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JRH
Lenten Retreat: Week Nine
April 25 - 30
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Welcome
to this Lenten Retreat. Following are prayer
materials, reflections, and notes compiled by former JRH
director Clem
Metzger, S.J. to guide your retreat.
The
left column
includes prayer materials and reflections from the Spiritual
Exercises and Lenten liturgies. You may want to have a Bible on
hand for the daily readings, though you may also click on the
reading link to read online using the New
American Bible on the website of the United
States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Take these
readings and reflections one day at a time by bookmarking
this webpage and scrolling down as the week progresses.
Additional
aids to your prayer may be found in the right
column and also in clickable
links throughout this message.
If you wish to return to the main retreat page, hit the
"back" button on your browser or click
here.
May
the Holy Spirit inspire your prayer and guide you through this
retreat.
May your spirituality, centered in Jesus Christ, deepen in
faith, hope and love.
Thank you for making this retreat.
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Lenten
Retreat: Week Nine
Easter
Week
Theme: And
He shall reign for ever and ever. Alleluia!
Grace:
To rejoice
with the Lord alive in glory - to celebrate life.
The
prayer material for each day of this week is listed below.
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Day
One: Monday, April 25
Prayer
Material: Jesus Visits His Mother
Although
it was not explicitly mentioned in the Bible, one might
well imagine that the risen Jesus made a special
visit to His blessed mother, Mary. Ignatius asked
retreatants to pray upon this scene, so take a moment to
imagine Jesus visting His mother. Enter the scene
using your imagination, employing the senses of your soul
to be there with Jesus and Mary. For a quick
refresher on Ignatian contemplation, please click
here.
Reflection:
"He
is not here! He
is risen!"
For the believer this is the great good news. As
"King of Kings and Lord of Lords shall he reign
forever and ever" - and we shall reign forever and
ever with Him in the glory of God.
Have you prayed for the grace as Ignatius suggests
"to be glad and to rejoice" because Jesus has
been raised from the dead? Do you wonder how Mary
celebrated the resurrection of her Son? How do you know
Jesus in His resurrection? Perhaps you might listen
to Handel's "Messiah"
to
help get in the joyful spirit of the Easter season.
Reflecting upon the resurrected
Christ
empowers the retreatant to move forward with greater
faith, hope, and love. For references and
reflections on the risen Jesus from the Fourth
Week of the Spiritual Exercises,
please click
here.
Additionally, for notes on how to "Know
Jesus Christ in His Resurrection"
please click
here;
and for notes on "Witnessing
to the Resurrection" please click
here.
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Day
Two: Tuesday, April 26
Prayer
Material: Matthew
28: 1-10
Reflection:
The
resurrection is the stunning response God gives to death.
God always wins - for life is stronger than death,
love is stronger than hate, and goodness is stronger than
evil. Because the Spirit of God is upon us, our own
resurrection is assured. "Just as Christ
was raised from the dead by the power of the Spirit so you
also will be raised by the power of the same Spirit"
is how Paul proclaimed this assurance of our resurrection.
How do you
celebrate this truth of resurrection?
Ignatius offers a "final" contemplation called The
Contemplation to Obtain Divine Love.
This can be prayed anytime during or outside of
one's retreat. It
is a direct request to grow in the love of God through
contemplating God's presence in nature, in people, in
one's life, in this retreat, etc. The contemplation
reconnects with the opening day of the retreat, when we
prayed to notice and observe the "providence of
God" in our personal life - how good and generous God
is with each and every one of us.
Realizing this in a deeper way promotes great
growth of one's spiritual life - to know from experience that
God is in love with me!
This grace is well worth praying over.
You can check out the Contemplation to Attain Divine Love by
clicking
here.
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Day
Three: Wednesday, April 27
Prayer
Material: Luke 24: 13-35
Reflection:
"We
were hoping it would be different"
expresses a common experience after having
lived years in
one's vocation, way of life, particular work, family
situation etc. "I
thought it would have been 'better' if only we
could/would/might have had..." Unfortunately,
dreams and reality do not often square.
In the face of disappointment, however, resurrection
gives us a foundation for "a new hope."
The resurrection represents the fulfillment of the
heart's deepest desires and hungers for life, love, peace,
and happiness. Our
entire being will be filled with the glory of God. As Paul
reminds us -"If only you knew the hope to which you are
called."
You might
find inspiration in praying over the words of
the hymn "We
Walk by Faith"
to
help on your spiritual journey.
If you wish to try this, please click
here.
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Day
Four: Thursday, April 28
Prayer
Material: John
20: 11-18
Reflection: He
called my name.
We need to know that our name is known by the Lord who
calls us gently in many ways to a deeper trust, love, and
friendship. Each of the resurrection appearances brings
new hope, courage, joy, and celebration to those who are
afraid, hiding behind locked doors, crying, discouraged,
etc. Spiritual
consolation is a taste of the final resurrection
experience for us as we journey day by day. "The work that God has begun in you God will bring to
completion" is
what Paul urges us to remember.
Our finished product will be the masterpiece of the
divine artist. What will we become finally? It is good to
remember that "eye
has not seen; ear has not heard; nor has it dawned on the
mind of anyone to imagine what God has prepared for those
who love."
