FROM AN ASCETICAL SPIRITUALITY OF THE EXERCISES TO THE
APOSTOLIC SPIRITUALITY OF THE CONSTITUTIONS: LABORERS IN THE
LORD’S VINEYARD
Peter Schineller, S.J.
INTRODUCTION
At the end of August, over 170 laypersons, priests, and religious assembled in
Loyola, Spain for a week long conference on the Spiritual Exercises. It was obvious in
Loyola that the Exercises today are unleashing new, creative energy and impetus into the
Church, as more and more laity become expert in the study and in the directing of the
Exercises. But for a more compete understanding of Ignatian or Jesuit spirituality and
theology, we must examine the Constitutions for insight into the mature, apostolicminded Ignatius.
While this conference focuses on the Constitutions, it may be helpful to begin by
indicating some links, and yet developments from the Spiritual Exercises to the
Constitutions. Let me indicate ideas, themes, questions on the Exercises that came up at
Loyola, which are also treated in the major writing of Ignatius, the Constitutions. At
times, I was frustrated at Loyola, because I saw where input from the Constitutions
might enlighten, and fill out the full meaning of some important themes of Ignatian
spirituality.
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Leadership – The Exercises help form lay leaders, possibly “heroic leadership”.
The Constitutions treat of leadership, the qualities needed in the general superior,
and the virtue of discreet charity which he especially needs.
o What follows the Exercises? Should they lead to a structured, Christian
way of life? Are not elements of this found in the Constitutions? There
we see that the Exercises are the first of six experiments. What practices
and experiences might follow a guided retreat?
Who can give the Exercises? What parts should be given? How can they be
adapted? The Constitutions explain that those in formation who have made them
can share them, and for the most part should share the First Week.
Discernment. Xavier faced a decision on whether or not to go to Japan and
China. The Constitutions present much material on how to make decisions about
what ministry to undertake.
The spiritual vision and theology of the Exercises can be seen as groundbreaking,
as the beginning of a modern world. So too, the Constitutions are at times very
close to the theology and missiology of the Second Vatican Council, in its
Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World.
Prayer. Insights and guidelines from the Constitutions can help shape the
ongoing prayer life of an apostolic person.
These are some of the areas examined at the Loyola Conference on the Exercises. I
believe that insights from the Constitutions of the mature Ignatius can deepen our
understanding of these and other areas of Ignatian spirituality.
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MY WAY OF PROCEEDING I will unpack and develop nine summary statements.
A fuller explanation of most of them can be found in the issue of Studies which I wrote
several years ago.1
1. The audience of the Exercises is the individual Christian seeking to find the will
of God in life. The audience of the Constitutions is the Society of Jesus and Church
officials upon whom we depend for our legitimacy.
The result of making the Exercises is finding the will of God, and ordering
one’s life. It may lead one to choose marriage or single life, an apostolic religious life or
a contemplative way of life. The Exercises do not necessarily lead to an apostolic way
of life. On the other hand, the Constitutions define the Jesuit and his pathway to God.
They are originally and primarily for Jesuits. For one who has made the decision to be an
apostolic person, the Constitutions begin where the Exercises end. They explain how the
Society of Jesus is to grow, accomplish its goals, carry out its mission and projects, and
be apostolically effective.
The Exercises were written by the early Ignatius, based upon his own conversion
experience. The Constitutions were the fruit of the older, mature Ignatius, reflecting
upon the body of men he had gathered who offer their services to the Church. Ignatius
spent more time composing the Constitutions than the Exercises (from 1541 to 1549
preparatory documents, from 1549-1556, composition and different drafts).2
These differences between the two key Ignatian documents should lead us to be
open to some development in the theology and spirituality of St. Ignatius. As the title of
this talk indicates, I characterize this shift as a development “from an ascetical spirituality
of the Exercises to the apostolic spirituality of the Constitutions.”3
2. There is a significant shift in the basic imagery of Ignatius, from the soldier and
the pilgrim (often ascetic pilgrim) of the Exercises to the laborers in the vineyard in
the Constitutions.
From the Exercises, we know the importance of the image for St. Ignatius. In this
summary statement, I wish to outline an important shift in his imagery.
The image of the laborer in the Lord=s vineyard comes to flower and flourish in
the Constitutions. It emerges as the predominant, consistent, and constant image to refer
to what Jesuits do and what they are called and formed to accomplish.4 Not only the
frequency, but the strategic places where the image is found show its significance. It
occurs most frequently in Part VII on mission, the section written first, and one which
Ignatius himself seems to be most responsible for. Justly called the centerpiece of the
Constitutions, this Part is entitled AThe Relations to their Neighbor of Those Already
Incorporated into the Society when they are Dispersed into the Vineyard of Christ Our
Lord.@ Whether at the call of the Pope or the Superior, whether traveling or residing,
Athey are dispersed throughout Christ=s vineyard to labor in that part of it, and in that
work which have been entrusted to them@ and where Amuch fruit of glory and service to
God is expected@ (603).
No. 622 makes the image more explicit in describing the norms in making choices
in regard to missions. Jesuits should be sent to the parts which have Agreater
need@, to Awhere greater fruit is likely to be reaped,@ where there is hope of
Apreserving the fruit produced to the glory of God.@5
2
While Part VII on mission is the center, earlier sections of the Constitutions on
the admission and formation of members also employ the image. Candidates are
described as Athose who hope to enter the Society in order to be good and faithful
sowers in the Lord=s field and to preach his divine word@ (General Examen, No. 30.6
In the very first paragraph of Part III on the preservation and progress of
members, we are to care that the members have and preserve the Ahealth and bodily
strength necessary to labor in the Lord=s vineyard@ (243). The second paragraph of Part
IV, on the formation of those retained in the Society affrirms that we should be
Aadmitting young men whose good habits of life and talent give hope that they will
become both virtuous and learned in order to labor in the vineyard of Christ our Lord@
(308).
Ignatius constantly calls for communications among those laboring in the
vineyard. They should Akeep the superior informed by frequent reports about the fruit
which is gained@ (626). This not only informs and encourages one another, but also
supplies the superior with information that will enable him to make better decisions
regarding future missions. The Constitutions require weekly letters if possible, from
those Asent to bear fruit in the Lord=s field@ (674).
In sum, in the Constitutions the Jesuit is primarily and consistently described as
one admitted and trained to be a laborer in the vineyard, or as one already formed and
laboring in the Lord=s vineyard. Elements of the image of the soldier and the pilgrim (so
important for Ignatius) are found in the Constitutions, but they are overshadowed by the
beautiful image of the laborer in the Lord’s vineyard.7
Clearly I find most enriching the image of laborers in the Lord=s vineyard.8 The
world is seen not as a battlefield, prison, or vale of tears, but as a God’s garden or the
Lord’s vineyard, a place of life and growth. As laborers in the vineyard, we make a
difference in this world. We are involved in a living and life-giving project, a
constructive task whose goal is to bear fruit for the Lord. We are co-workers with God
(1 Cor. 3:9). We do not just pass through, or simply weave baskets in the day and take
them apart at night. Rather we are here to tend the garden and bear fruit, fruit that will
last. One who works in a vineyard is an optimist, a laborer committed to the long haul,
to patient, respectful, cooperation with fellow laborers and with the Lord of the harvest.
Yet it is not a soft and idyllic image. One must be ready to bear the heat of the day. The
enemy is also at work. One faces the frustrations of dry seasons, weeds and diseases.
One must clear the stones, dig the soil, plant and tend, fertilize and prune. An abundant
harvest presupposes days of sweat and hard labor.9
Perhaps the shift of the first Jesuits to realize the importance of education and
educational institutions goes hand in hand with their identity as laborers in the Lord=s
vineyard. Indeed, the early educational institutions of the Society were founded as
seminaries, literally Aseed beds@ for future Jesuit laborers.
3. The emphasis upon a test or trial spirituality of the Exercises shifts to the project
or mission spirituality (and theology) of the Constitutions.
Here I rely upon the writings of Juan Luis Segundo. He makes a very helpful
distinction between a trial or test spirituality and a project or mission spirituality.
Segundo quite pointedly sees this shift from the TEST OR TRIAL spirituality of the
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Exercises to the PROJECT SPIRITUALITY of the later Ignatius.10 In a test or trial
spirituality, the earth is a vale of tears and dangerous. Our goal in life is to pass through,
uncontaminated. God judges us kindly because not died in a state of mortal sin. In a
project spirituality we are here in order to get involved in the service of humankind. Our
goal is not simply to avoid sin, but to overcome sin, to transform what is unjust into
justice. We are judged by the fruits of our actions, by how we have used our talents, and
made a difference in our families, communities, and world. This outward, apostolic
focus clearly reflects the image of the laborer in the vineyard. Segundo refers to an
incident where Ignatius say that if given the choice, he would choose to live on in the
world and work for the Lord, rather than die today and go right to heaven. Ignatius does
not choose the option where concern for his personal salvation is paramount, but
prefers to live and die as an apostle committed to do the Lord=s work.11 This is reflected
in the Constitutions, where the project of the Society of Jesus is launched. In a short
time, Jesuits would be sent by the Pope or the General Superior on dangerous missions to
the far east and to the west, to northern Europe and to Africa. Readiness to travel even to
the ends of the earth, working for the salvation of souls is the first characteristic of the
Jesuit (308).
A sociologist such as Robert Bellah once spoke of the mission-oriented vision of
Ignatius as a major shift in western culture. Eventually the Ignatian shift from trial to
project becomes the predominant church model, finding clear expression in the
document, the Church in the Modern World, in the Second Vatican Council. I believe this
project- oriented, world-oriented spirituality of the Constitutions contributed greatly in
the formation of Jesuit culture, in inspiring Jesuits to engage in education, in arts and
science, as we will surely see in other papers at this conference.
4. From an emphasis upon saving one’s own soul in the Exercises, we move to the
mission to fruitful labor in the Lord’s vineyard as the end of the Jesuit in the
Constitutions.
THE EXERCISES. Quite surprisingly, the helping of the neighbor as a goal of
one=s life or a criteria for choosing does not appear in the Exercises. Examination of
the text reveals an emphasis on the salvation of one=s own soul. In Annotation No. 1,
the goal of the Exercises is to rid attachments, Aseeking and finding the will of God in
the disposition of our life for the salvation of our soul.@ In the First Principle and
Foundation, AThe human person is created to praise, reverence and serve God our Lord,
and by this means to save one=s soul@ (23). Everything else helps us attain this end,
and so we must chose what is conducive to this end for which we were created. The
grace sought in the meditation on the AThree Classes of Men@ is Awhat is more for the
glory of His Divine Majesty and the salvation of my soul@ (No. 152).
One way of modifying this is by saying that the praise, reverence and service of
God, the glory of God, involves love of neighbor. Indeed, the mature Ignatius would
agree with this, but in these early writings he does not seem to include it in his
understanding of the term. Later on, the glory of God will be almost identified with
helping the neighbor, rather than with the salvation of one=s own soul.
THE CONSTITUTIONS. Something quite different emerges in the Constitutions.
In describing the end of the Society, the Constitutions do mention saving one=s own
soul. But this is said only in the context of explaining the Society to the candidates to be
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admitted and to those in early training (General Examen and Parts I-IV). Ignatius
allows those in formation to be concerned about the salvation of their own soul.
Gradually he expects them not to be focused on the test or trial but rather to give
themselves generously, totally, to the project of helping and serving the neighbor.
The General Examen explains to the candidates what the Society of Jesus is
about. We read at the very beginning:
The end of this Society is to devote itself with God=s grace not only to the
salvation and perfection of the members own souls, but also with that same grace
to labor strenuously in giving aid toward the salvation and perfection of the souls
of their neighbor. (No. 3)
This text addressed to candidates, presents a double aim, one=s own salvation and the
help of the neighbor. In No. 52 Ignatius repeats this. If the candidate Ajudges that it is
highly expedient for him to enter this Society for the greater praise and glory of God our
Lord, and the better saving and perfecting of his own soul by helping his neighbor=s soul
as well...@ then one continues with the interview towards possible admission. Yet here
one can detect the beginnings of a shift because the future Jesuit will save his own soul
by helping the neighbor.
Part IV concerning those in formation begins: AThe end steadfastly pursued by
the Society is to aid its own members and their neighbors in attaining the ultimate end for
which they were created@ (307). This allows for a double end. Yet the very next
number, a later addition to the text, pulls back from that and states that Athe aim and
end of this Society, is by traveling... to preach... and use all other means it can with the
grace of God to help souls@ (308). Throughout Part IV Ignatius is gradually cutting back
on the emphasis on saving one=s own soul, and emphasizing more the project or mission
to help others (see Nos. 324, 351, 446).
When we come to Part VII on mission of the formed members, this emphasis on
helping the neighbor is the only end mentioned. It begins by explaining Awhat the
members need to observe in regard to their neighbor (which is an end eminently
characteristic of our Institute)...@ (603). The entire thrust of Part VII is outward
orientation and mission, how we can best help the neighbor, with no mention of the
concern for one=s own salvation.
Part X, the last part, is a review and summary of the Constitution.. The Society
relies upon the grace of God: AIn him alone must be placed the hope that he will
preserve and carry forward what he deigned to begin for his service and praise and for the
aid of souls@ (812).. Again the end or objective of the Society, Athe objective it seeks,
…is to aid souls to reach their ultimate and supernatural end...@ (813).
These texts, I believe, point to the development Ignatius himself underwent, and
the development he expects in candidates for the Society. At the beginning they may
be concerned about personal salvation and the fear of the loss of their own soul. But
eventually Ignatius expects this to be secondary to the goal of the Society which is to
help souls.
The Constitutions develop a thoroughly apostolic spirituality. The purpose or
end of the life of the Jesuit is to glorify and serve God by helping the neighbor. We are
to become involved in this great undertaking or mission, living in accord with a project
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spirituality in the language of Segundo. Prayer, studies, and the vows are all means of
carrying out these undertakings or missions.12
The historian David Knowles affirms that with the Society of Jesus comes the
end of the monastic conception of religious life. The focus is not upon the spiritual
advancement of the community, the salvation of their souls. Rather “with the Jesuits the
end of the order as an order is sought and achieved in foro externo, by external action,
directed by a single head.”13
5. Norms for choosing, for making decisions in the Constitutions have a more
worldly, apostolic, pragmatic emphasis than the norms in the Exercises which look
more ascetically to the next life.
IN THE EXERCISES. The entire section on Making a Choice of a Way of Life
or the Reformation of One=s Life is dominated by the consideration of what is for the
glory of God and the salvation of my soul. This is seen most clearly in the set of rules
not often studied or referred to, the ARules for the Distribution of Alms@ (337-344).
The retreatant imagines someone else who does this Afor the greater glory of God and
the perfection of his soul.@ He/she should follow that example (339). One pictures
oneself at the moment of death (340), or before the judge on last day (341) and reflects on
how one wishes he or she had acted. One=s concern is to gain entrance into heaven by
the correct distribution of alms.14 In none of the rules is the condition or needs of the
neighbor enter into the picture. There is no analysis of the situation, no look beyond
oneself to the recipient, to the needy, to how or where my almsgiving might best help
someone.. The perspective of the state of my soul at my death, more than the present
need or good of the neighbor, predominates.
IN THE CONSTITUTIONS. Since the formed Jesuit’s goal has shifted from saving
his own soul to the help of the neighbor, there is a corresponding change in the norms for
making decisions regarding what members of the Society should be doing.
These norms and criteria are presented in part VII of the Constitutions.15. In
choosing and in specifying missions we are to look outward to the world, the vineyard,
and examine where are the greater possibilities for gaining fruit (622-626). Where are
the greater needs and the more universal good? Where can we give greater glory of
God? To whom are we more indebted? Criteria are set forth to best determine where
to go, what to do, and whom to send. Clearly we find here a very different set of
norms from those given in the Exercises for choosing a way of life or for distributing
alms.
In the Constitutions, there is a strong emphasis upon worldly, external factors,
historical conditions, concrete needs. While prayerful listening to the interior
movements of the Spirit (signs from heaven) remains constant, Ignatius puts more
emphasis in the Constitutions on the present circumstances, the objective conditions in
the Lord=s vineyard (signs of the times).
In the terminology of Segundo, Ignatius is more and more concerned with
“historical efficacy.” He observes and seeks concrete fruits.. The expert on management
and corporations, Peter Drucker, saw this as a major contribution of Ignatius, namely the
continual, ongoing analysis of results, feedback analysis, learning from experience, and
an emphasis on performance and results.16
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6. God in the Constitutions is found and served primarily in actions and in mission
rather than in prayer or meditation.
The Contemplation to Attain Love at the end of the Exercises challenges us to
seek, find, and serve God in all things. The Constitutions provide the discipline and the
practices whereby the Jesuit laborer in the vineyard achieves. How different from the
view of The Imitation of Christ where the world is not the Lord’s vineyard, but rather is
a place of danger, temptation, or exile.
Prayer remains central, but it is the prayer of an apostle, incarnational prayer. In
terms of formal prayer for the formed Jesuit, Ignatius shows great flexibility:
In what pertains to prayer, meditation, and study, and also in regard to the bodily
practices of fast, vigils and other austerities or penances, it does not seem proper
to give them any other rule than that which discreet charity dictates to them...(#
582).
For those in formation he writes:
in addition to confession and Communion every eight days, and daily Mass, they
will have one hour, during which they will recite the Hours of Our Lady, examine
their consciences twice each day, and add other prayers according to each one=s
devotion to fill out the rest of the aforesaid hour (342).
This surely leave little time for lengthy meditation or contemplation, and certainly no
time for an uninterrupted hour long meditation.
PRAYER OF PETITION.
