A Jesuit on the Titanic

by Jim Manney

Sunday was the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, and it turns out that there’s a Jesuit angle to the tragic story.  An Irish novice named Francis Browne was aboard the ship on the first leg of its maiden voyage from Southampton, England to Cobh, Ireland.  He wanted to continue on to New York, but his superior ordered him to leave the ship and come home.  He dutifully complied, and he had a long career as a Jesuit.

In 1985 another Irish Jesuit discovered a trove of Fr. Browne’s photos, including some taken on board the Titanic.  They are the last images of life aboard the doomed ship, and were used for reference by the producers of the movie Titanic.  You can view some of them here.

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April 19, 2012

Taking Offense

by Jim Manney

I tend to get angry when I encounter acrimony and incivility in discourse among Catholics.  Fr. Jim Martin, who has seen more of it than I have, has a healthier response.  He laughs at it.

No matter what you write, there are Catholics ready to take immediate offense, to explode in righteous anger, to threaten to report you to the proper authorities or, most of all, to correct.  The most common responses are these five: 1.) Your soul is in mortal danger.  2.) You’re uneducated and need to be schooled. 3.) I hate the church and so I hate you.  4.) You’re an unthinking tool of the Vatican.  5.) You’re disobedient and must be reported.

The rest of it is hilarious.

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April 18, 2012

Was Ignatius a Trauma Survivor?

by Jim Manney

Every time the story of Ignatius Loyola is told, the teller of the tale mentions that he was a soldier and that he was wounded in battle.  But then the speaker hurries on to what happens next–his conversion during his year-long recovery from terrible battle wounds.

Writer Dawn Eden thinks we should pause a moment and reflect on what Ignatius experienced as a soldier.  She suggests that he was a trauma survivor. Fighting was often hand-to-hand.  Men killed other men with swords, pikes, axes, and knives.  Ignatius must have experienced intense terror and witnessed horrific carnage. Such things cause deep emotional and spiritual wounds.  This is something that was always known but seldom talked about, and to our knowledge, Ignatius never talked about it.

I wonder how Ignatius’s battle experiences affected him.  Trauma survivors often feel responsible for the horrific things they experienced.  Could this be a factor in the bouts of morbid scrupulosity Ignatius suffered?  Survivors are often tormented by memories.  Ignatius was careful to include his memories in the things he gave back to God (“Take, O Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my whole will.”)  Those who heal from trauma have a profound sense of having come a long way from a very dark place.  Can we detect this in Ignatius’s deep sense of gratitude to God?

Possibly so.  In the Spiritual Exercises Ignatius strives to help us understand that we are sinners who are redeemed and loved by God.  He may have been able to do this because he experienced it in a place where most of us don’t go.

Image by Arutemu under Creative Commons License.

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April 17, 2012

As Many as Possible of the Very Best

by Jim Manney

Thane Kreiner of Santa Clara University makes connections between Ignatian traditions and the work he does to train social entrepreneurs to build businesses that serve the poor.

So we are left with love. “Love ought to manifest itself more by deeds than by words,” said St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, in 1540. In the Spring, 2007 Stanford Social Innovation Review Roger Martin and Sally Osberg define entrepreneurs by their direct action, in addition to attributes such as courage, fortitude, and creativity. Social entrepreneurs are distinguished by the “primacy of social benefit,” or the value proposition: large-scale, transformational change. The social entrepreneur “releases trapped potential or alleviates the suffering” of fellow humans.

The world needs more social entrepreneurs, Kreiner says, quoting Ignatius’s close friend Juan Polanco: “quamplurimi et quam aptissimi (as many as possible of the very best).

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April 16, 2012

The Meaning of a Kiss

by Tim Muldoon

During Holy Week I’ve encountered two very different and yet equally profound meanings in the act of a kiss.  The first, of course, is the act by which Judas symbolized his betrayal of Christ: a tender, intimate act which was a lie and a travesty.  The other was the act by which we show reverence for the cross of Christ in the liturgy of Good Friday.

crucifixI celebrated Good Friday liturgy with my family at Campion Center in Weston, Massachusetts, home to a community of retired Jesuits.  There is a beautiful chapel there somewhat reminiscent of the baroque style of the Jesuit church in Rome, the Gesù, and being there calls to mind the grand sweep of Jesuit history symbolized by that church.  As I looked around the congregation, I saw men who have spent decades in service to Christ.  They have been professors, pastors, presidents.  They have served in Beirut, Beijing, Boston, and Botswana.  They have baptized, taught, built, preached, and given spiritual direction to thousands.  Now, here they live out what is likely their final assignment: they move slowly with walkers, or are pushed about in wheelchairs, and spend much time in silence.

