Drenched in an Incomprehensible Love

By Brother Daniel Leckman, S.J.

In the past few weeks, we’ve been graced with wonderful material for meditation with the celebrations in our liturgical calendar. Two weeks ago, we had Corpus Christi, reminding us of the importance of the Eucharist in our journey as Christians, and the impact it can have on our lives. This past week, we celebrated the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. These celebrations helped us reflect not just on God’s profound love for us, but also on the rich interior life that we are called to in our journey with God.

As a person who came to the Church only later on in life, celebrations like the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart used to leave me rather confused and indifferent. It's only when I was in Guelph for to do the Spiritual Exercises (in 2009) that I made my peace with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is only then that I truly came to understand what this devotion stood for in my life. This happened because in the early days of the Exercises, we were asked to illustrate our faith journey with something concrete that we could make with pottery. Not having any artistic talents, I was not comfortable with this idea at all!

Spiritual Exercises for the Spiritual Athlete

By Artur Suski, S.J.

St. Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians compares the spiritual life and its care to that of the body:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified (1 Cor 9:24-27).

For an athlete to excel in his sport, he must put in countless hours of practice. Furthermore, perfecting techniques requires good practice, a practice that is properly supervised by someone who knows something about the sport; in other words, a coach. To achieve perfection in technique, an athlete needs to put in much effort, and with this also comes the temptation to not exercise. St. Paul keenly notices this tendency, and so he writes that self-discipline is the most important virtue – or attitude – in sports: the athlete knows his goal and he knows that he has to make sacrifices in order to reach it. He has to watch his diet; he has to go run even when he doesn’t feel like it; he cannot spend too much time with his friends because he must practice, etc. There are many athletes out there and they all want to win the race, and you must have something that the others do not have. Otherwise, why should you be the winner and not any of them?

You Are a Mist

By Adam Hincks, S.J.

… Wel bið þam þe him are seceð,
Frofre to fæder on heofonum,     þær us eal seo fæstnung stondeð.
[… Well is it for him who seeks mercy,
Comfort, from our Father in heaven,     where, for us, all steadfastness standeth.]
(The Wanderer)

I recently left for Venezuela for a summer of Spanish language studies with two other men from my community. When I was saying goodbye to some of my companions who are remaining in Canada, we spoke of when we would next see each other. We often do this in our culture when we make our goodbyes. ‘I’ll see you at such-and-such a place,’ we say with confidence and a firm handshake. When we bid farewell, we tend to anticipate our next encounter.