SPIRITUAL EXERCISES

What exactly is it? The Spiritual Exercises are guided forms of prayer, based around the studying the Scriptures. They contain very clear frameworks to help shape every period of prayer, so you would not be left to flounder or to sit in silence for an hour unsure of what to do, but an appetite for prayer and desire to grow in your relationship with God is essential.

St. Ignatius was Catholic, however you do not need to be Catholic to undertake Spiritual Exercises, I myself am not Catholic but I found taking the Spiritual Exercises life transforming and grew considerably closer to Jesus.  You also do not need to be a minister, a religious, in full time christian work or highly educated to take them. The Exercises were designed for all people, from all walks of life. They are like a discipleship programme using tools of prayer, reflection and the bible. You will be given daily prayer practices and tools that help you to connect well with God in ways that you can hopefully maintain following on from the Exercises. 

You need a Spiritual Director to act as a guide to help you journey through the Exercises, it's not something you should tackle as alone by just reading the Spiritual Exercises, written in the 1600's you will likely find it a dry and difficult book to understand, which is why you need a guide. 

A Spiritual companion is vital, as they will tailor the Exercises to you specifically, whilst staying true to St. Ignatius' original Intent. A good guide will be able to help you discern things you can't see for yourself, help you navigate any hurdles of life and prayer that come during the process and help you see the journey through to completion. 

The format you choose to do the Spiritual Exercises in will very much depend on your commitments and available time. You can do the Exercises in person over a 30 day in a silent retreat setting, either online or at a retreat centre which includes a daily session with your Spiritual Director and several hours of prayer spaced out through the day. Alternatively, you can also do the Exercises in daily life format, (also known as the 19th Annotation) which basically consists of about 1 hour of prayer and reflection a day and a session with your Spiritual Director once a week. This format usually takes between 9 Months to 1 year to complete. It is by far the most popular because people can't often take a month off from work and family to be able to make the 30 day version. 

The Ignatian Spirituality Centre in Glasgow offer several different options, Online, In Daily Life and 30 Days - follow the links here for more information and to apply.  https://www.iscglasgow.co.uk/19ann I am a registered Associate with the Centre but there is no guarantee that you will be allocated to me if you go through them.

If you wish to consider me accompanying you on the Spiritual Exercises, please contact me via the contact form to arrange a further information and meeting as you don't have to go through the Centre but can come to me directly. Ideally you should be familiar with receiving regular Spiritual Direction/ Accompaniment or willing to begin that journey first before undertaking the Spiritual Exercises.