The second movement of the Spiritual Exercises is a reflection on the life and ministry of Jesus, and we began our reflection on the life of Christ last night by celebrating the first Sunday of Advent. The opening liturgy drew out the longing within each of us for the coming of Christ.
Then Father Michael wove the themes of Advent into the second movement of the Exercises. The journey of Advent, Father Michael said, is one of “coming to a fuller awareness of Christ breaking into the world, breaking into our lives.” He shared five ways we can prepare to receive the presence of Jesus before leading us in an Ignatian contemplation from the second movement of the Exercises, The Call of Christ the King.
Have a listen to the full teaching and practice.
Kingdom Practices
For the duration of our time in the second movement we want to practice the spiritual discipline of imaginative prayer. In order to help our community engage this practice, we have written and recorded ten original contemplations. Each one was written by a member of our community, and these contemplations will help us enter a Gospel story and meet personally with Jesus.
Every Monday our email will include a link to a new prayer. This week, we begin with an original contemplation written by Father Michael. This contemplation centers on the Annunciation, Mary’s beautiful response to God’s invitation. Please make some time this week to engage our practice.