Spirituality
As has been seen, Mary's own formation was grounded in Ignatian
spirituality. Lectures, retreats and triduums were led for the
fledgling Congregation by Fr St Leger and Fr Kenny. These
reinforced Mary's teaching and her guidance of the sisters and
novices in the way of the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius.
At the same time, Mary adapted the Ignatian heritage to the
particular charism of her own Congregation. She developed her
own deep faith in Divine Providence and began constantly to
remind her sisters that anything was possible through the gracious
and providential love of God. In doing God's work, they could
count on his constant help to provide all they needed as they
endeavoured to discern how they could meet the needs of the
poor. The essence of her own deep spirituality has been distilled in
a booklet of sayings The Teachings of Mary Aikenhead.
In essence, the goal for each Sister of Charity was to be:
the union of constant practical work with the
highest spirituality and interior discipline.
Mary's keen powers of discernment knew that suffering was
inevitable, and she stimulated the spiritual energy of her novices
by urging them to pray, in the words of St Ignatius,
"Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous,
to give and not to count
the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to
seek for rest,
to labour and to look for no other reward
than that
of doing God's holy will."