Jul 31 – Memorial for St. Ignatius of Loyola, Priest
St. Ignatius (1491-1556) was wounded in the leg by a cannonball at the siege of Pampeluna on 20 May 1521, an injury that left him partially crippled for life. During his recuperation the only books he had access to were The Golden Legend, a collection of lives of the saints, and the Life of Christ by Ludolph the Carthusian. These books, and the time spent in contemplation, changed him.
On his recovery, he took a vow of chastity, hung his sword before the altar of the Virgin of Montserrat, and donned a pilgrim’s robes. He lived in a cave for a year, contemplating the way to live a Christian life. His meditations, prayers, visions and insights led to forming the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus.
- Patron Saint Index
Jer 15:10,16-21
Mat 13:44-46
O God, you have been a refuge in the day of my distress.
For today’s reflection, the response in today’s responsorial psalm struck a chord with me.
I am not going to lie, the last couple of months has been a whirlwind of activity. Work-wise, I was asked to take charge of a new project (and this being on top of my regular day job), I was also tasked with rolling out a new platform and it all seemed that nothing was going right — I was juggling too many balls at work and, in my opinion, dropping a lot of them. My CEO hasn’t really commented on these dropped balls, but this leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I really feel like I am losing control.
I am also training for a mountain race at the end of August, and that is taking a lot out me physically. I feel tired all day and when I come home from work, I want nothing more than to just crawl into a corner and just sleep. In addition, a few friends and I recently came together to start up a new sports association, and the activities have also been more intense than I imagined.
On top of this, I also serve in 2 ministries in my parish.
My days pass so quickly and before you know it, evening comes and I have to go for a run, buy dinner back and get ready for bed. Needless to say, I am extremely time-crunched and more often than not, feel overwhelmed and distressed. I can honestly say that I haven’t felt like this in my almost 30 years of working life.
However, amidst all these activities, there’s one thing that I look forward to — my early morning ‘quiet time’ with the Lord. I aspire to get up earlier to hear and pray the daily Liturgy of the Word. This 30-45 mins morning routine before the day begins seems to help strengthen me and prepares for the madness of the day ahead. I don’t do this every day and if I miss these sessions for a day or two, my heart yearns for, and looks forward to, the next morning session.
These sessions seem to be almost like a warm-up exercise before the day begins. It’s akin to a type of spiritual breakfast, gearing me up and to prepare me for the day ahead. Understandably, these sessions do not always give me consolations, and yes, there have been dry sessions as well, where I yearn to hear God but there is silence.
Feelings of consolation and desolation are all found in the Ignatian Spirituality exercises, written by St Ignatius of Loyola, whose feast we celebrate today. St Ignatius dreamt of being a famous knight and when a cannon ball smashed his leg, he spent much time reading about Christ and the saints while recovering from his wounds. He discovered that if he dreamt of heroism and life as a knight, he would experience desolation and dissatisfaction. But if he dreamt of imitating life as a saint, he would be filled with joy and peace, leading to consolation.
So, this led me to thinking it is only when we spend time with God, trusting in Him and discerning His will for us, then He will lead us on the right path. If we were to decide to trust in our own capabilities and attempt to solve problems on our own, we will not get anywhere, and we may even face more challenges and more discouragement as time passes.
Brothers and sisters, let us pray for each other then, that we be able to let go of our fears and let Him lead us to where we want to go. That we may always find the refuge in His embrace and the comfort in knowing that we are His children…and that He only wants the best for us.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Calvin Wee)
Prayer: “Teach us, good Lord, to serve you as you deserve; to give, and not to count the cost, to fight, and not to heed the wounds, to toil, and not to seek for rest, to labour, and not to ask for reward, except that of knowing that we are doing your will.” – St Ignatius of Loyola.
Thanksgiving: Thank you Father, for the gift of prayer. Those little times that we just want to do nothing but seek you out and take shelter from the storms of life. You, O Lord, are our refuge and we want to take refuge in you. Amen.
OXYGEN 
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