

seemed limitless. In retrospect, I

see the absence of God in that

manic proliferation of options. At

the time, I was stalled – until a few

days of prayer, being recalled to

contemplation of (instead of mess-

ing around in my head with) scrip-

ture, and holy wisdom served to

help loosen my grip on some inner

―truths‖ that weren‘t really true. A

week later, I sigh deeply with re-

lief.

How grateful I am. Yes, our pray-

ing mirrors our living. Yes, the

holy spirit breathes on and in and

through us. What we bring to di-

rection, as directors, is everything

we know and all we are: head and

heart, history and openness to

surprises. I feel I

have much to learn,

and also, that no

amount of learning

can replace this

openness. Ignatius‘

method – subtle,

supremely flexible

– offers a context in

which we meet the

Lord in all these

surprises. And one

of the surprises is

how much light can

shine so quickly

into our lives. Yes,

the answers can be simpler than

the questions!

Deo gratias!

A Swim in the Deep End

By Claire Williams, ssa

Our parish out-reach program,

Praying With Scripture, also

known as Armchair Retreats con-

tinues into its eighth year to bring

Ignatian Spirituality to the parish-

ioners. And this time we went west

of Montreal, to Dorval!

After reading announcements in

The Catholic Times and in the

parish bulletin, and after hearing

an exposé from the pulpit by

Claire Williams, ten parishioners

of St. Veronica‘s Parish partici-

pated. Following this, they were

invited to an information evening.

All who were present that evening

joined the group and the Retreat

began formally on October 13.

After prayer and information-

gathering, each participant was

introduced to his or her prayer

companion who would be journey-

ing with them during the next

seven weeks. They made plans to

meet in a place and at a time con-

venient to both. The eight-week

retreat came to conclusion on De-

cember 1, in an atmosphere of joy

and gratitude to both God and to

the person who accompanied the

pray-er.

Page 5

Praying with Scripture or Armchair Retreat:

The Ignatian Centre Goes to St. Veronica’s Parish

Tips f rom Ignat ius

The prayer companions were com-

mitted to praying for the directees,

to encourage them, and to endeav-

our to open new vistas about Scrip-

ture. The directees realized the

impact that this new way of seek-

ing God in one‘s life is really

―being sought by God‖ and one

learned how to open oneself to

God‘s gracious and loving em-

brace.

Praying with Scripture or Armchair

Retreats short programs have been

so beneficial to God‘s people, we

heartily encourage you – a prayer

companion– to volunteer for eight

weeks to participate in this pro-

gram.

You are welcome!

Praying with Scripture or

Armchair Retreats are short,

personally directed retreats in daily

life for adults who would like to

“sample” spiritual direction. Each

person is asked to pray with Scrip-

ture on a daily basis for twenty to

thirty minutes.

The Centre provides a prayer com-

panion over the 6 to 8 week period.

This program begins and ends with

a group session. . .

An ideal program for those who are

practicing their faith and are seek-

ing to deepen their prayer life.

If you are interested in this oppor-

tunity for your group or parish

please phone:

514-481-1064

Page 6 Magis

by Joanne Toman

Saturday October 15th fourteen

people gathered to meet at the

Motherhouse of the Sisters of St.

Anne, located in Lachine, for a day

of prayer and reflection led by

Renata Furst.

There are many volunteers that

continue to devote time and energy

to the Ignatian Centre in a variety

of ways. I have often thought about

those people before us who brought

their gifts to the centre. We need

only to look at the archives of pho-

tos taken over the years to get a

glimpse of the hundreds of events

and daily jobs that so many volun-

teers attended to and still do. Each

task whether big or small repre-

sents commitment...

Here is some of the feedback

from those who participated.:

―I didn‘t realize how every

piece of work is important. I felt

included and I feel happy to

meet with these individuals I

don‘t always get to meet with‖

.

The important component is that

a lot of work happens in the

background and sometimes one

doesn‘t think it counts for much.

