Spiritual Exercises: Encyclopedia - Spiritual Exercises

Spiritual Exercises

The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola, (written within 1522-1524) is a brief set of meditations, prayers and mental exercises, available in various book formats, designed to be carried out over a period of 28 to 30 days. The book is approximately 200 pages long. They appear to have been written with the intention of enhancing and strengthening one's faith-experience in a manner that includes distinctly Roman Catholic nuances.

Spiritual Exercises - Typical methodology and structure of the Exercises

Ideally these Exercises were designed to take place in the setting of a secluded retreat, during which those undergoing the exercises would be focused on nothing other than the Exercises. They were also designed to be carried out while under the direction of a spiritual director. The primary aim of their authorship appears to have been for use as a part of the Catholic religious order of Jesuits' novitiate program. As such they are a required component of the Jesuit novitiate training program, that usually takes place during the first year of the novitiate. Still, other Catholic lay people are known to occasionally undergo these Exercises. When lay people undergo the Exercises, this is usually under the guidance of a spiritual director who is a member of the religious order of Jesuits.

Within the Exercises, daily instructions include various discussions of the nature of the world, of human psychology as Ignatius understood it, and of man's relationship to God. During each day of the Exercises, a typical retreatant might read two or three pages of these instructions, then contemplate upon their meanings as they might apply to his (or her) life. Afterwards the retreatant typically reports back to the spiritual director of the retreat what these instructions might mean to the retreatant.

Spiritual Exercises - Theological teachings of the Exercises

Spiritual Exercises - Some historically contextual aspects of the Exercises

The teachings conveyed via the exercises appear to reflect the prominent Catholic views of the 1500's, during which time they were written. Such teachings include support for the Crusades, prayers to Mary, unquestioning and absolute obedience to one's religious superiors, and an implied antagonism towards Islam. (One of the exercises describes the physical location of all evil in the world to be located "in the region of Babylon", while the physical seat of all goodness is located "in the region of Jerusalem".)

Spiritual Exercises - Implied antagonism of Islam within the Exercises

The implied antagonism of Islam that can be found in the exercises may be the result of the historical context in which they were written. Ignatius of Loyola was a Spaniard, in a Spain that had only been finally and fully liberated from centuries of Muslim rule in Ignatius' own lifetime. During these tumultous times, it can reasonably be said that the single greatest military conflict raging throughout Europe was the centuries old contest for military and spiritual supremacy between Islam and Christianity.

Spiritual Exercises - Spiritual viewpoint of the Exercises

The Exercises are perhaps a reflection of some of the personal inner deliberations through which Ignatius once went during his own lifetime. They include considerations regarding humility, selflessness for the sake of the religious life, reflection upon one's tendency to fall into sin, the view that the human soul is continually drawn in two directions: both drawn towards Godliness, and at the same time tempted towards selfishness and baseness. Consistent with Roman Catholic theology, the Exercises make numerous references to the belief that man's highest purpose is to glorify God, and not one's self. Accordingly they provide several illustrations of how one might best be able to refrain from satiating one's 'lower' desires and instead how one might find a means to redirect one's energies towards the fulfillment of one's higher purpose in life.

Spiritual Exercises - Modern applications of the Exercises

To this day, the Spiritual Exercises remain an integral part of the Novitiate training period of the Roman Catholic religious order of Jesuits. Also, many local Jesuit outreach programs throughout the world offer retreats for the general public in which the Exercises are employed.

See also

• Ignatius of Loyola
• The religious order of Jesuits
• Roman Catholic Church

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Spiritual Exercises", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki