A good book...

... by Pope Francis, about the mercy of God - something we've heard him speak of many times. Perhaps a help for exercitants to come to that 'cry of wonder' (#60)

Read about it here.  Available from Amazon for Kindle, as well as a good old-fashioned book.

Hidden life of Jesus

An interesting reflection on the hidden years of Jesus' childhood here. Thoughts on the importance of this part of Week 2 of the Exercises.

Today's Jesuit Saint

From Universalis' "About Today" page:

St David Lewis (1616-1679)

David Lewis was born at Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, in 1616 and raised in the Church of England. At sixteen years of age, while visiting Paris, he became a Catholic and subsequently went to study in Rome, where in 1642 he was ordained priest.

 Three years later he became a Jesuit. In 1647 he returned home and, for over thirty years, worked in South Wales, with his base at the Cwm on the borders of Herefordshire, an area sheltered between the high ridges of the Welsh Black Mountains to the west and Malvern Hills to the east. Here the Jesuits maintained two remote farmhouses, which also functioned as shelters for hunted Catholic priests. Lewis used the name Charles Baker.

He was arrested in November 1678 in Monmouthshire, and condemned as a Catholic priest and for saying Catholic masses, at the Assizes in Monmouth in March 1679. He was then taken to Newgate Prison in London with John Kemble (Herefordshire) and questioned about the “gunpowder plot”. Oates and his companions could find nothing against him. The judge advised him that if he gave evidence about the “plot” or renounced his Catholic faith, his life would be spared and he would be greatly rewarded. Lewis said in his dying speech, “discover the plot I could not, as I knew of none; and conform I would not, for it was against my conscience”. He was returned to Usk and waited for three months for his call to death by execution. He was hanged, drawn, and quartered on 27 August 1679. After the Titus Oates affair (1679—80), the remaining Welsh-speaking Catholic clergy were either executed or exiled.

Visit Ignatius' rooms

A report here on an initiative in Rome to open up some of the spaces where Ignatius lived and died - some of which have not been open to the public for 470 years.

There's a lovely short video to look at if you click on the link... And (something to consider at this time of year) a glimpse of the painting of the Holy Family which Ignatius loved so much that he asked for his bed to be placed where he could gaze at it when he lay dying.

"I will make myself a poor little unworthy slave... Look upon them, contemplate them and serve them."

Christmas blessings to all!

Peter Faber canonised

Yesterday, on his birthday, Pope Francis canonised Peter Faber - someone he greatly admires and, of course, co-founder with Ignatius of the Jesuits. News here, and a reflection and extract from a new book here - this is a quote:

Hardly any retreatant since Ignatius himself made these Exercises with the single-mindedness and fervour of Faber. In later years Ignatius used to say that none of the first generation of Jesuits could give the Exercises as well as Faber. He certainly emerged from his thirty days retreat imbued with the conviction that in all things a man should try to discover the will of God, and having discerned it immediately do it. 

Ignatian app

Thanks to the dotMagis blog I've discovered a free "Jesuit prayer app" with a scripture reading for each day, plus prayers and a reflection, if you want them. Other good things too, such as downloadable and printable prayer cards (including the Anima Christi, Suscipe and David Fleming's paraphrase of the P&F) - resources for the 19th Annotation or Ignatian workshops?

There's even a little bell to set an alarm to remind you to pray!

It looks good... Here's a link to the dotMagis post, from which you can download the app:
http://www.ignatianspirituality.com/18051/jesuit-prayer-app/

Buddhism and Ignatian Spiritualty - parallels?

An interesting post here on the Finding God In All Things blog... What do you think?