Thoughts on Spritual Exercises

Jesuit Poet Gerard Manley Hopkins summed up the Spiritual Exercises in one of his simplest verses: "Thee, God, I come from, to thee go." 

Like that man asking Jesus in Sunday's gospel, "What must we do to inherit eternal life?" this simple verse from Hopkins resonates with our own experiences of the Spiritual Exercises from the First Principle and Foundation to the Contemplation on the Love of God. To inherit eternal life we are called to acknowledge our roots and destiny in God, relativizing everything else. Will we too go away sad, like that man burdened by possessions, possessions we can't take with us? Or will we get our priorities straight?This takes exercise, spiritual exercises such as what we experience at White House, exercises in preferring Wisdom, choosing Wisdom and letting all good things come together in her company, finding God in all things. In the Spiritual Exercises we encounter the living word of God, providing the basis for discerning our own answer to the gospel's opening question. Through the Exercises, preferring Wisdom, choosing Wisdom, all good things can come together in our company, leading us not to go away sad like that rich young man, but entering the mission field to do the works of consolation, finding God in all things. 

Thee, God, we come from, to thee Go. Give us the wisdom to choose wisely however you call us to inherit eternal life. 

Fr. Ted Arroyo,S.J.