Faith Matters - DIY Saint

As this newsletter is released our community is experiencing two exciting and important events. We have returned from ‘lockdown’ and are again together. We also are looking forward to celebrating the Feast Day of our patron St Ignatius of Loyola on Friday. The College is a buzz and we are extremely happy and grateful to be back together as a community. As this is such an exciting moment, it may be challenging for some to truly enter into Feast Day, especially as our traditional celebration has had to be postponed, and that Friday will be essentially a ‘normal’ school day.

In light of our less visible celebration of St Ignatius’ Feast Day and the potential to miss an opportunity the following DIY Guide to becoming a Saint may help draw out what we might learn from the life of St Ignatius. Although he lived almost five hundred years ago his life and legacy is still relevant to our lives today.

Moving beyond the hagiography of Ignatius’ life we can find great treasure in focussing on what he found to be the purpose of life. Take some time to consider how the story of a once proud and self-centred noble man’s transformation to a humble, yet brilliant leader might inspire us in our ‘normal’ lives? Spend some time contemplating this question posed and consider how the life of Ignatius might be a DIY manual to becoming a Saint.

Project: DIY Saint

St Ignatius’ life story is inspirational in many ways. By exploring key themes and applying them to our lives you can begin a DIY project which has eternal heavenly rewards. Here is a five-step project that will transform your life and ensure you become a saint.

1. Find your centre – To find his centre Ignatius left all that he had known and entered into a pilgrimage. Once he reached the end of his journey, he removed himself from daily concerns and entered into deep prayer and contemplation. It was in the silence that Ignatius encountered God personally. Ignatius found, as the prophet Elijah did also, that God’s voice is found where we do not expect it. If we are to encounter God as Ignatius did, we need to seek him in the ordinary and expect that he will surprise us when he arrives. 
God is not found where we expect him and he reveals himself gently. The best way to seek him is to sit quietly and let your eyes and your heart be alert. You will never miss his arrival if you know how to wait and where to seek him.
2. Prayer – Ignatius spent many hours in prayer communicating with God. Overtime this practice became constant and inseparable from any moment of his day. Prayer is a gift. When we pray we offer many things, the most important being our friendship and open hearts to God. With unlimited and pure love God responds to this offer of friendship and freely gives his in return. Prayer is simply the building of a relationship with God who loves you more than you can imagine and allowing that love to enfold you and enlighten your understanding of life. Make some time each day to honour and develop this relationship.
3. Service – Ignatius found that to live as God wills, we are called to service. During his mystical experiences at Manresa he was able to “see through Jesus’ eyes and feel with his hands”. This experience along with the accounts of Jesus in the Gospel and his reading of the lives of the Saints emphasised the need to serve without hindrance. Service became his great mission on earth and a central pillar of the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits, and Ignatian communities. 
4. Lead others – Jesus taught us to share our faith with others. It is in a community that our faith and personal spirituality is nourished and grows. After his time at Manresa Ignatius both shared and wrote down his Spiritual Exercises which was his way of capturing his experience and formulating it so that others could also encounter God as he did. 
We are called to do the same. In completing this DIY project you need to begin with your foundations. Share your understandings, experiences and encounters with those you love and are comfortable with. This sharing will empower them to share their experiences also and in turn challenge you to investigate yours further. Ignatius became an exceptional leader but he began by simply sharing his experiences with a small number of people. Follow his example.
5. Never give up – Ignatius was tenacious! He never gave up. Every time a challenge was encountered he paused and made time to enter into contemplation seeking insight into the better choice. After his injury at Pamplona he could have given up. When he was sent out of the Holy Land it could have been the end of his mission. Imprisoned by the Inquisition would have silenced others. Ignatius’ primary mission was to know God’s will and follow that regardless of the challenges he encountered. 
As you continue to strengthen your relationship with God be like Ignatius. Don’t let the challenges presented by the busyness of daily life stop you. Never give up. The rewards are to let pass by.

As we celebrate our return as a community and Feast Day this week, we are inspired and challenged by our interactions with others, the commotion of the school day and the legacy of St Ignatius. We are all called to be saints and seek God’s will above our own. Spend time this week planning for your DIY Saint project. The five points above do not guarantee you future canonisation. But then again, a Saint never seeks affirmation or accolades anyhow!

Yours in Christ,

Brendan Nicholls  Liturgy Coordinator