A Prayer by Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Daily Nourishment Read Time: 40 seconds
Pause/Prompt/Practice Time: 15 minutes
“Born in 1491, Ignatius was a different kind of saint. As the noted Jesuit historian Fr. John O’Malley, SJ, observed, ‘Ignatius redefined the traditional basis of saintliness,’ which usually involved a degree of unworldliness. In contrast, Fr. O’Malley refers to Ignatius as a ‘worldly saint.’” -jesuits.org
Pause.
Sit in silence while taking four deep breaths. Use the words below for a breath prayer or breath meditation on each of the inhales:
Inhale: Give me love.
Exhale.
Inhale: Give me grace.
Exhale.
Inhale: Give me love.
Exhale.
Inhale: Give me grace.
Exhale.
Repeat the full cycle if you like.
Prompt.
Yesterday, July 31, was the feast day of St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus who passed away on this day in the year 1556.
“Born in 1491, Ignatius was a different kind of saint. As the noted Jesuit historian Fr. John O’Malley, SJ, observed, ‘Ignatius redefined the traditional basis of saintliness,’ which usually involved a degree of unworldliness. In contrast, Fr. O’Malley refers to Ignatius as a ‘worldly saint.’ Ignatius made sure that the early Jesuits were spending most of their time in relatively secular spaces such as classrooms — teaching less directly about the Bible and Church doctrine than about literature and the ancient classics. He sent letters to his missionaries asking that they write back not just about their ministries, but also about the local customs, the plants and wild life — ‘anything that seems extraordinary.’ Most of all, Ignatius wanted Jesuits to go out and ‘find God in all things.’”
I love this information above about St. Ignatius of Loyola from the jesuits.org website. This explains—at least in part—why I’m drawn to Ignatian spirituality.
His prayer shown below is special to me for many reasons, even though I sometimes switch up some of the words and revise it a bit. I use it during many of my spiritual direction sessions and co-writing sessions and it always helps me remember who I am and who God is.
A Prayer by Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding,
and my entire will,
All I have and call my own.
You have given all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.
Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace,
that is enough for me.
*
Even if you don’t believe in God, or if you aren’t entirely sure what you believe, I hope this prayer still brings you comfort and hope, while helping you imagine a better way of inhabiting this world, your work, and your art.
Practice.
Set a timer for 10 minutes and take notes or journal in response to the words above and the questions below.
Which prayers, poems, or quotes help you feel like more of your full self?
Which prayers, poems, or quotes do you turn to for comfort and hope?
If you were going to write a prayer, poem, or a simple list using experience and feelings from the past week, what all would you want to include?
Want More?
Read Spiritual Direction for Writers: Everyday Rituals for Your Writing Life.
*
Become an SDW Insider and reserve your copy of Spiritual Direction for Writers: Everyday Ritualsfor Your Writing Life AND receive access to the All of Life Is the Writing Life Deep Dive online course—a preorder perk that explores how the mantra “All of life is the writing life” shows up in the Spiritual Direction for Writers book.
SDW Book Notes—A place for book preorder links, updates, resources, notes, and musings
Flourish Anyway with Rhythms, Rituals, & Retreats
Today’s Daily Nourishment was provided by Charlotte Donlon. You can explore more of Charlotte’s work and offerings at Flourish Anyway®.
*Please help us protect our intellectual property, our creative process, and the integrity of our work. Spiritual Direction for Writers® Daily Nourishment is covered under the Spiritual Direction for Writers® trademark. You are welcome to share this link with others, but any other use (written or spoken) is prohibited without written permission from Charlotte Donlon.