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Abiding Love

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Editor’s note: Throughout July, we’re celebrating 31 Days with St. Ignatius, a month-long celebration of Ignatian spirituality. In addition to the calendar of Ignatian articles found here, posts on dotMagis this month will explore ways of Experiencing God in the Ordinary. The inspiration for our theme is the new book by William A. Barry, SJ.

Poem by Mark E. Thibodeaux, SJ: Part I: Mom and Dad /It's not romance and a candle-lit dinner, It's leftovers and Monday Night Football / It's not pulling off clothes in a wild passion, It's zipping up her dress before Sunday Mass / It's not getting flowers on their anniversary, It's getting milk on the way home / It's not sweeping her off her feet, It's sweeping around her feet and not asking her to move / It's not proclaiming Love from a mountaintop, It's whispering in his good ear what the speaker has said / It's not piles of love-notes, It's hundreds of quiet cups of coffee, rocking chairs, and Sunday papers / It's not holding hands, It's pulling lint from a woolen shoulder / It's not sweet-nothings, It's nothing sweet because she's watching her weight / Part II: My Brother Jesuits / It's not bold vows before a Host, It's washing-again-your brother's forgotten dirty plate / It's not martyrdom, It's unnoticed kindness / It's not sanctity, It's grace-before-meals in a noisy pub / It's not weeping in a faith-sharing, It's loving a brother enough to tell him How ticked-off you are at him / It's not singing our favorite Hymn, It's listening to the same joke-again- And choosing to smile-again- At the end of it / It's not chastity in the face of lust, It's constancy in the face of boredom / It's not ecstasy in a dark church, It's breviary at the bedside / It's not rescuing anyone from the gates of hell, It's loving everyone in the kitchen And the Rec room.


Today in 31 Days with St. Ignatius, read A Healing Hand by Loretta Pehanich.

How have you experienced God in the ordinary? Share with the hashtag #31DayswithIgnatius.

Mark Thibodeaux, SJ
Mark Thibodeaux, SJ
Mark E. Thibodeaux, SJ, has served as novice director, spiritual director, and high school campus minister for over 30 years. He has authored many popular books on prayer and spirituality, including God’s Voice Within and Reimagining the Ignatian Examen. He lives in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he serves as pastor of Holy Name of Jesus Church and School.

10 COMMENTS

    • Jared, “Abiding Love” was written by Mark E. Thibodeaux, SJ, for IgnatianSpirituality.com.

      Denise Gorss
      IgnatianSpirituality.com Editor

  1. Examen:
    It’s not the perfection of following a format;
    It’s listening for the Lord and stopping where Jesus does.
    (with homage to Reimagining the Ignatian Examen)

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