The Spiritual Exercises

The Spiritual Exercises were the way to examine one’s conscience, to meditate and to pray that Ignatius of Loyola devised and imposed as a spiritual practice of the Society of Jesus which are based on the personal experience lived by the Ignatius during the period of withdrawal that he spent in Manresa and since then, their structure and the proposed methodology have undergone very few changes. The exercises require a secluded retreat, with a duration of approximately one month, during which the soul prepares to move away from any kind of conflict or disturbance and put it at the disposal of the divine will. This practice has always been part of the training of Jesuit novices, but it can also be conducted by members of the secular clergy, under the guidance of a Jesuit, as a spiritual director.

Read more:

• S. Arzubialde S.J, Ejercicios Espirituales de San Ignacio. Historia y Análisis, Bilbao-Santander, 2 ª Edición, 2009.
• P. de Leturia, Génesis de los Ejercicios de San Ignacio y su influjo en la fundación de la Compañía de Jesús, in «Archivum Historicum Societatis Iesu» (AHSI), 9 (1940), pp. 16-59.