The celebrant raised the cross as he and two other priests approached the altar: “behold the cross of Christ, on which was hung the salvation of the world.”  The three of them processed around the large chapel, pausing for those who were non-ambulatory, so that they might kiss the cross.  The rest of us later processed up the center aisle in order to similarly revere the cross.

It was the faces of those old Jesuits who inspired me.  For a moment, I saw not an old man in a wheelchair, but a missionary still responding to the Call of Christ the King.  They would raise their arms and lovingly bring the wood of the cross to their lips and kiss the feet of the One for whom they had toiled their whole lives.  There was something in their eyes. I could see it.  They are still in love.

Ignatius writes in the Spiritual Exercises, “love shows itself more in deeds than in words.”  A kiss is a small gesture, but it is a symbol, a manifestation of something deeper that stretches across years, lifetimes, and generations.  It is a deed by which a person can render back to God the love that God has given.  Once again the Jesuits have taught me something: the meaning of a kiss.

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April 13, 2012

Blog-alogue Fifth Question: Models for Social Media?

by Jim Manney

Meredith,

Easter greetings!  I wish you the joy of the season.

In this blog-alogue we’ve talked about “why” of social media, and last time you described some of the tools–the “how.”  Now I’d like to ask about “where.”  Can you point us to organizations that have used social media  particularly well?  I’m especially interested in places where it’s used to build a community among people with common spiritual interests.

Jim

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Jim,

And also with you! (Yes, I plan to continue responding this way . . . indefinitely!)

Social media has been around for less than a decade and many organizations are still in the throes of figuring out how to use it to build community. The ones that succeed, are those that recognize and honor time-tested principles of community organizing and development.

Not every group will become a community. Common interests might be necessary, but are not a sufficient reason for a community to emerge. Communities emerge when interaction among members is personal and ongoing.  I’ve observed how this holds true when individuals form groups online. I’ve also observed, with no shortage of  sociological glee, how social media enhances the speed with which interaction becomes personal, heartfelt, and ongoing.

Organizations that use social media particularly well to build community will:

  • carefully assess which social media tools would work best for the group they hope will become a community, and then choose one as the primary location for community development.
  • focus on generating and sustaining conversation, rather than broadcasting content on that primary location.
  • use community managers to support and encourage community development.
  • experiment with different ways to generate involvement, quickly ditching whatever doesn’t work.

Here are specific examples of social media-based communities that have emerged among people with common spiritual interests.

  • People for Others is a blog that will be familiar to dotMagis readers. I’m not being gratuitous! You can see how a community has emerged over time by studying the comments.  I believe has happened because Paul Campbell engages with readers in his posts and responds to comments about his posts. Also notice the level of interaction between readers, separate from their interaction with Paul.  Notice how many exchanges are expressions of concern, care, friendship, and support, rather than cerebral exchanges about content.  And I know for a fact that readers have reached out to one another via phone, email, and other social media as a result of meeting on this blog.  I’m the grateful recipient of this grace.
  • #Unco12 is the Twitter hashtag for an annual “unconference.”  Now in its third year, this ecumenical event emerged as a result of individuals chatting on Twitter about faith and church. Thanks to Twitter’s capacity for near-real-time interaction, this group quickly morphed into a community during conference planning. The hashtag and live streaming during the conference  makes it possible for anyone to participate, even if not physically attending. Twitter makes it possible for community members to stay in ongoing (and often rollicking) interaction in between conferences.  Again, I know for sure participants reach out to one another in between conferences via phone, email, and other social media. I’ve never attended a conference in person, but consider this a significant community of spiritual support…on Twitter!
  • Lent Madness 2012, which just finished, is a blog-based event that attracted more than 50,000 participants to the fun of learning about and voting for saints à la March Madness. It started a few years ago as the brainchild of Episcopal priest, Tim Schenck who, this year, collaborated with Executive Director of Forward Movement, Episcopal priest, Scott Gunn.  Community emerged on this blog and Facebook page within days as voters began engaging with one another in the comments box.  Notice the good-natured rivalry.  At first glance, Lent Madness seems to be a situational, temporary community, but I believe it will prove more durable.  Already a countdown widget for Lent Madness 2013 has been posted. Full disclosure: I was among the eight invited “Celebrity Bloggers” and not to brag (too much), but Mary Magdalene did end up winning the Golden Halo.
  • CatholicMom.com is essentially a group blog founded by Lisa Hendey long before social media was invented. I include this site because of the way Lisa has so fully embraced social media. Notice how social media buttons are featured right at the top, then click through to see how each social media tool is used support content and conversation on the site. Lisa is a community manager par excellence who, over the years, has hosted bloggers who have in turn created communities within the CatholicMom.com community itself.