Perhaps this was an eye opener

for some to come to realize it is

all members of the body working

together.

Another comment was that this

time together brought us into a

sense of belonging, that often the

work was done as a sense of

―duty‖ but that the prayer and

sharing drew out a sense of be-

longing to the community.

The approach which Renata

presented to us was gentle,

thought provoking, and insight-

ful .We were asked to pray on

specific material and share in

small groups upon returning.

Many thanks to Sister Claire

who coordinated our visit to the

Mothehouse. We were treated

with gentleness and care. The

gifts I received personally from

this day of reflection were nour-

ishment and hope.

Thank you Renata for your com-

mitment to us on this day.

Day of Reflection for Volunteers

Supervised Prayer Companions and

Daily Life Workshop: Missioning Day

by Sr. Pat O‘Neill, snjm

Responding to the call ―to go out and bear

fruit‖ eight people from the Supervised

Prayer Companion Program and ten from

the Supervised Daily Life Program were

missioned during a very prayerful and

music-filled Eucharistic celebration. Fr.

Gerry Westphal presided.

Réal Desfossés, Kim Desfossés and their

family enhanced the celebration with their

music. After communion, Sr. Pat O‘Neill,

snjm and Jeannie Albert, dressed in mime,

choreographed an interpretation of the

song Come My Father has Blessed you by

Sr. Teresa Hucul, sch. Many who attended

were moved by this prayerful expression

which emphasized that we are Christ‘s

face in the world.

“I have chosen

you from the

world to go

out and bear

fruit.”

Jn 15:16

Supervised Daily Life

Program

Kathleen Arbour-

Sinanis

Jacqueline Cere

Laura Cornette

Barbara D‘Artois

Suzanne Gregory

Antoinette Kaade

Sheri Lecesse

Vivian Lewin

Dyane Provost

Donna Purdy

Instructors

Fr. John Wickham, sj

Paul Empsall

Renata Furst

Supervised Prayer

Companion Program

Jeannie Albert

Magdalen Cheung

Kim Desfosses

Michelle Eason

Sonia Mollinedo de Quintana

Beryl Stone

Sarah Jean Thompson

Gerald Westphal

Instructors

Elizabeth Koessler

Cathie Macaulay

Volunteers: Adrienne Belanger

and Mary Ellen Collins

Dear Ignatius,

I am currently accompanying a

lovely, bright young person who is

very enthusiastic about her walk

with the Lord. However, after several

months, I am beginning to suspect

that this person does not pray daily,

but “bunches” up her prayer peri-

ods, so that she completes her as-

signed exercises just before we meet. How can I address this issue

without crushing her enthusiasm?

Cautious Carolyn

Dear Cautious,

Observing a person‘s prayer pat-

terns are a very important aspect

of our ministry to them. Beginners

often have difficulty creating

―space‖ for spirituality in their

busy schedules. There could be

many reasons for this: outside

circumstances do not allow them

to have a regular daily prayer

time; they are not used to putting

order in their schedule; or they

may be experiencing a deeper

level resistance to an encounter

with God.

What could you do? Begin by

gently asking your directee to

review the process of their prayer

times. [6] Try to listen for mo-

ments of resistance in their ac-

count. Spiritual exercises must be

adapted to the condition of the

one engaging in them. [18] You

may want to experiment with

shorter, but more regular prayer

periods to gradually create a habit.

However, if there is no discern-

able interior difficulty with pray-

ing regularly, your directee‘s

outer life circumstances may be

indicating that this is not the time

for her to make this commitment.

Ignatius

Dear Ignatius,

I am the person who “matches”

people requesting spiritual direction

with a prayer companion or director

who fits their profile. I have noticed

that more and more people of differ-

ent age groups are requesting ac-

companiment with a specific, con-

crete issue to discern. They ask ques-

tions like: “Should I change jobs?” “What career does God want me to

choose?” etc. Should I assume that

people who come with these ques-

tions are necessarily looking for a

relationship with God? They rarely

mention a desire for relationship

with God or Jesus in the conversation.

