May 2006 Christian Spirituality By George A Lane SJ

Continue from ...... FINDING GOD'S WILL: DISCERNMENT In his book called The Love of God, Dom Aelred Graham talks about the distinctive virtues of some of the great saints in the history of the Church. The virtue most revealed in the life of St Benedict, he says, was religion. In the life of St Thomas Aquinas, faith joined with wisdom. In St Ignatius, he suggests, the virtue is supernatural prudence and discernment. We might note in passing that this virtue of Ignatius is one of the most misunderstood elements of his spirituality. Ignatius Loyola learned the art of discernment through his efforts to interpret the profound spiritual experiences he had at the time of his conversion. We find the principles of this discernment described in the book of the Spiritual Exercise. Ignatius considered the art of discernment a sine qua non of the Exercises and in a certain sense the whole prupose of a retreat - to learn how to discover the will of God, most especially how to choose among various alternative good possibilities of action. But where is God's will? Which means will be most conducive to the honour and glory, the service and love of God? It is precisely at this point that the Rules for the Discernment of Spirits apply. These rules are essential to Ignatian spirituality, but they also transcend it and are universally applicable in any Christian tradition. At the ouset it is important to note that for Ignatius there is no question whatever of choices for God's glory coming as a result of human initiative or ascetic discipline. Any human effort in this direction is initiated by the grace of Christ through the action of the Holy Spirit. So also the enemy of the Church and of human nature is spiritual and personal, Satan. In this context, in a spiritual conflict, good and evil spirits are polarized and the primary battleground is the heart of man. From patristic and medieval tradition Igantius took the idea that God, angels, and demons more or less regularly invade human consciousness producing virtuous or sinful inclinations. To identify the source of these impulses, discernment is needed. We may not look on spirits in precisely this way, but the underlying reality is valid enough: powers of good and evil experienced as a kind of personal and powerful force taking hold of people as well as the general atmosphere.

- To Be Continued - © Copyright Shalom 2006. All rights reserved.