thumb|220px|, 1548, first edition by Antonio Bladio (Rome)

The Spiritual Exercises (), composed 1522–1524, are a set of Christian meditations, contemplations, and prayers written by Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th-century Spanish Catholic priest, theologian, and founder of the Society of Jesus. Their influence was tremendous, but they were not original, being "nothing but a compilation of pre-existing meditations for self-cultivation."

Structure

Divided into four thematic "weeks" of variable length, they are designed to be carried out over a period of 28 to 30 days. They were composed with the intention of helping participants in religious retreats to discern the will of God in their lives, leading to a personal commitment to follow Jesus whatever the cost. and also for addressing problems facing society in the 21st century.

Editions

The first printed edition of the Spiritual Exercises was published in Latin in 1548, after being given papal approval by Pope Paul III. However, Ignatius's manuscripts were in Spanish, so this first edition was in fact a translation, although it was made during Ignatius's lifetime and with his approval. Many subsequent editions in Latin and in various other languages were printed early on with widely differing texts.

Archival work on the authentic text of the Spiritual Exercises was undertaken at the initiative of the 19th century Jesuit Superior General Jan Roothaan, who himself published a translation and notes from the original manuscripts of St. Ignatius. The culmination of this work was a "critical edition" of the Exercises published by the Jesuit order in 1919, in the Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu series. A critical edition from 1847 that incorporates Roothaan's studies can be found online. An authoritative Spanish-Latin text, based on the critical edition, was published in Turin by Marietti, in 1928. This was edited by the editor of the critical edition, and included convenient marginal numbers for every section, which can be found in all contemporary editions (and inline in this article).

An English translation by Louis J. Puhl, S.J., published in 1951, has been widely used by Jesuits, spiritual directors, retreat leaders, and others in the English-speaking world. Puhl translated directly from studies based on the original manuscripts.

Background

140px|thumb|left|[[Virgin of Montserrat]]

While recovering from a leg wound incurred during the Siege of Pamplona in 1521, Ignatius underwent a spiritual conversion that was inspired by his reading of a collection of saints' lives known in English as the Golden Legend and the Carthusian Ludolph of Saxony's Vita Christi. The latter had a profound influence on the Spiritual Exercises. After this, he made a retreat with the Benedictine monks at their abbey high on Montserrat in Catalonia, northern Spain, where he hung up his sword before the statue of the Virgin of Montserrat. The monks introduced him to the spiritual exercises of Garcias de Cisneros, which were based in large part on the teachings of the Brothers of the Common Life, the promoters of the "devotio moderna". From Montserrat, he left for Barcelona but took a detour through the town of Manresa, where he eventually remained for several months, continuing his convalescence at a local hospital. During this time he discovered The Imitation of Christ of Thomas à Kempis, the crown jewel of the "devotio moderna", which however gave little grounding for an apostolic spirituality, an omission Ignatius later tried to supply in his Constitutions with its focus on labor in the Lord's vineyard. He also spent much of his time praying in a cave nearby, where he practiced rigorous asceticism. During this time Ignatius experienced a series of visions, and formulated the fundamentals of his Spiritual Exercises. He would later refine and complete the Exercises when he was a student in Paris.

thumb|right|Abbey on Montserrat

thumb|Chapel in the [[Cave of Saint Ignatius at Manresa]]

thumb|St Ignatius of Loyola writing ‘The Spiritual Exercises’ during his time of discernment in Manresa, under the maternal gaze of the Virgin Mary and her son Jesus by Antoine Favray (1748)

The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius form the cornerstone of Ignatian Spirituality: a way of understanding and living one's relationship with God in the world as practiced by members of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). Although he originally designed them 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, Ignatius also provided a model in his introductory notes for completing the Exercises over a longer period without the need of seclusion.

Ignatius considered the examen, or spiritual self-review, to be the most important way to continue to live out the experience of the Exercises after their completion.

Spiritual viewpoint

Ignatius identified the various motives that lead a person to choose one course of action over another as "spirits". A major aim of the Exercises is the development of discernment (discretio), the ability to discern between good and evil spirits. A good spirit can bring love, joy, peace, but also desolation to reveal the evil in one's present life. An evil spirit usually brings confusion and doubt, but may also prompt complacency to discourage change. The human soul is continually drawn in two directions: towards goodness but at the same time towards sinfulness. The Exercises are divided into four "weeks" of varying length with four major themes: sin and God's mercy, episodes in the life of Jesus, the passion of Jesus, and the resurrection of Jesus together with a contemplation on God's love. This last is often seen as the goal of Ignatian spirituality, to find God in all things. The purpose of these Exercises is that we might gain the empathy to "follow and imitate more closely our Lord."

Since the 1980s there has been a growing interest in the Spiritual Exercises among people from other Christian traditions.

Notes

References

  • Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual Exercises, London: limovia.net, 2012. .
  • David L. Fleming, S.J. The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, A Literal Translation and A Contemporary Reading. St. Louis: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1978. .
  • Timothy M. Gallagher, The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Life. Crossroad, 2005.
  • George E. Ganss, S.J. The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius: A Translation and Commentary. Chicago: Loyola Press, 1992. .
  • C. G. Jung, Jung on Ignatius of Loyola's 'Spiritual Exercises'. (Princeton University 2023).
  • Anthony Mottola, Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius. Image, 1964, .
  • Joseph A. Tetlow, The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius Loyola. Crossroad, 2009.
  • Ignatian contemplation: application of the senses

Online text

  • Puhl's translation
  • Christian Classics Ethereal Library

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  • The Spiritual Exercises Audio from Librivox