Place Me with Your Son: Ignatian Spirituality in Everyday Life

I used to think that the spiritual exercises were only for "really, really" religious people with a lot of time on their hands. I got this book several years ago when my three children were all in high school. My husband and I began using it together. We spent time alone with it in prayer and came together to share our experience and prayer. It not only became a source of great spiritual growth but brought us even closer as a couple. Both our spirits and our marriage have been enriched and we often go back to this book.

I came across this book quite by accident in the local bookstore. It was put on sale along with all the other books on arts, cooking, travelling etc. Being the only religious book it caught my eye. As it turned out this was the beginning of spiritual renewal for me. It is not a book for reading, but an invitation to enter the mystery of drawing closer to Jesus as the title so appropriately suggested. Unlike some other day-to-day guide for the Ignatius exercises, in addition to the gospel and the original Ignatius text, Fr. Skehan introduces the use of Christian eastern meditation and makes use of other authors' writings relevant to the process, such as Teilhard de Chardin's Divine Milieu. The first 16 pages of introduction form the skeletal frame work of his approach and is extremely useful for anyone interested in prayer.I did not have help till half way through the first round. It was possible to manage alone though not easy, and I could not tell how well I did. I was only able to spend about 30-45 minutes a day in two separate sittings. Had very moving instances from time to time. I can see the advantage of having a spiritual director but nowadays they are few and far between, and probably overworked just like other walks of life. It is better to start the exercise sometime a few weeks before Advent so that the movement is more or less in tune with our liturgical year. I am very grateful for having 'lived' under the guidance of this book and am trying to organize my parish to participate as a community.Vicky Chen MD

"Place Me With Your Son " is a book I have used to make my own retreat. It easy to use. I have led almost a thousand directed retreats and used this book hundreds of times with retreatants. It has enhanced my work as a retreat director because it gives me more time to listen to the one making the retreat. Its simplicity of format is wonderful. There is little that needs to be explained.This is not a book to be read. It is a faithful application of the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius which is one of the Great Books of the World. A person could make the mistake of just reading it and wondering why it is supposed to be so special. The reason is simple. It is meant to be prayed. In the best possible use of it, one goes through a real experience of Christ with a Spiritual Director.In the normal experience of its use, it takes about thirty weeks to go through this experience without rushing or forcing one's experience of it. While it is possible to do it alone, it is better done with one who has the experience of leading others in a retreat. In a non-retreat use, one can pray it along with the liturgical cycle and reap great benefits from it. It is an experience worth repeating every year with the return to favorite meditations. Most Jesuits in this country have used this book or some form of it each year for all their life as a Jesuit. Spirituality is an attempt to put on the mind and the heart of Christ, and these meditations give one a real insight into how Christ loves one. I consider it the best tool I have ever had for my work as a Spiritual Director.Rev.Joseph McCloskey, S.J. 19Eye St., N.W. Wash.,D.C. 20001 [email protected]