Mystified Matcher

Dear Mystified,

You are expressing a very valid

concern: What is primary, a rela-

tionship with God, or discernment?

Can these two things be handled

separately? Frankly, I think

―allowing the Creator to deal with

the creature‖ is primary [15], so a

relationship with God is the solid

basis for all discernment.

Since your modern society is very

goal-oriented, the people you are

interviewing may sincerely be

searching for a relationship with

God, but may be articulating it as:

―God with me in the activities and

orientation of my life.‖ You may

need to be very up front with them,

and explain that although discern-

ment is part of spiritual direction,

it is not a ―problem-solving‖ type

of relationship. Some questions

that may help to clarify this are:

When you think of God, what do

you think of?

Are you willing to cultivate a

relationship with God?

Are you willing to bring your

specific issue into your develop-

ing relationship with God?

Ignatius

Dear Ignatius,

I have recently accompanied some-

one through the Spiritual Exercises

(Annotation 19), and it was a very

positive, life-giving experience for

both of us. However, I now feel like I

am not the person to continue on-

going direction. How do I discern

whether I am called to continue with

this directee? Puzzled Patrick in Peoria

Dear Puzzled,

You are raising an issue that you

need to discern with your supervi-

sor. Spiritual direction after com-

pleting the Exercises requires dif-

ferent skills and dispositions from

the spiritual director... It can be

challenging because there is a

sudden transition from a highly

structured prayer experience, to

almost no structure at all. How-

ever, a person can continue to

grow and deepen in their relation-

ship with the Lord after having

completed the Exercises. As my

fellow mystic writes, a true sign of

progress is a ―gladness and hunger

for virtue that remain in the soul‖

after the visitation of the Lord.1

I digress. . .

Some of the questions you may

want to bring to your discernment

during supervision are: ―Am I

allowing the Creator to deal with

me, the spiritual director?‖ [15]

Are there interpersonal issues be-

ing raised in this directing relation-

ship that warrant breaking it off?

Am I truly called to direct this

particular person? Is this a chal-

lenge for me to grow, or am I au-

thentically called only to direct

beginners and those who wish to

complete the Exercises?‖

Ignatius

1 Catherine of Siena, Dialogue, (106-7)

Page 7

New Books in Our Library

Tips from Ignat ius

Attention! The Ignatian Centre kitchen

door

now locks

automatically.

Please be sure

to carry your

key before

you exit

the building!

Dear Ignatius,

My spiritual director is a very wise

and kind person with whom I have

been walking for several years now.

However, I am starting to feel like I

need to find another director in order

to grow. The thought of moving on

scares me. How do I find a spiritual

director who is better for me?

Terrified in Toronto

Dear Terrified,

We should expect our relationship

with our prayer companion or spiri-

tual guide to change; it is a normal

part of growth. However, moving

to someone else can be a scary

experience, because it requires us

to articulate our needs, and become

vulnerable as we search for some-

one to help us. In my time, a young

woman searching for a good spiri-

tual guide tried out some of the

best, including my Jesuit brothers,

and even they did not work out!

When she finally found someone

appropriate, she left us this advice:

―It is very important that the master

have prudence...good judg-

ment...experience...and if he has

learning so much the better.‖2

Courage! The Lord will honour

your desire to grow, and provide

the appropriate means to do so.

Ignatius

2 Teresa of Avila, Life, (chap. 13, 16)

Note: Numbers in brackets refer to paragraphs in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius

Our library has been

enriched with many new

books and resources.

Come and enjoy them!

