HSE7 - What Has God Elected to Us? - The Heart of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola with Fr. Anthony Wieck S.J.

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What Has God Elected to Us? – The Heart of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola with Fr. Anthony Wieck S.J.

Fr. Anthony Wieck and Kris McGregor continue exploring the second week of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. This section has a twofold purpose: first, to grow in knowing, loving, and following Christ more deeply; second, to discern the personal call God has for each individual. St. Ignatius frames this through the “Call of the King,” where Jesus actively invites us to walk, labor, and even suffer alongside Him so that we may also share His joy. Unlike St. Dominic’s focus on the preaching Christ, St. Ignatius leaned on The Imitation of Christ and the lives of the saints, seeing them as models of intimacy with the Lord. The second week requires honest self-knowledge, letting go of self-centered desires, and learning to adopt Christ’s way over our own, even through darkness and sacrifice that leads to resurrection life.

There is a prayer response St. Ignatius proposes: offering oneself entirely to Christ the Eternal King in service and love, even to the point of embracing poverty or misunderstanding if that is the Lord’s will. This offering is not about personal heroism, but a grace-inspired response to God’s love. He stresses the importance of detachment, citing Aquinas: the soul is drawn closer to God as it is freed from worldly attachments. This prepares us for the “Two Standards” meditation, where St. Ignatius shows the contrast between following Christ’s banner or Satan’s. Jesus invites us to embrace suffering with Him, while the enemy tempts with control, comfort, and self-focus. Discernment is key: recognizing inspirations from God versus false promises. The exercises call us to reorder our lives so that Christ—not self—is at the center, living in freedom and generous service.

Discerning Hearts Catholic Reflection Questions:

How is Jesus personally inviting me to walk, labor, and even suffer with Him so as to share in His joy?
What attachments or self-centered desires am I being called to release in order to freely follow Christ?
In what ways do I see the “Call of the King” shaping my understanding of my vocation or state of life?
How do the lives of the saints inspire me without discouraging me, reminding me that their holiness was also a journey?
Where in my life am I tempted by the false “standard” of comfort, control, or worldly success instead of Christ’s way?
How can I more fully live the Copernican shift of making Christ, not myself, the center of my life?
What does it look like in my daily circumstances to respond generously to the Lord’s love with detachment and freedom?

Fr. Anthony Wieck is a Jesuit priest of the Central & Southern province. Sixth of nine children, raised on a farm in Oregon, Fr. Anthony began religious life in 1994, spending his first five years of formation in Rome, Italy, studying at the Casa Balthasar and the Gregorian. The former was under the watchful patronage of Pope Benedict XVI (then-Card. Joseph Ratzinger). Fr. Anthony currently acts as retreat master at White House Jesuit Retreat in St. Louis, Missouri. He also offers spiritual direction at the St. Louis diocesan seminary for 25 future priests there.