Wednesday, December 26, 2012

“Package tour” to Bethlehem -Fr.Hedwig Lewis




“Package tour” to Bethlehem

Hedwig Lewis SJ

Those who contemplate the Nativity tableau (“Crib”) with the Ignatian “composition of place” and “application of senses” can “draw much profit”.

St Ignatius suggests that you “compose” yourself so as to stay focused in prayer and find an entry point from exterior distractions to interior composure. Your imagination can then place you at the heart of the Nativity scene, so much so that you “smell and taste, with the senses, the infinite fragrance and sweetness of the Divinity.”

God speaks through your imagination just as he speaks to you through your relationships with other people, your ordinary experiences, desires, emotions and the like. And the active application of senses leads you to the passive reception of divine intimacy.

The “profit” you draw does not consist in the “lessons” learned during the contemplation. Rather, it is the realization of how God has impacted your mind-set through his word, powerfully enough to transform your life. The “profit” is God’s Christmas gift to you!

The Contemplations of the Second Week of the Spiritual Exercises offer a “package tour” of the sacred spots in the Holy Land. Why not take advantage of this pre-paid ticket for a return-trip to Bethlehem this Christmas?


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