Hope Against Darkness:

Transforming Vision of

Saint Francis in an Age of Anxiety

By Richard Rohr, ofm

Sacred Companions:

The Gift of Spiritual Friendship

and Direction

By David G. Brenner

Heart of Flesh:

A Feminist Spirituality

for Women and Men

By Joan D. Chittister, osb

Spiritual Direction:

Contemporary Readings

By Kevin G. Culligan, ocd

Library hours:

Monday to Thursday

9 to 4 pm

4567 West Broadway

Montreal, Quebec

H4B 2A7

Phone: 514-481-1064

Fax: 514-481-2060

Email: centre@ignatiancentremtl.ca

The Ignatian Spirituality Centre is a non-residential centre founded by the Jesuit

Community in 1976. It is devoted to fostering spirituality in the Ignatian tradition,

with an openness to other traditions. The goals of the Centre are to make spiritual

direction, daily prayer with Scripture, and the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius

available to all people of God in the Montreal region. The Centre provides training

for spiritual directors or prayer companions. It also reaches out to diverse faith

communities by providing opportunities for spiritual direction and prayer educa-

tion on site. For more information please contact: Reta Desfosses. Ignatian Spirituality

Centre of Montreal

Magis

We’re on the web!

www.ignatiancentre

mtl.ca

© Ignatian Spirituality Centre

of Montreal, 2005

For permission to reprint

articles from the Magis,

contact Reta Desfosses

Articles and

Book Reviews

Are you interested

in writing one?

Contact us!

Magis Editorial Team

Reta Desfosses

Renata Furst

Elizabeth Pilley

Donna Purdy

Gringa Orbregoso Gringa, (Louisa) a former matcher and teacher at the

Ignatian Centre in Montreal, continues her ministry

of spiritual direction in Lima, Peru:

―I was invited to give a retreat to Jesuits and Sis-

ters .... can you imagine? It is their annual retreat

before renewing their vows. The group was made

of 55 religious, 24 Jesuits (magister and philoso-

phy students) and Sisters of various congregations,

St. Joseph of Corondolet, Sacred Heart, and 8

other communities that I don't know the name in

English.... Imagine me as a lay woman, talking to

this group about VOWS... what a challenge it's

been, but truly filled with the Spirit of the Lord!

The Spirit was very present in my heart... I think

the Lord is calling me to move FORWARD in my

ministry, leaving behind my fears, replacing them

with "audacity" in faith.‖

Ignatian Centre News

June 15th, 2005, a small group of staff and vol-

unteers honoured Fr. John during a special cele-

bration. We sang some of his favourite hymns

during his weekly celebration of the Eucharist,

shared the Word and reflected on his many con-

tributions to the formation of spiritual directors.

We then continued our celebration during a

deliciously decadent luncheon. We are very

grateful to Fr. John, and want him to know that

he is in our prayers.

Congratulations!

Fr. John

Wickham, sj,

chaplain

of the

Ignatian

Centre

is a golden

jubilarian!

Winter-Spring 2006

Conference

And Weekend Seminar

The mystics have recog-

nized two major tasks of

the spiritual journey:

(1) creating identity,

boundaries and self-

control; followed by

(2) giving up control. Fr.

Rohr has found that many

practical and pastoral prob-

lems can be maturely ad-

dressed by understanding

these movements.

Spirituality for the Two

Halves of Life

Fr. Richard Rohr, ofm

May 10, 2006

Price: $50

Time: 7-9:30 pm

Spirituality and

Psychology This weekend seminar

explores the inter-

relationship between

spirituality and psychol-

ogy. Especially appropri-

ate for spiritual directors

and those involved in

pastoral counseling or

listening relationships.

Facilitator:

Fr. William Barry, sj

has a Ph.D. in clinical

psychology and has taught at the Weston

Jesuit School of Theology, and Boston Col-

lege. Presently he gives retreats and spiritual

direction.

Fr. Barry is the author or co-author of 15

books, including The Practice of Spiritual

Direction, God and You, Finding God in All

Things, Spiritual Direction and the Encoun-

ter with God, Who Do You Say I Am?, With

An Everlasting Love.

February 25-27, 2006

Price: $150