By KAITLIN KLEIN
WONDERFUL ADVENTURE
St. Ignatius of Loyola is a household name for most Catholics. The term Ignatian spirituality also probably rings a bell. I’ve been dipping my toe into the vast knowledge, insight and guidance offered by Ignatius, beginning by reading “The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living,” by Father Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V. Father Gallagher discusses the first of two sets of rules Ignatius presents in his Spiritual Exercises. Ignatius recommends learning the two sets separately, and the first set contains 14 rules. Ignatius writes that they are “Rules for becoming aware and understanding to some extent the different movements which are caused in the soul, the good, to receive them, and the bad to reject them.”
I read Ignatius’ actual texts of the rules, and they seemed a little wordy to me – and many felt like common sense. But I also acknowledged that I was just beginning a whole book on just these 14 rules, and that Father Gallagher has written over a dozen books, many of them about discernment of spirits and Ignatian spirituality. I was definitely no expert! And sure enough, my preconceptions were wrong; there is a wealth of guidance, a treasure trove of ideas and thoughts in each phrase of each rule.
But first, I needed to grasp what exactly “discernment of spirits” was, and that’s what I will expound upon briefly here – as well as give an extremely short introduction to how these ideas can be helpful in anyone's spiritual life. In discernment of spirits, we are taking steps to recognize the action of good and bad spirits in our lives, and accept the good and reject the bad. We can understand the good spirit comprehensively, including God and His movements in our lives and hearts, the angels and saints, the gifts of grace, gifts of the Holy Spirit, and our individual charisms. Likewise, the evil spirit includes the devil, his demons, concupiscence from original sin, and simply living in a fallen world, among others.
The three steps Ignatius uses in his exercises include to be aware, understand, and take action (accept or reject). These steps are each important, and Father Gallagher greatly expands on them in his book. The first may seem simple, but if we are not able to go within ourselves and be aware of the movements of our hearts, we will struggle moving forward in the spiritual life. This is easier said than done in our busy and noisy lives. Then we must understand—do our thoughts and feelings affect our spiritual life? We reflect to understand the meaning of the movements in our hearts. Finally, we take action—accepting the good spirits and rejecting the bad. This helps move us closer to God.
Taking time to try to incorporate these has been immensely fruitful in my spiritual life. As Father Gallagher says in the introduction to “The Discernment of Spirits,” “This is a book about setting captives free." When we are able to discern what is the workings of God and rejecting what is not, and resting in the knowledge that the Lord does sometimes let us go though spiritual desolation for our good, we can see all things in a more positive light, and move ever forward in the spiritual life.