Studying theology is not necessarily holier than

is about fixing supper for one’s husband and children. Studying theology is not necessarily holier than
working as a laborer, clerk, or executive. God is fully present in every molecule of the universe. The
challenge is to find God where God is and not where we think God ought to be. Ignatian spirituality
teaches that the essence of the spiritual life entails the moment-by- moment search for God’s desires
throughout the course of one’s own lif e.
7. An apostolic focus. Generally for those called by God to Ignatian spirituality, action in the world on
behalf of God’s reign, according to one’s vocation and one’s talents, is imperative. What Ignatius called
the desire to “help souls” was the groun d for an apostolic approach to the world beyond any cloister or
church building. In European religious practice of the sixteenth century this was unusual for vowed
religious communities. Even lay organizations were often pious prayer societies. Today such apostolic

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focus represents a major theme for religious life due, in large part, to Ignatius’ and his companions’
pioneering work. As early as the twelfth century, Francis of Assisi and Dominic Guzman had seen the
necessity for a ministry of preaching, hearing confessions, and responding to human needs in the
highways and byways of medieval Europe beyond the convent and cloister. Even so their rules called for
extended and established times for prayer, often sung in choir as generations of monks had done before
them.
Ignatius did not replicate monastic practice when he and his companions determined to form a
religious community. They saw themselves called above all to direct service of the gospel in the streets
of cities where humanity dwells in poverty, ignorance, and often violence. If one is faithful, attentive,
and generous in redressing the greatest or most demanding needs to which he is sent, the labor itself,
whether spiritual, material, intellectual, or social, and the relationships which arise from such service,
provide both an encounter with the risen Lord and any necessary penance and self abnegation. Formal
prayer is limited to short periods of meditation each day, regular participation in Eucharist and
reconciliation, and daily times of self-examination to discern whether one is following the light of
consolation from God or desolation from darker impulses. This discerning examination focuses not only
on interior movements of formal prayer but especially on the movements and impulses which occur
during and within the daily activities of apostolic life and all human interactions. Holiness comes from an
intimacy with God through partnership with Jesus in obediently discerned service of others.
8. Companionship in and with Christ. Despite some historic accusations that followers of Ignatius are
“lone rangers,” in the work of spreading the Gospel an important sensibility of Ignatian spirituality is the
necessity for companionship in prayer, in service, in the struggle for justice, in the works of mercy,
indeed in all aspects of life. The first companion is Jesus Christ, but Jesus’ closest companions become