In truth we haven't seen anything - yet!
Here you may find it helpful to look back over this retreat
and notice again the blessings of God, who is in love with
you. You can review The Gift of This
Retreat
by clicking
here.
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Day
5: Friday, April 29
Prayer
Material: John
21: 1-23
Reflection: In every human
relationship the key question is: "Do
you love me?" Jesus asks this of his companions
who want to follow Him. We are challenged to live a life
of hope, trust, faith, and personal love.
There is no room in a Christian's life for
pessimism, defeatism, cynical or sarcastic attitudes.
In a world filled with injustice, ungodliness, and
selfishness it is easy to think in negative ways.
But "the
people in darkness have seen a great Light." As the Light of
the World, Christ gives light, hope, and love to everyone
who believes and calls on His name for help.
Ignatius invites us to "find God" in all
things, places, people, and events of life. This discovery
is the work of the Holy Spirit to know the presence of the
Lord in our daily activities. Hence, the value of the
"Examen of Consciousness." The poet Gerard M.
Hopkins, S.J., wrote: "The
world is charged with the grandeur of God; it will flame
out, like shining from shook foil."
Is this the way I see it - God
shining in my life, in my world, in others?
"God loves me so
much that I become a dwelling-place or
temple
of
God
- growing in an ever deepening realization of the image
and likeness of God which is the glory shining out of
human creation."
~St.
Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual
Exercises, # 235
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Day
6: Saturday, April 30
Prayer
Material:
Acts
of the Apostles 1: 6-11
~ The
Ascension
OR
Acts
2: 1-13 ~
Pentecost
Reflection:
"Go
and remember that I am with you always." This is not an empty promise. While the truth is Jesus is
always with us the question might be asked, "Are we
always with the Lord?" This means a living faith and
confident trust in the Lord who reminds me that "with
me all things are possible."
Perhaps the following prayer would help us as "we go
forth" and continue our journey as servants and
friends of the Lord:
"Breathe
on me, breath of God,
fill
me with life anew,
that
I may love things you love,
and
do what you would do.
Breathe
on me, breath of God,
until
my heart is pure,
until
with you I have one will,
to
live and to endure.
Breathe
on me, breath of God,
my
soul with grace refine,
until
this earthly part of me
glows
with your fire divine.
Breathe
on me, breath of God,
so
I shall never die,
but
live with you
the
perfect life in your eternity."
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"God's
love shines down upon me like the light rays of the sun;
God's love is poured forth lavishly like a fountain
spilling forth its waters into an unending stream.
God's
delight and joy is to be with the ones called God's
children - to be with me.
God cannot do enough to speak out and show love for
me - ever calling and inviting me to a fuller and better
life, a sharing in divine life."
~St.
Ignatius of Loyola
Spiritual
Exercises, #237
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How to
Begin Prayer
St.
Ignatius
recommends that the prayer period begin by 1)
having a specific time/place for my prayer; 2)
calling to mind
that I am in God's presence and that the Lord wants to
listen and converse with me; and 3)
praying for a generous spirit during my
prayer period.
His prayer
for generosity
is:
Lord,
teach me to be generous,
teach
me to serve you
as
you deserve,
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
labor and not
to
ask for any reward,
except
to know it is
your
will I am doing.
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Retreat
Followup
For
your information: A
follow-up to this retreat has been posted on the JRH
website, titled: A
Pastoral Profile of the Catholic Christian. The
author, Fr. Clem Metzger, S.J., takes some truths from our
Creed and puts them in a reflection/prayer style to
strengthen one’s spiritual life. This Pastoral Profile
approach strives to incarnate our faith into our
spirituality. The Catechism of the Catholic Church is used
as background. Be sure to check this web site in three
weeks for this new faith-building opportunity.
You
may perhaps recall the song "You
Are Mine." As you finish this retreat
we invite you to take
this song with you and sing it in your heart.
For song lyrics, please click
here.
If you wish to
build upon your retreat experience, we recommend the book An
Ignatian Spirituality Reader by George Traub, S.J.
Finally,
you are always invited to come make a retreat at the
Jesuit Retreat House. Check us out online at www.jrh-cleveland.org.
We would love to have you here!
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Gratitude
The
heart of a healthy spiritual life
Gratitude
is the foundation of a healthy spiritual life, for the
recognition of gifts received makes possible the
recognition of the Giver of all gifts.
I've
got a roof over my head,
I've
got a warm place to sleep
Some
nights I lie awake counting gifts
instead of counting
sheep.
I've
got a heart that can hold love
I
got a mind that can think
There
may be times when
I
lose the light
and
let my spirit sink
But
I can't stay depressed,
when I remember how I'm blessed.
Grateful,
grateful, truly grateful I am; grateful, grateful,
truly
blessed and duly grateful.
~"Grateful,"
by John Bucchino
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Resurrection Scenes
"Peter,
do you love me more than these?" [Jn 21, 15]
"Feed my lambs - feed my sheep." [Jn 21, 17]
"Why do you look for the living among the dead?"
[Lk 24, 5]
"With that their eyes were opened and they recognized
him in the breaking of the bread." [Lk 24, 13ff]
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