Most often when Ignatius mentions prayer in the
Constitutions it is prayer of petition for specific persons, decisions, and missions. Such
prayer is a primary means of achieving the end of the Society, the helping of souls. In
Part X, where Ignatius sets forth his final hopes and dreams for the Society of Jesus, he
writes:
AIn conformity with this hope, [that the Society will grow, serve...] the first and
most appropriate means will be the prayers and Masses which ought to be offered
for this holy intention...@ (812)
In Part VII on mission, we note a slight change where Ignatius puts good example as the
first means to help the neighbor. Yet prayer remains in second place described as
Aprayers for all the Church, especially for those persons in it who are of greater
importance for the common good. They should also pray for friends and
benefactors, living and dead, whether they request these prayers or not....@ (638)
PRAYER OF PARTICULAR JESUITS. The first quality of the General is that he
should be closely united with God our Lord and have familiarity with him in prayer and
in all his operations...@ (723) His prayer must frequently find expression in the prayer of
petition.
He will achieve this kind of government by the good reputation and example of
his life, by charity and love for the Society in Christ our Lord, and by his constant
and heartfelt prayer and Masses to obtain the grace of the aforementioned
preservation and growth. (790)
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The assistants of Fr. General, in addition to Aobserving the affairs of the Indies,@ etc.,
are given special responsibility; AEach one would offer special prayer and be mindful in
his Masses of the region particularly entrusted to him...@ (803).
Ignatius gives prayer a high priority in his instruction for the local Superiors or
Rectors of a College: AThe function of the rector will be first of all to sustain the whole
college by his prayers and holy desires...@(424). If there is a question of dismissal, there
should be prayer before dismissing one, and then prayer that God will guide him after
the dismissal (221-229).
Scholastics in studies should pray for success in their studies (360). Ignatius
warns them that their studies might lead them to Agrow cool in their love of true virtues
and of religious life, still they will not at that time have much place for mortifications or
for long prayers and meditations@ (340).17
EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE. For one engaged in, or preparing to engage in
apostolic activity, the examination of conscience receives special emphasis. In the
examen we review what we have done for the Lord, what fruits we have been reaping.
We look ahead to where we hope to serve and meet the Lord, where we might reap a
greater harvest. In the examen, historical efficacy and fruitfulness come into play as we
reflect upon where we have met and hope to meet God in our apostolic lives. Through
this examen, we grow into the habit of finding and serving God in all things, as fruitful
laborers in the Lord=s vineyard.
7. Focus upon the Exercises as the substance of the annual retreat of the Jesuit was
not in the mind of Ignatius. Much material from the Constitutions might well be
considered in the annual retreat.
The prefatory letter that appeared at the head of the first official printed edition of
the Constitutions ends in this manner.
I beseech you, brothers in the Lord, that we may walk in a manner worthy of our
vocation, and in order to know that vocation, may read and reread these
Constitutions that have been bestowed upon us by the gift of God. Let us study
them day and night. Let us vie with each other in learning them, pondering them,
and keeping them. If we do so, our name will be matched by our lives and our
profession made manifest in deed. Rome, 155918
One would expect that Jesuits would regularly review and pray over their Constitutions.
Yet for several centuries we were presented only with the Epitome (excerpts, and those
in Latin). Only in 1971 were the Constitutions available in English. Why this neglect?
One part of the picture is Decree 29 of General Congregation 6 (held in 1608, with
Claudio Aquaviva as General). This mandated “Each year all should devote themselves
to the Spiritual Exercises for eight or ten consecutive days. So that this can be done
effectively and thoroughly, this yearly practice of the Spiritual Exercises is made the
subject of a decree, and it is given the highest commendation by the congregation…”19
Jesuit historian William Bangert, normally calm and moderate in his views,
changes his tone when he evaluates this legislation. He writes:
The Congregation took a basic Ignatian spiritual experience, for which he
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(Ignatius) gave not the slightest intimation of obligatory annual repetition, and
encased it in a tight cover of legislation. By its universal application, this
legislation offended Ignatius’ respect for wide differences among Jesuits in their
modes of prayer. It ignored Ignatius’ sensitivity to the varied work of the Holy
Spirit hearts. It warped Ignatius’ purpose for the Spiritual Exercises, which he
never intended to be repeated year after year. To the Spiritual Exercises
themselves it did a disservice, since it squeezed them into an annual format that
became vulnerable to routine.20
This is beginning to change. The letter of Fr. General Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, which is
now the Preface to the official text of the Constitutions and Norms, commends the
Constitutions and Norms to our personal and communitarian prayer. The revised law of
the Society, Norm 415, explicitly points in this direction:
Finally, all by earnest reading and meditation (e.g. at the time of the annual
Spiritual Exercises, renewal of vows, monthly recollection, the beginning of the
year, etc.) should strive ever to known, esteem and love better our Constitution,
Norms and Rules…21
Personally, I have directed a number of Jesuits in formation in their annual retreat, using
material from the Constitutions and Norms. Each one has found this focus on the
Constitutions and Norms very valuable. They have read parts of the Constitutions, the
documents of CG 34 and possibly the Norms, but they have for the most part never
prayed over them. They found a retreat based on the Constitutions and Norms to be a
pleasant change, and normally one that confirmed them in their vocation.22
One hopes that renewal in the Society of Jesus will be fostered as Jesuits give
more attention to the revised Constitutions and Norms. The time of the annual retreat
seems to be an opportunity for this.
8. Since the Constitutions are basically an apostolic spirituality, they offer much
insight and direction to those who collaborate in Ignatian apostolates.