I’m sure another social media enthusiast would come up with different examples, but I hope we’d agree that communities don’t get established by fiat. Individuals form groups and sometimes those groups become communities.  Social media helps move the process along, but that shouldn’t stop us from praying, “God, come to my assistance. Lord, make haste to help me.”  Can I get an amen?

Meredith

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April 12, 2012

The Contemplation on Divine Love

by Guest

Kevin O'Brien, SJThe final contemplation of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius is the Contemplation on Divine Love, or the Contemplation on the Love of God. It captures all of the movements we’ve been praying through during our retreat in daily life.

In the video below, Kevin O’Brien, SJ, explains the exercise as contemplating God’s love, which is given to us so freely and generously. We are first asked to contemplate how God creates out of love, creates everything in this world and our very lives, and sustains everything by God’s labor and God’s love. We are called to see all things as a reflection of God’s love and give gratitude. And that gratitude should inspire in us a natural response to give back.

This video is part of An Ignatian Prayer Adventure, Week 8. If you’re receiving this via e-mail, click through to watch the video The Contemplation on Divine Love.

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April 11, 2012

Gratitude Is the Key

by Jim Manney

An Ignatian Prayer Adventure

Gratitude is the key to Ignatian spirituality and the topic for my final video for An Ignatian Prayer Adventure. The Spiritual Exercises end with a vision of generosity and gratitude called the Contemplation to Attain the Love of God. How can we respond?

If you’re receiving this via e-mail, click through to watch the Week 8 video Gratitude.

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April 10, 2012

Jesus Appears to Mary, His Mother

by Becky Eldredge

The first contemplation in the Fourth Week of the Spiritual Exercises involves Jesus appearing to his mother. Can you imagine being Mary, sitting in her house, overcome with grief and despair at losing her son? Can you imagine Mary, fully immersed in a “Holy Saturday” moment, pondering what happened, absorbed in her grief? Grief that we can relate to because of loss in our own lives.

Resurrected ChristIgnatius invites us to contemplate the interaction between Mary and her beloved son, who she watched die on the cross. What would the dialogue sound like?

“Woman, why are you crying?”

“I thought I had lost you.”

“I am here. I am here. I am risen, Mom. I am risen.”

“You are here, Son.”

Being a mom, I cannot even imagine the depth of joy Mary felt at seeing her son again. I have no doubt that her heart burst with joy and that she was radiant with love and hope. Can you imagine the depth of her consolation in that moment?

But what does Mary’s experience have to do with our lives? EVERYTHING!

In this Easter season we celebrate Mary’s joy that her son is here. We celebrate that Jesus is alive in each of us, in our world, creating us moment by moment. We celebrate that we can experience the joy Mary felt at seeing her son because Jesus lives within us. Easter reminds us of the reason to hope in the first place—because of the Resurrection of Mary’s son!

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April 9, 2012

Final Week of An Ignatian Prayer Adventure

by Jim Manney

An Ignatian Prayer AdventureHappy Easter! We’ve come to the final week of An Ignatian Prayer Adventure. Jesus is risen! And in exploring our theme of “God’s Love and Our Response,” we take the lessons from the entire retreat and go forward, changed by the experience.

This retreat has been introduced during Lent and Easter, but it will have a permanent home on this site. You may wish to return to the entire experience or select portions in the future. Or invite a friend to experience the retreat at a convenient time.

Please share your questions and reflections in the comments section throughout the week.

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April 8, 2012

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