The Discernment of Spirits An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living

by Gallagher, Timothy M., OMV

• ISBN13: 9780824522919
• ISBN10: 0824522915
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-09-01
• Publisher: Crossroad

Summary

St. Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, is one of the most influential spiritual leaders of all time, yet many readers find hisRules for Discernmenthard to understand. What can Ignatius teach us about the discernment of spirits that lies at the very heart of Christian life? InThe Discernment of Spirits, Fr. Timothy Gallagher, a talented teacher, retreat leader, and scholar, helps us understand the Rules and how their insights are essential for our spiritual growth today. By integrating the Rules and the experience of contemporary people, Gallagher shows the precision, clarity, and insight of Ignatius's Rules, as well as the relevance of his thought for spiritual life today. When we learn to read Ignatius correctly, we discover in his remarkable words our own struggles, joys, and triumphs. This book is for all who desire greater awareness of God's action in their daily spiritual lives, and is essential reading for retreat directors, spiritual directors, priests, and counselors.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Foreword	xiii
Introduction	1	(1)
At the Heart of the Spiritual Life	1	(1)
Ignatius of Loyola	2	(1)
A Personal Word	3	(1)
The Purpose of This Book	4	(3)
The Text of the Rules	7	(4)
Prologue: What Is Discernment of Spirits?	11	(174)
``Until One Time His Eyes Were Opened a Little''	11	(4)
The Title of the Rules	15	(1)
A Threefold Paradigm	16	(1)
``Be Aware''	17	(6)
The Courage to Be Spiritually Aware	18	(2)
A Specifically Spiritual Awareness	20	(3)
``Understand''	23	(1)
``Take Action (Accept/Reject)''	24	(1)
The Movements of the Heart	25	(2)
When a Person Moves Away from God (Rule 1)	27	(11)
An Experience of Spiritual Liberation	27	(4)
Two Fundamental Directions of Life	31	(1)
The Person Moving Away from God	32	(1)
The ``Enemy'' of Our Spiritual Progress	32	(2)
The Action of the Enemy: Strengthening the Pull Away from God	34	(1)
The Good Spirit	35	(1)
The Action of the Good Spirit: Weakening the Pull Away from God	36	(2)
When a Person Moves toward God (Rule 2)	38	(9)
``Rising from Good to Better''	38	(1)
The Action of the Enemy: Weakening the Movement toward God	39	(4)
A ``Biting'' That Unsettles	39	(1)
Sadness	40	(1)
Obstacles	41	(1)
``False Reasons'' That Disquiet	42	(1)
The Action of the Good Spirit: Strengthening the Movement toward God	43	(4)
Courage and Strength	44	(1)
Consolations and Tears	44	(1)
Inspirations	45	(1)
A Strengthening ``Quiet'' of Heart	45	(1)
``Taking Away All Obstacles''	45	(2)
Spiritual Consolation (Rule 3)	47	(11)
A Perceptible Experience of God's Love	47	(1)
A Specifically Spiritual Consolation	48	(3)
Forms of Spiritual Consolation	51	(7)
``When the Soul Comes to Be Inflamed with Love of Its Creator and Lord''	52	(1)
``And, Consequently When It Can Love No Created Thing on the Face of the Earth in Itself, But Only in the Creator of Them All''	53	(1)
``When It Sheds Tears That Move to Love of Its Lord''	53	(1)
``Finally, I Call Consolation Every Increase of Hope, Faith, and Charity''	54	(2)
``And All Interior Joy That Calls and Attracts to Heavenly Things''	56	(2)
Spiritual Desolation (Rule 4)	58	(14)
The Time of Trial	58	(2)
A Specifically Spiritual Desolation	60	(2)
Forms of Spiritual Desolation	62	(6)
``Darkness of Soul''	62	(1)
``Disturbance in It''	62	(1)
``Movement to Low and Earthly Things''	62	(1)
``Disquiet from Various Agitations and Temptations''	63	(1)