Jesuits have committed themselves to ACooperation with the Laity on
Mission.@ 23 We have shared the treasure of the Exercises with religious and lay
persons. We maintain that the Constitutions are for Jesuits, outlining our Institute, our
way of proceeding. But is this sufficient? In this day of lay collaboration, lay
spirituality, and the apostolate of the laity, is there not a sense in which the
Constitutions, or at least SOME aspects of them can be helpful for the laity in their
mission in the Church and society? A number of religious congregations of women rely
heavily on the Jesuit Constitutions as the basis of their apostolic spirituality.. Is there not
a possible further step in examining how insights of these same Constitutions might be
of great value to lay apostles?24
Those who benefit from insights of the Constitutions might be a group of lay
persons, such as a Christian Life Community (CLC), or a parish society that wants to be
more fully and apostolically Christian. They might also help the individual layperson
who wishes to be apostolically involved and grow in the life of the Spirit.. He/she may
already have made the Exercises, and is now looking for a new way to contribute to the
mission of the Church.25
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Let me set forth some insights from the Constitutions, grouped under two
headings: 1) personal qualities, virtues, and attitudes needed for a laborer in the Lord=s
vineyard; and 2) means to be effective apostolic laborers.
PERSONAL QUALITIES, VIRTUES, AND ATTITUDES
--- the themes of moderation and flexibility pervade the Constitutions. Moderation points
to the perfect mean which does not lean Atoward an extreme of rigor or toward excessive
laxity@ (822). Flexibility indicates an adaptability that leaves room for exceptions and
accommodations to the general rules, room for the freedom and working of the Spirit.
--- the importance of the exterior, the correct use and control of the senses, outward
peace (250-53). This includes proper care of the body so that one can be apostolically
effective in the long haul (826, 292).
--- respect for all persons whether cooks or doctors, executives or security guards. One
seeks, sees, finds, and serves God in all (551). A strong trust in the Spirit who speaks to
and directs each and every person (582).
--- a desire for continued growth in the spiritual life that is fostered by the desire and
ability to learn from others, by seeking and accepting advice and correction. (269-70).26
Those in authority should have an officially appointed admonitor who will regularly give
friendly advice (770). The leader should have a system of assistants or advisors (810-11
and 431). Ignatius expects every individual and the entire apostolic body to constantly
grow in the Spirit and increase in well being and apostolic effectiveness (813).
--- leadership characterized by service rather than ambition or self-aggrandizement
(817). Members in turn have the responsibility to support, encourage, and empower
their superiors in their difficult task (766).
--- freedom, availability and an attitude of indifference in regard to possible ministries.
One is available and ready to travel, to respond to where the greatest needs are (82 and
304).
--- viewing one=s life and mission as being an instrument in the hands of God for the
good of others (638, 813, 814).
MEANS TO BECOME EFFECTIVE LABORERS IN THE VINEYARD
--- the need and advantages of having a spiritual director or mentor, one who can guide,
assist, support one in the life of ministry (263).27
--- practicing Athe art of dealing and conversing with others@ (814). Ignatius calls this
the grace of conversation, and desired this skill in all Jesuits, so that they could engage in
spiritual conversation, sharing the good news in a variety of formal and informal
situations (349, 648). Monastic silence gives way to quality conversation.
--- an ability to communicate as teachers and preachers (280, 402), striving for
eloquentia perfecta.
--- the need to cultivate Asolid and perfect virtues@ and Ainterior gifts@ to which we
Aattach greater importance than to learning and other natural and human gifts@ (813). At
the same time, a reliance upon natural means in service to the apostolate. AThe human
or acquired means ought to be sought with diligence, especially well-grounded and solid
learning, and a method of proposing it to the people...@ (814) From this flows the
importance of education and studies (307); the need to learn the language of the people
(402).
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--- the proper use of extrinsic gifts of nobility, wealth, reputation in the service of God
and God=s people (191). Ignatius had the remarkable ability to use both human and
divine means.
--- the importance of good example in our everyday life. Ignatius calls this the first
means to help our neighbor (637).
--- always searching for the magis, where greater fruit can be reaped. Use of the
multiplier effect by working with the powerful and influential, by working in the famous
cities (622). Linking the resources of the powerful with the needs of the powerless.
--- the importance of constant and ongoing communication, oral and written, among
laborers in the vineyard and with their superiors. This gives support, maintains union,
and also provides the information that will assure the effective and best use of resources
(821, 673-75).
These are a few insights and attitudes found in the Constitutions which could be
shared with lay collaborators, laymen and women working in the Lord’s vineyard.
9. “By that same grace” the Jesuit labors to save his own soul and labors for the
salvation of others. The emphasis of the Constitutions is on how that grace, an
incarnational and apostolic grace, enables us to reach out and be fruitful laborers in
the Lord’s vineyard.
At the very beginning of the Constitutions (No. 3), we read:
The end of this Society is to devote itself with God=s grace not only to the
salvation and perfection of the members own souls, but also with that same grace
to labor strenuously in giving aid toward the salvation and perfection of the souls
of their neighbors.
AWith that same grace,@ is a simple phrase that reveals and uncovers much of the path
we have examined in the life of St. Ignatius and his followers. Nadal sees in these
words
the whole nucleus of the Society: here all our thought should be centered... For
all that we have received from God, we have received to employ in the salvation
and perfection of our neighbor... Alas, then for us, if we strive only for our own
salvation! That is not our grace; that is not our vocation. It is a good occupation,
indeed, but not ours.28
I believe this phrase. AWith that same grace,@ reveals an important insight, a step
forward not only for Ignatius, but for the Catholic tradition. Grace, as Ignatius describes
it, pulls and pushes us in two directions. It converts and draws us to the love of God and
then pushes us out to the love of neighbor.
The grace of God enabled his conversion and his writing of the Spiritual
Exercises. He there describes the end of the person as one to praise, reverence and
serve God and by that means to save his soul. Later on, Ignatius, led by the same
dynamic of grace, dedicated himself to gather followers and form the Society of Jesus
whose purpose and the purpose of the members was not so much to be concerned with
personal salvation, but to dedicate their lives to the salvation of others.
This insight into the dynamic working of grace reveals the deeply incarnational
truth that we cannot find God, except in and through the neighbor. This may seem
simple and obvious – as found in the letter of John, and in Matthew Chapter 25. But it
seems to be easily lost or overlooked in view of the strong monastic, individualist, and
11
often other-worldly strands that remain influential in Catholic piety. It is this insight
that grounds and founds the theology and spirituality and mission of the Society of Jesus,
and provides a solid basis for any apostolic spirituality.
