Virtual retreat aims to give Maine faithful a blueprint for prayer and ways to find God’s presence in daily life
Registration is now open for the Ignatian Spirituality Partnership of Maine’s “Ignatian Spiritual Exercises in Everyday Life” retreat. The virtual retreat runs from October through June 2025.
The heart of the retreat is daily prayer. Participants need to make a commitment to praying with the retreat materials for about 30 minutes each day, attending a Zoom meeting with the group on the first Wednesday evening of each month, and attending a monthly meeting with a spiritual director/guide either in person or via Zoom. This retreat is designed for people who have had experience praying with Scripture and talking with someone about their prayer.
“The spiritual exercises in everyday life can be a transformative experience. Over the past 500 years, the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises have led many women and men to a deeply personal relationship with the Risen Christ and way to see their lives as a partnership with the Lord in His ministry of love and reconciliation,” said Fr. Paul Sullivan, SJ, one of the retreat guides and pastor of Our Lady of Hope Parish in Portland. “We are very grateful that through the Ignatian Spirituality Partnership of Maine we can make this opportunity available to people around our diocese and state of Maine.”
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola are a guide to prayer to help people discern God’s presence in their lives. In four stages, participants contemplate various aspects of their lives, as well as the life, Passion, and resurrection of Jesus.
Ignatian spirituality emphasizes finding God in all things. The basic tenets of Ignatian spirituality come from St. Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556), who wrote down notes about his prayer and the internal changes he noticed as he began to develop his own friendship with Jesus. Those notes became The Spiritual Exercises, which have been “made” (Jesuits typically say they “make the Exercises”), discussed, taught, and written about for five centuries.
Topics for monthly group meetings
October 2024: What Are You Looking For?
November 2024: Experiencing God’s Boundless Mercy
December 2024: Knowing and Loving Jesus
January 2025: Ministering with Jesus
February 2025: Responding to Jesus’ Call
March 2025: Being with Jesus in His Suffering and Experiencing Compassion
April 2025: Being with the Risen Lord
May 2025: The Fullness of God’s Love
June 2025: Reflecting Back and Going Forward
Space is limited. The retreat cost is $625. Some financial aid is available. Attendees should live in or near Maine.
To register for the retreat or for more information, visit www.ignatianme.org. Once registered, organizers will arrange for an in-person or online meeting to talk more about the retreat and to be paired with a spiritual director/guide.
The Ignatian Spirituality Partnership
The Ignatian Spirituality Partnership of Maine was established in 2018. It is open to everyone interested in sharing and promoting the Ignatian spiritual vision. Members include the Jesuit Community of Maine (Cheverus High School, Our Lady of Hope Parish), the Sisters of St. Joseph in Winslow, the Sisters of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary in Old Orchard Beach, and retreat guides from various Christian traditions who are trained in Ignatian spirituality.
The partnership and its members offer retreats, both “at-home” and at retreat centers and parishes, periodic public presentations, the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises, a supervision group and continuing formation for spiritual directors.
