I find it helpful to pause from time to time and reflect on the road I have taken to get where I am today. I recall the people, events, books, and personal movements that have shaped me. Most always these reflections turn up different names, events, and titles.
There are a couple of names, however, for which I consistently give thanks. If I think of them as stepping stones that have brought me to the place where I stand today, they are always present as the solid ground underneath me.
One of those stepping stones for me is Ignatius of Loyola. Ignatius lived five centuries ago in Spain. He wasn't trained in theology or spirituality. He came to a deep and life-changing relationship with God not through formal training, but "through the back door," through his prayerful consideration of the struggles of his own life-experience. The spiritual insights he gained from his own journey with God became a compilation of spiritual exercises still relevant today.
I am indebted to Ignatius in many ways. They are too numerous to name here. Among the most meaningful, however, I consider my desire to live into the original purpose for which I was created. I also attribute my determination to live with a radical inner freedom to his influence on my life. I'm grateful that Ignatius does more than speak of the possibility of a life given to God; by his own life, he shows that such a life can be reality.
Today, July 31, is the feast day of Ignatius of Loyola. The Church around the world has remembered him, spoken his name at the Eucharistic Table, and given thanks for him today. I have joined the chorus. Though he lived long, long ago, he continues to mentor me. So I give thanks.
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