Pedro Arrupe calls for this new vision in his oft quoted address on men and
women for others. The new vision of justice must give rise to a new of spirituality that
includes the personal and the social, the interior and the exterior. Interior conversion is
not enough. God=s converting grace calls us not only to win back our whole selves for
God, but to win back our whole world for God.29
The vision of Pedro Arrupe certainly coheres with the thrust of the Second
Vatican Council. The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World
concludes with a call for an apostolic, mission-oriented Christian life. In a section
entitled AA World to be Built Up and Brought to Fulfilment@, we read in language that
echoes a project spirituality:
Christians can yearn for nothing more ardently than to serve the men and women
of this age with an ever growing generosity and success... They have shouldered
a weighty task here on earth and they must render an account of it to him who will
judge all men and women on the last day (93)
Clearly here is a call for an apostolic life and spirituality on the part of all Christians, a
life of labor in the Lord=s vineyard. Jesuits themselves try to live this dynamic of grace
as fruitful laborers in the Lord=s vineyard. Now they strive to share this rich heritage of
the Exercises and Constitutions with lay persons similarly called to be faithful and
fruitful laborers in the Lord=s vineyard
CONCLUSION
“Ite, inflammate omnia.” These words are traditionally ascribed to Ignatius as he
sends forth Xavier and the early Jesuit missionaries. There is need of such zeal and
energy in the Society of Jesus today. Recent studies of the Exercises, directed retreats,
retreat in daily life, with the assistance of lay collaborators, has brought new life and
energy to the Society of Jesus and to the Church. So too, one can hope that our renewed
study by Jesuits and others of the Constitutions and what the Constitutions led to, will in
a similar fashion bring new life and energy to the Society of Jesus and our lay associates
– all of us working more vigorously as fruitful laborers in the Lord’s vineyard.
“Fruitful laborers in the Lord’s vineyard.” That is the challenging description of
the mature Jesuit on mission, an image beautifully set forth by Ignatius in the
Constitutions over 400 years ago. In the upcoming days of this Conference we will
surely trace some of the key ways in which Jesuit laborers formed a Jesuit culture, carried
out that world-affirming mission or project of the Society of Jesus, and brought gospel
values to different areas of the vineyard – including education, science, art and
architecture.
Pope John Paul II in his Exhortation on the Laity viewed the entire modern world
as the Lord’s vineyard. He calls upon every Christian to be a fruitful laborer in that
vineyard. Relying upon the rich Ignatian heritage found initially in the Spiritual
Exercises, and then developed and even transformed in the Constitutions, we Jesuits
should be well prepared to help challenge, train, guide, form, and collaborate with all
Christians who are called to labor fruitfully in the Lord’s vineyard.
12
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Aldama, Antonio de, S.J. The Constitutions of the Society of Jesus: An Introductory
Commentary on the Constitutions, St. Louis: The Institute of Jesuit Sources 1989
Amaladoss, Michael, S.J. “Sent on Mission,” in Constitutions of the Society of
Jesus: Incorporation of a Spirit
Arrupe,
“Men and Women for Others, in A Planet to Heal, 95-108.
Bangert, Nadal
p. 209
Bertrand, Dominique, S.J. Un Corps pour l’Esprit
1974 Centrum Ignatianum Spiritualitatis
Collection Christus, No. 38 Etudes
Desclee de Brouwer Bellarmin,
Codina, Victor and Fiorita, Miguel Angel, “The Way: St. Ignatius’s Constant Theme,”
CIS 1976 No. 22 5-18
The Constitutions of the Society of Jesus and their Complementary Norms
The Institute of Jesuit Sources, St. Louis, 1996
Conwell, Joseph F., S.J. “The Kamikaze Factor: Choosing Jesuit Ministries,” Studies
in the Spirituality of Jesuits, Vol XI, No. 5 (November, 1979)
Conwell, Joseph F., S.J. Walking in the Spirit, The Institute of Jesuit Sources, St. Louis,
2003
Conwell - Impelling Spirit
Courel, Francois, S.J. “the Single Aim of the Apostolic Institute,” The Way,
Supplement (No. 14) Autumn 1971 46-61
13
Abridgement of “La fin unique de la compagnie de Jesus,” in AHSJ 35 (1966)
186-211
Crowe, Frederick E., S.J.
Review for Religious
“The Ignatian Exercises and Jesuit Spirituality,”
524-33. July-August 1994
Divarkar, Parmananda, S.J. (editor) “A Pathway to God: Rediscovering the
Constitutions of the Society of Jesus,” 1994 Gujarat Sahitya Prakash, Anand, India
Echartes, Ignacio, S.J. An Ignatian Concordance Ediciones Mensajero, in
cooperation with the Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1996
Endean, Philip, S.J.
“Who do you say Ignatius Is?
Gray, Howard, “What Kind of Document?
1988 21-34.
19/5 November 1987
The Way, Supplement (No. 61) Spring
Hanvey, James, S.J. “The Recovery of the Constitutions,: Mukai (Zimbabwe) No. 17.
22-24
Jaer, Andre de, S.J. Together for Mission – A Spiritual Reading of the Constituti ons of
the Society of Jesus
The Institute of Jesuit Sources, St. Louis, 2001
Knowles, David. From Pachomius to Ignatius Oxford Clarendon Press, 1966.
Lowney, Christopher.
Heroic Leadership Chicago, Loyola Press, 2003
Lukacs, Janos, S.J. “The Incarnational Dynamic of the Constitutions,”
36/4 Winter 2004
McGuckian, Michael C., S.J. “The One End of the Society of Jesus,” AHSJ (60) 1991,
91-111.
O’Malley, John. The First Jesuits Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1993.
14
Padberg, John, S.J.
