The spiritual life has often been compared to a journey into the mystery of God. For Christians, it is also a pilgrimage with and into Jesus Christ. So, in this part of the program, you are invited to make a very personal spiritual journey using The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola in combination with stories and prayers of specific Celtic saints — allowing you to engage the nuances of your faith and to explore your relationship with Jesus Christ.
 
Note: During the course of this journey, you may find it helpful to refer back to the notes from your earlier experiences with Saint Ita and the reflections on Celtic Christianity in the first part of this program. Very much like the interweaving of the parts the two different aspects of the program in the earlier section, this may help reinforce your awareness of the connections between the personal and the social aspects of faith as you find yourself being led into prayer while also hearing the voices of the world around you during your time of prayer.
 
The Ignatian exercises are designed to create an environment for intense prayer. So, you must decide how you want to approach this time of prayer. Using the books in the "Finding Your Place of Resurrection” series by Timothy Ray, you will be asked to make three distinct journeys using the methods developed by Ignatius of Loyola 500 years ago. However, you will have the choice both of how intense you want each of these journeys to be and how you want to make the overall journey through all three of these prayerful experiences.
 

Determining The Rhythm of Your Prayer

Before you begin the retreats, you may need to reacquaint yourself with the styles of prayer that will be used during the retreat and make certain that you have the mental stamina to complete the prayers in the retreat. Then, you will need to create an environment that is conducive to your prayer during the retreat. Finally, you will need to decide whether you want to conduct your retreat by integrating your prayer into your daily life or by going to (or creating) a place of seclusion for your prayer.
 
If you decide to make the retreat in daily life, you will be asked to pray for one and one-half hours each day in your daily life using the imaginative prayer techniques and prayerful reviews of your day described in the final section of From Loss to Love (as well as provided in slightly different form at the end of Nurturing the Courage of Pilgrims).
 
If you decide to make the retreat in seclusion, you will be asked to make a prayerful review of your day at least once (although it is encouraged to make both a morning and an evening review) as well as at least three or (as many as five) one-hour prayer periods each day. Suggestions for making a secluded retreat at home or away from home are provided in the “considerations” section at the beginning of From Loss to Love.
 
Whether you decide to make your retreat in daily life or in seclusion (either at home or away from home), you will need to make certain that you have a quiet space in which to pray which also provides you with the necessary resources to engage the virtual reality retreat. To assist in creating this environment, it may be helpful to consult the “considerations” section at the beginning of From Loss to Love.
 
Also, you need to decide whether you want to make these three retreats (which constitute a single experience) with time between each or without an interval between them. Both of these approaches have their own merits. Taking time between each retreat will allow you to reflect on your experiences, while completing the retreats without an interval creates a much more intense experience of prayer. So, you will need to decide which of these approaches best suits your own situation and personality.
 
Note: If you decide to separate these three retreats by a period of reflection and prayer, then you should do the follow-up exercises explained in the books between your retreats. On the other hand, if you decide to make the three retreats in quick succession then you also should do the reflection exercises from each of the books in succession after completing all three retreats.
 
Using the resources in the books, you will be able to make your retreats using different formats so that you create different experiences for each. You may choose to make one or more retreats in daily life while making the others in seclusion. If you choose this approach, then your approach to the follow-up materials for each retreat should be completed in the manner determined by the interval between each retreat.
 

Selecting Guides for Your Prayer

Your primary guide for these retreats remains the three books in the "Finding Your Place of Resurrection” series, but this website provides additional electronic resources to assist you on your journey through the retreats. These include guided contemplations in audio and virtual reality formats, so you will need to decide if you want to use these resources during your prayer.
 
Note: Regardless of which approach you use, it is important that you review the readings for each period of prayer before you begin. If you are only using the books, you will then proceed to the instructions provided for each prayer period. On the other hand, if you are using the electronic resources, you should engage the particular electronic resource you are using after this reading.
 
If you choose to rely solely on the books during your retreat or you choose to use the audio resources for the retreat, you will need to create the proper environment for your prayer using the suggestions provided in the considerations at the beginning of From Loss to Love. You should also develop pattern of ritual actions that clearly separate your time of prayer from the rest of your day – including a specific manner of approaching the instructions for prayer in the books or placing and using the electronic equipment during your guided contemplations.
 
If you choose to use the virtual reality resources, you do not need to put as much attention on the creation of a prayerful environment (with the exception of making the space as quiet as possible). However, you should develop a ritualized way of using the virtual reality equipment during your prayer.

Choosing Alternative Stories and Prayers

Additional sequences of stories and prayers related to Celtic saints different from those presented in the “Finding Your Place of Resurrection” series have been developed to broaden the range of saints companioning the retreats. This will allow you to choose which materials you wish to use during your retreat — selecting either the sequences presented in the books or those in the alternative resources as well as alternating between both sources in different retreats.
 
These choices also allow you to repeat prayers from the retreats with different stories after completing your initial journey through the Ignatian exercises.

To review or use these alternative resources prepared on A4,
please click here.
To review or use these alternative resources prepared on US Letterhead,
please click here.

 
Also, you may need to change the connective prayers between the retreats if you decide to proceed through the retreats without an interval between them. Specifically, if you do not have an interval between From Loss to Love and From Disciple to Friend, you should disregard "The Call of the King of Heaven" at the end of From Loss to Love and prayerfully consider "Companioning the King of Heaven" at the beginning of From Disciple to Friend. Similarly, you should disregard "Embracing the Adventure of Jesus’ Friendship" at the end of From Disciple to Friend and prayerfully consider "Embracing the Fullness of Jesus’ Friendship" at the beginning of From Passion to Resurrection if there is an interval between the second and the third retreat.
 

Using Electronic Equipment

Finally, you will need to make certain that you are comfortable with the equipment and procedures used during the virtual reality retreats. This will involve deciding what type of equipment you wish to use and the ways you will access materials during the retreat.
 
For more information about your options and the technical aspects of the retreats, please click here.
 

Following Up

Your reflections on your retreat experience and the various follow-up exercises outlined in the books should at a minimum take you one month after each of the retreats. This is important since the seeds which you planned during the retreat will take time to germinate and these various exercises serve to nurture these seeds as they grow. Still, the most important aspect of this prayer art of the program should involve the prayerful engagement with Jesus Christ through the dynamics of the spiritual exercises.
 
Finally, after completing these three retreats, you will find it useful to read the thoughts of others explaining their own appreciation and understanding of what Ignatius provides through his exercises. This exploration should be ongoing and transcend this part of the program, so you should consider these reflections as a bridge to, and ultimately a part of, your explorations of God's presence and desires in part three of this program. Still, you will find it helpful to begin your reflections of these resources before you move forward so that they become an additional resource in your future personal and vocational discernment. 

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Depending on what you decide concerning these various issues, it should take you between four and eleven months to complete this part of your journey. For example, if you decide to pray in three nine-day secluded retreats, it will take you 27 days to complete the retreats section. However, if you choose to make the retreats in daily life, you then need 27 weeks to complete the retreats. However, if you decide to make different retreats in different formats, you will fall somewhere between these two possibilities. Also, you may decide to take longer if you feel that the fruits of your experience need more time to ripen. 
 
Still, as always, these choices are yours to make and should be decided based on your desires, the degree of freedom you have in pursuing these retreats and your personality. In all of these matters, you should trust yourself and your comfort with these choices.
 
 

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