``Moving to Lack of Confidence, without Hope, without Love''	64	(1)
``Finding Oneself Totally Slothful, Tepid, Sad''	65	(1)
``And, as if Separated from One's Creator and Lord''	66	(2)
The ``Thoughts That Come from'' Consolation and Desolation	68	(4)
Spiritual Desolation: A Time for Fidelity (Rule 5)	72	(13)
Guidelines for Action	72	(2)
In Time of Desolation Make No Changes	74	(4)
``Never'': A Categorical Norm	78	(2)
Ignatius in Desolation	80	(3)
The Reason for the Norm	83	(2)
Spiritual Desolation: A Time for Initiative (Rule 6)	85	(9)
The Changes That We Should Make	85	(2)
Spiritual Means for a Spiritual Struggle	87	(6)
Prayer	87	(1)
Meditation	88	(1)
Much Examination	89	(2)
``Extending Ourselves in Some Suitable Way of Doing Penance''	91	(2)
The Fruit of Spiritual Initiative	93	(1)
Spiritual Desolation: A Time for Resistance (Rule 7)	94	(10)
The Thinking That Strengthens Our Resolve	94	(1)
A Trial	95	(2)
The Nature of the Trial	97	(1)
The Purpose of the Trial	98	(2)
When ``You Can't'' Becomes. ``I Can''	100	(2)
``Remembering'' and ``Forgetting''	102	(2)
Spiritual Desolation: A Time for Patience (Rule 8)	104	(9)
Endurance in Time of Trial	104	(2)
Patience: The Key Virtue in Spiritual Desolation	106	(1)
The Thought That Builds Patience	107	(3)
Spiritual Consolation and Desolation: A Normal Alternation	110	(3)
Why Does God Allow Spiritual Desolation? (Rule 9)	113	(13)
``It Is Better for You That I Go'' (John 16:7)	113	(1)
``There Are Three Principal Causes''	114	(2)
Our Faults and the Gift of Conversion	116	(3)
A Trial and the Gift of Learning	119	(3)
Poverty and the Gift of a Humble Heart	122	(2)
An Implicit Norm	124	(2)
Spiritual Consolation: A Time to Prepare (Rule 10)	126	(12)
Before the Trial Begins	126	(1)
``The Two Hours So Enjoyed''	127	(2)
The Thinking That Prepares	129	(4)
If We Are Not Prepared	130	(1)
If We Are Prepared	131	(2)
``Taking New Strength for That Time''	133	(3)
Prayer of Petition for Strength in Future Spiritual Desolation	133	(1)
Meditation on Truths That Will Sustain in Spiritual Desolation	134	(1)
Consideration of the Value of Spiritual Desolation for Growth	134	(1)
Reflection on Past Personal Growth through Spiritual Desolation	134	(1)
Resolution to Make No Changes in Time of Spiritual Desolation	135	(1)
Review of These Ignatian Rules	135	(1)
Planning for Specific Situations of Spiritual Desolation	136	(1)
A Portrait of the Tenth Rule	136	(2)
Spiritual Consolation and Spiritual Desolation: Finding Our Balance (Rule 11)	138	(11)
Both Spiritual Movements in a Single Rule	138	(1)
In Spiritual Consolation: A Humble Heart	139	(2)
In Spiritual Desolation: A Trusting Heart	141	(2)
Neither Naively ``High'' Nor Despairingly ``Low''	143	(1)
Maintaining Spiritual Balance: An Experience	143	(6)
Standing Firm in the Beginnings (Rule 12)	149	(10)
A New Stage in the Rules	149	(1)
The Metaphor of Rule Twelve	150	(2)
The Application of the Metaphor	152	(1)
The Essential Weakness of the Enemy	153	(1)
``He Overcame the Temptation and Remained at Peace''	154	(5)
Breaking the Spiritual Silence (Rule 13)	159	(14)
Communication and Spiritual Freedom	159	(2)
A Crucially Important Guideline	161	(3)
``My Doubts Left Me Completely as Soon as I Finished Speaking''	164	(4)
``That Was the End of All My Anxiety, All My Hesitation''	168	(3)
``With New Hope in Her Heart''	171	(2)
Strengthening the Weak Point (Rule 14)	173	(12)
An Astutely Directed Attack	173	(3)
A Response: Prepare Beforehand	176	(2)
An Individual Point of Need	178	(3)
Know Thyself!	181	(1)
The Fourteenth Rule and the Preceding Rules	182	(3)
Conclusion: Setting Captives Free	185	(4)
Notes	189	(18)
Select Bibliography	207	(2)
Index of Names	209