St. Louis Conference, 2000 from internet
Shift in Ignatius
Ravier, Andre, S.J. Ignatius of Loyola and the Founding of the Society of Jesus
Ignatius Press, San Francisco, 1987
Schineller - Studies - “In their Own Words: Ignatius, Favre, and Our Way of
Proceeding,”
38/1 Spring 2006
Segundo…
Peter Schineller “The Pilgrim Journey of Ignatius…” Studies in the Spirituality of
Jesuits, 31/4 September 1999.
1
For one study of this, see Andre de Jaer S.J. Together for Mission – A Spiritual
Reading of the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus
The Institute of Jesuit Sources,
St. Louis, 2001
2
According to Howard Gray, “The Exercises offer a program of conversion, discipleship
and dedication; the Constitutions offer a specific way for living out the values of the
Exercises.” The famed tertian instructor Paul Kenney explained that the Constitutions
are the Spiritual Exercises lived by a group. Thus the Exercises could be viewed as the
beginning, the turn, the spark, the choosing. The Constitutions present the long term way
of life. They explain how a particular body (the Jesuits) are to choose, dismiss, form,
train, educate, send forth, lived united in mind and heart, under one general superior, and
how in the final Part X, they are to sustain all of this in the long haul.
3
4
One might expect that many images such as apostle, missionary, soldier, servant,
priest, preacher or teacher would be employed to describe Jesuits at work, but the
predominant image is that of the laborer in the Lord=s vineyard. The phrase Athe
vineyard of the Lord@ occurs 15 times: to labor in the vineyard (107, 149, 243, 308, 573);
workers in the vineyard (144,334, 338); distributed in the vineyard (135, 137, 603, 604,
654); and finally, choosing that part of the vineyard which has greater need (622). A
series of related images also find prominence such as the image of Abearing fruit,
spiritual fruit,@ and the image of Alaborers and laboring.@ These occur regularly, not
always explicitly linked with the image of the Lord=s vineyard. Ignatius reminds us that
the enemy has also been at work. Therefore the Society must give special consideration
to
15
places where the enemy of Christ our Lord is seen to have sown cockle (Mt. 13:24-30),
particularly where he has spread bad opinion about the Society or stirred up ill will
against it so as to impede the fruit which it might produce...
5
See Joseph Conwell for an expanded interpretation of this part of the Constitutions on
mission. “The Kamikaze Factor: Choosing Jesuit Ministries,” Studies in the Spirituality
of Jesuits, Vol XI, No. 5 (November, 1979)
6
In Part I we admit candidates Aendeavoring to secure in the Society an increase of
workers for the holy vineyard of Christ our Lord@ (144). We add new members in order
to Arelieve those who are laboring in the Lord=s vineyard, or who are studying to labor in
it later,...@(149)
7
To show the significance of this shift, we might contrast the image of the
laborer with that of the soldier and pilgrim.
The military image of the soldier provides a strong clear purpose of fighting the
battle and overcoming the enemy. The soldier tends to see the world as good against.
evil. One may be tempted to employ strong, violent measures, the quick solution, in
winning the battle. It may lead to the holy war mentality of the crusader, at times
leading to impatience and intolerance. This image is very strong in the Formula of the
Institute, but less employed, although not entirely absent from the Constitutions.
The image of the pilgrim reminds us that we journey, search and wander in search of our
true home. We travel light, focused upon the goal of seeking and finding God. At the
same time, this journeying discourage us from digging in, making a difference where we
are, and committing ourselves to work for the transformation of situations. Perhaps the
danger for the pilgrim is to focus too much upon his or her search, with insufficient
outward apostolic concern for the neighbor or those accompanying one on the pilgrim
journey7
8
Pope John Paul II structures his Apostolic Exhortation on the Laity, 1989 around the
image of the laborer in the vineyard. All laypersons and priests are to labor in
complimentary ways in the vineyard which is composed of rich and varied gardens.
9
One final note. Ignatius does not turn from the image of the vineyard to develop
the
image of Christ the vine, or Christ the vinedresser, (Jn 15: 5). This union between the
laborer and the vine, between Christ and the Christian on mission, is recently well
developed in the Apostolic Exhortation of Pope John Paul II, “The Lay Members of
Christ’s Faithful.”
10
The two major sources where Segundo discusses Ignatian spirituality are his essay
“Ignatius Loyola: Trial or Project?” in Signs of the Times (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis
Books, 1993), 169-70, and The Christ of the Ignatian Exercises (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis
Books, 1987).
11
16
To show how the mature Ignatius lived a project spirituality, Segundo recalls a
remarkable conversation that took place in July 1541 according to Ribadeneira. He notes
that he was present when Father Master Lainez was with our Father Ignatius:
There came a moment when our Blessed Father Ignatius said to Father Lainez,
ATell me, Master Lainez - what does it seem to you that you would do were God
our Lord to propose to you this case and say: >If you are willing to die on the
spot, I shall withdraw you from the prison of this body and grant you eternal
glory. But if you wish to continue to live, I give you no surety of what will
become of you, but leave you to your fate:..= If our Lord were to tell you this and you were to understand that, by remaining in this life for some time, you
could render some great and notable service to the divine Majesty - what would
you choose?
Lainez replied: Father, I confess to Your Reverence that I should choose to
depart at once to enjoy the vision of God, and thus assure my salvation and
deliver myself from dangers in a matter of such importance.
Then our Father said: ANow, I certainly should not have done so. Rather, had I
judged that, remaining in this life, I could have rendered some singular service to
Our Lord, I should have besought him to leave me in it until I should have
performed that service. And I should place my eyes on it and not on myself having no regard for my danger or security.@
12
This stress on Athe mission of helping souls@ pervades Jesuit documentation
according to John O=Malley.
AIn the Autobiography, Constitutions, and his correspondence, Ignatius used it
again and again to describe what motivated him and what was to motivate the
Society. His disciples seized upon it and tirelessly repeated it as the best and most
succinct description of what they were trying to do.@45
We note that in this citation O=Malley correctly omits the Exercises as a text which
emphasizes Athe helping of souls.@
13
David Knowles, From Pachomius to Ignatius, (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1966) 67.
