St. Ignatius of Loyola was a Spanish Basque Catholic priest and theologian in the 16th century who co-founded the religious order called the Society of Jesus and became its first Superior General at Paris in 1541. He is the founder of Ignatian mysticism.
We are told the goal of Ignatian mysticism is to praise, reverence and serve our God. But what, exactly, is service through the lens of St. Ignatius? According to author and psychologist Paul Coutinho, service is not simply doing things for others; it is about loving God first, and then, out of that love, going out and serving others.
The challenge of a loving relationship, then, is not to love, but to allow yourself to be loved. Not just to love God or love neighbor, but to allow God to love us, to allow our neighbor to love us. That is transformative. It is finally realizing that when we “we hear the word and understand it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundred fold,” we are in relationship. God’s love flows only from the love that we receive from God first, and only then can flow to everyone we encounter. It cannot be contained.
Pause for a moment right now and breathe.
Feel the unconditional love of God. Rejoice in this relationship!
Carol Pisani
