The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living
by Timothy M. Gallagher
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Book Summary Information
Author: Timothy M. GallagherBrand: Large Order Items
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-09-01
ISBN: 0824522915
Number of pages: 232
Publisher: The Crossroad Publishing Company
Book Reviews of The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living
Book Review: Who's fooling who? Who's leading who? -- Letting God lead! No fooling!
Summary: 5 Stars
The name of the book "The Discernment of Spirits" is also the name of a seminar given by Father Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V. throughout the country. I attended one of these in Boston. I helped organize one in New York after also reading this book. In both, Father Gallagher described how Saint Ignatius of Loyola was able to judge his experiences and tell apart those which he believed originating from "the enemy" and those from the "good spirit." Becoming "aware" of differing experiences, "worldly" and "sacred," both causing delight, both taking a strong "hold on his heart," he came to recognize, little by little, whether these things that moved him were from the "bad spirit" or from "God." So absorbed was he in his thinking, that it took a special moment of grace, where "his eyes were opened a little" and he was able to see and marvel at the difference, where the one experience would leave him "sad" and the other "happy." From his "awareness," he was able to come to an "understanding" of what was happening. From this, he was able learn to "take action," accepting the "sacred" as from God and the "worldly" as from "the enemy." Saint Ignatius was later able to describe the actions of the "bad spirit" as ones that "bite, sadden, and place obstacles, disquieting with false reasons, so that the person may not go forward." On the contrary, he was able to see the movement of God as giving "courage and strength, consolations, tears, inspirations and quiet, easing and taking away all obstacles, so that the person may go forward in doing good."
Father Gallagher gives these seminars, and no doubt wrote this book, as "a help" from the teachings of Saint Ignatius, "for everyday living." He said this "applied to persons of every walk of life and vocation." Accordingly, he used examples from the experiences of everyday people.
Growing in the "Spiritual Life" can be exhilarating. It can also have its difficulties. If we sincerely attempt to advance spiritually, i.e., to seek union with God, Father Benedict Groeschel, C.F.R., in his book "Spiritual Passages," insists that spiritual direction (of some kind) is necessary if we are to avoid dangers present in living and advancing in the spiritual life. For instance, he tells us that as we grow in the spiritual life, "we expose more and more of our real being with ... its power and potential for good or ill." Because personal honesty and consistency is necessary on our part, the infused virtues (faith, hope, and charity), and their growth, become extremely important and necessary for our own "inner balance" as we look into our own soul and the hidden unconscious, which may contain very disturbing elements. Using a quote from Archbishop Fénelon, he gives us a look at how our dark side can appear while advancing spiritually:
As light increases, we see ourselves to be worse than we thought. We are amazed at our former blindness as we see issuing forth from the depths of our heart a whole swarm of shameful feelings, like filthy reptiles crawling from a hidden cave. We never could have believed that we harbored such things, and we stand aghast as we watch them gradually appear. But we must be neither amazed nor disheartened. We are not worse than we were; on the contrary, we are better. But while our faults diminish, the light by which we see them waxes brighter, and we are filled with horror. Bear in mind, for your own comfort, that we only perceive our malady when the cure begins. So long as there is no sign of cure, we are unconscious of the depth of our disease; we are in a state of blind presumption and hardness; the prey of self-delusion. While we go with the stream, we are unconscious of its rapid course; but when we begin to stem it ever so little, it makes itself felt.
We, therefore, need "helps." We need the wisdom of experience--of a mentor--to help us through some of what can be very the confusing aspects of growth. Father Benedict insists that, "when the dark recesses of our spirit become manifest, we especially need at least a friend to share our fears, and assure us that ours is not an uncommon experience." Although a personal Spiritual Director might be the answer here, not everyone has the good fortune of finding and having access to one. There are other ways, however, that this wisdom can be sought, found, and put to use.
I believe that Father Gallagher has done a great service to the Church and to those who are striving to practice the Spiritual Life. In this book we come to know the mind of Saint Ignatius of Loyola and how he learned that he could put his own inward experiences to the test to see if they were coming from God or not--to resolve his own perplexities. He taught this to his contemporary followers. He can teach us too. He can be that friend that will assure us that ours is not an uncommon experience. He can speak to us and teach us through this book which Father Gallagher so masterfully put together for us.
Bottom line: if we can discern God's action in our lives, we can learn to do God's will!
Summary of The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living
St. Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, is one of the most influential spiritual leaders of all time, yet many readers find his Rules for Discernment hard to understand. What can Ignatius teach us about the discernment of spirits that lies at the very heart of Christian life? In The Discernment of Spirits, Fr. Timothy Gallagher, a talented teacher, retreat leader, and scholar, helps us understand the Rules and how their insights are essential for our spiritual growth today. By integrating the Rules and the experience of contemporary people, Gallagher shows the precision, clarity, and insight of Ignatius's Rules, as well as the relevance of his thought for spiritual life today. When we learn to read Ignatius correctly, we discover in his remarkable words our own struggles, joys, and triumphs. This book is for all who desire greater awareness of God's action in their daily spiritual lives, and is essential reading for retreat directors, spiritual directors, priests, and counselors.
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