14
Ignatius does wish that we imitate Aour Great High Priest, model, and guide,
Christ our Lord@ (344), but we are to imitate him more in the ascetical mode of Asaving
and cutting down expenses@ rather than in showing active love for the neighbor.
15
In accord with the special fourth vow, the first is obedience to the Pope (603-617)
followed by obedience to one=s superiors (618-620)
16
Finally, we note that the third degree of love or humility, prominent in the Exercises,
does not effectively enter into the decision making process of the Constitutions. Rather
than seek insults, the cross, and humiliation, Ignatius is more concerned with the good
reputation of the Society, so that it can be apostolically effective. I would see the third
degree as an ascetical norm or ideal. Only if all things are equal can it be chosen directly,
and it would seem that in the real world of the missions where we seek the greater
apostolic fruit, this is rarely the case.
17
Rightly has it been said that for Ignatius, as a man of his times, the Mass was not so
much the community=s public celebration of the remembrance of the Last Supper and
the Sacrifice of Calvary, but a means to implore the divine grace for specific intentions.52
17
Other references to prayer would include these. Teachers are to pray at the
beginning of class, or at least make the sign of the cross (# 486-87). Those sent on
mission are to beg the Lord=s help before going on mission (292) and while on mission
(631, 633).
All Jesuits are called upon to pray for those in civil or ecclesial authority, and for
our benefactors (638). In a characteristic Ignatian insight, they are to pray especially for
those they may have trouble with!17
Finally, very special prayers should be said for the dying and the dead (596, 598, 601):
18
Some years ago, a summary of the Constitutions was read every month in the refectory
in houses of formation, in accord with the second last number of the Constitutions, # 826:
“All should apply themselves to the observance of the Constitutions. For this
purpose they must know them, at least those which pertain to each one. Therefore
each one should read or hear them every month.”
19
More recently, Congregation 27 (held in 1923 under Wlodimir Ledochowski), in its
Collected Decrees, Decree 55 #1, states: “In the Society, all are to make the Spiritual
Exercises for eight or ten consecutive days each year…”
Bangert – Nadal, p 208
In the new Norms 231, #1, the importance of the Exercises for the annual retreat is
still affirmed, yet some flexibility or adaptations are allowed.
Because it is especially in the Spiritual Exercises that we experience Christ and
respond to him calling us to the Society, they are the source and center of our
vocation, and an altogether special means for fostering renewal and union in the
Society and for carrying on our apostolic mission in a more profound way.
Hence, they should be made for eight successive days each year; certain
adaptations may be allowed, of which the provincial is to be the judge.
20
21
22
Two recent books on the Constitutions and Norms move in the direction of this
suggestion. Parmananda Divarkar, S.J., subtitles his book Faithful and Free as “a
Companion to the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus annotated and complemented by
General Congregation 34.” He examines the various parts of the Constitutions, and then
offers questions for reflection and sharing on each of the parts. His method is to present
short quotes from the Constitutions and Norms, rather than longer excerpts. In a
Postscript he then outlines how the materials of the book may be organized into an eight
day retreat, with Scriptural meditations, and references to the Exercises, as well as one
daily meditation on some part of the Constitutions.
18
The second book, Our Way of Proceeding, by William Barry is subtitled “To
Make the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus and Their Complementary Norms Our
Own.” He presents materials from the Constitutions and Norms for use in a daily
meditation, along the lines of a Retreat in Daily Life. He outlines material for six prayer
periods in a week, over a stretch of seventeen weeks (thus a total of 102 reflection
periods, with the addition of the Contemplation to Obtain Love as a final meditation). In
his book he gives the actual text of the Constitutions or the Norms, normally 1-2 pages in
length. He does not relate or reshape his material to fit the annual eight day retreat as we
are doing in this study.
GC 34, Decree 13. See also Decree 14 on “Jesuits and the Situation of Women in
Church and Civil Society.”
24
Maurizio Costa, S.J. raises this possibility, but does not develop it at length,
in his essay AThe Ignatian >Person of the Spirit= as Reflected in the Constitutions,@ CIS
XX, 1990: 3, No. 65 pp. 50-63. He writes: ABetween the Spiritual Exercises and the
Constitutions there is both continuity and discontinuity. Once we have subjected the
relationship between the two to careful analysis and are clear on it, we have the basis for
discerning how far the spirituality proper to the Constitutions and to the Society can be
legitimately adapted for people who are not Jesuits.@ P. 62. Howard Gray also raises
this possibility in his essay AWhat Kind of Document?@, The Way Supplement 61,
Spring 1988, pp. 21-34. Gray suggests that four priorities of the Constitutions might
well be shared with lay colleagues, namely the themes of wisdom, the pilgrimage of the
human spirit, commitment to service and compassion, and contemplative in the midst of
action. .
23
74
Pope John Paul II, AApostolic Exhortation,@Christifideles Laici. The Lay
Members of Christ=s Faithful People. Every section of this Exhortation Aon the
vocation and the mission of the lay faithful in the Church and in the world@ uses the
imagery of the vineyard, the vine and the branches, bearing fruit, and laboring in the
Lord=s vineyard.
75
Arrupe, AMen and Women for Others,@ in A Planet to Heal, 95-108.
76
Ignatius recommended that the Fathers sent on mission to Trent as
theologians take time each night to give helpful advice and if necessary, correction to
one of the brethren. Letter 123, in Young, 96.
25
Pedro Arrupe challenged our Jesuit educational institutions to train Amen and women
for others@75. Many of our institutions now include service programs. Presuming that
our lay colleagues have familiarity with the initial conversion experience and spirituality
19
of the Exercises, input from the Constitutions might provide further valuable insight
into the formation and apostolic work of such Amen and women for others.@
26
See the letter of Ignatius to the Jesuits missioned to participate in the Council of Trent.
Material for this is found in the Constitutions under the account of conscience (9192), insights of which can be adapted to lay apostolic spirituality.
28
Cited in Conwell, Contemplation in Action, p. 64.
29
Arrupe, “Men and Women for Others,” in A Planet to Heal, 95-108.
27
20