5 October 2021
I arrived at the Exercises ready to move into a cocoon, I was weary, tired, dejected, wounded, I needed tender loving care. I was ready to hide in Your cocoon. I had travelled a long […]
5 October 2021
The First Spiritual Exercises ministry began in Australia over 17 years ago when it was suggested to Michael Hansen SJ that he research and write about the exercises first offered by Ignatius and his companions. […]
5 October 2021
This month we begin a regular segment bringing you news of JISA’s First Spiritual Exercises Ministry (FSE) which is interwoven through many of our offerings. As demand for the First Spiritual Exercises is growing, the […]
2 August 2021
What does it mean to pray the Spiritual Exercises? This children’s animation from Loyola Press simply and beautifully explains the significance of the practice in the world today. To learn more about the Spiritual Exercises […]
29 June 2021
A First Spiritual Exercise with Frances Tilly, JISA Formation Mission Formation Coordinator. Using the Second Method of Prayer which Ignatius encourages in the Spiritual Exercises [249-257], we slowly consider the Hail Mary as we deepen our relationship with Mary, the mother of […]
11 May 2021
Curiosity got the better of me when I saw Gerard Hughes’ “God of Surprises” in a list of publications while searching online for a book on post war Berlin. I recalled many images of God […]
31 March 2021
Margaret Claver FCJ, spiritual director at JISA Campion, reflects on this important JISA Campion ministry to the Seminarians which had its own challenges keeping COVID-safe during 2020. One of the enduring ministries of life at JISA […]
31 March 2021
Terry Fanning, Spiritual Director, Retreat Facilitator and Supervisor with JISA Campion reflects on some experiences of giving the Spiritual Exercises. “My experience of being in the ministry of the Spiritual Exercises has been like a […]
31 March 2021
This is the first in a series of reflections from Annmaree Sutton, a giver of the First Spiritual Exercises with JISA Campion in Melbourne. She shares some of her most transforming moments in her ministry […]
23 February 2021
Michael Loughnane shares his experience of making the Spiritual Exercises and the lasting affects in his life. Michael made the Spiritual Exercises in silence over 30 days when he was 24 years old during the […]
8 February 2021
COVID days … isolation … only leave home to exercise or go to the supermarket … no tennis or yoga … no face-to-face spiritual direction/supervision or delivery of prayer sessions, nor attendance at church. Strange […]
17 November 2020
When Claire Thomas first considered the Spiritual Exercises, she was working in a large school in Sydney and kept hearing an invitation to be part of the continuing legacy of Ignatian Spiritualty. “I was curious. […]
17 November 2020
When Sr Elaine Morzone opened the Sychar Spirituality Centre in Toowoomba Queensland late last year, she hoped to start some long-term faith sharing groups in the community. “I wanted to offer something that could sustain our […]
28 October 2020
The Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola are the bedrock of Ignatian spirituality. The origin of the Exercises is found in Ignatius’ own personal experience of conversion and prayer. An avid journal keeper, Ignatius recorded […]
28 October 2020
Sevenhill Retreat is the home of silent residential retreats for Jesuit and Ignatian Spirituality Australia. We specialise in the Full 30+ day Spiritual Exercises and other silent retreats. Located two hours drive north of Adelaide in the picturesque Clare Valley wine region, in South […]
28 October 2020
‘Re-wilding’ – perhaps an unusual way to describe a deeply profound spiritual experience. How can that be? But this is what happened to Ignatius. He set out, alone, hobbling on foot, filled with something he […]
6 October 2020
It took a time of convalescing from a chronic illness, not unlike the experience of St Ignatius of Loyola, for Jesuit priest, author and retreat giver, Fr. Michael Hansen, S.J., to rediscover the First Spiritual Exercises. These Exercises […]
5 October 2020
The advent of the First Spiritual Exercises reaches back in time to 1540 when Ignatius is quoted as saying, “As a rule I would give the Exercises of the First Week” Murray Adams, spiritual director and […]
5 October 2020
An intimate experience of God filled Ignatius with passionate desire to share a simple prayer method to encounter God! His desire became the seeds of the First Spiritual Exercises and through spiritual conversations and prayer, these seeds were scattered far and wide by the early Companions. […]
4 October 2020
“I see the thread of friendship in the rippling out of this ministry internationally, friends tell friends; easy very grounded human conversations!” Frances Tilly, spiritual director, giver of the Spiritual Exercises and coordinator of Mission […]