An Augustinian, a Franciscan, and a Jesuit all die and go to heaven. Jesus asks each one: “If you could go back, what would you change about your life?”
The Augustinian pondered and then said, “There’s so much sin in the world. If I went back, I’d try and stop people from committing so much sin.”
The Franciscan thought a bit before saying, “There’s so much poverty in the world. If I went back, I’d try and get people to share more of their wealth with the poor.”
The Jesuit looked at Jesus and said, “If I went back, I’d change my doctor.”
In his autobiography, Ignatius explains how, toward the end of his life, the thought of his own death filled him with intense joy. The prospect of soon being reunited with his Creator and Lord made him “melt into tears.”
At the same time, Ignatius was in love with life. He could find God in all things and serve him in every activity and event, just as his spirituality teaches us. There was no need to wait until after death to taste the joy of God’s presence. In practice, finding God in all things gives us the opportunity to consider our lives here and now as the precise place where we can already experience the fullness of God’s love.
Ignatius, with his genuine insight into human nature, warned against two possible pitfalls in the spiritual life: nostalgia for the past and needless dreaming about the future. It makes sense to look back on past experiences, for in doing so we can trace specific moments of God’s presence. We recognize his presence in experiences of peace and joy, vitality and trust. Our past can provide a rich source of learning, especially since we can use times of reflection to inspire our choices. Such ongoing reflection gives us the opportunity to adapt our lives now so that they’re more closely linked to the ways God is drawing us. But we can also get stuck in our own past and end up watching the same film over and over. Whether that is a consequence of regret or anger, the result is the same: we allow ourselves to withdraw from the only time that really exists—the present.
—Excerpted from Jesuits Telling Jokes: A (Serious) Introduction to Ignatian Spirituality by Nikolaas Sintobin, SJ
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Very funny joke. Really enjoyed that.
Never tire of hearing about living in the present moment God’s presence in our lives though we are not always present. I always say, not to beat oneself up if we don’t get it right, we are living in a brand new moment.
Saint Ignatius of Loyola – Pray for us.
This article has really opened my eyes. I had both of these pitfalls, and had to read this now, to be more careful not to fall in these. For short durations of spans in my career so far, I had rationalized by myself not to fall into these pitfalls, but that determination was not very sustainable and viable. But after reading it in a way similar to how Saint actually explained it, I feel confident, I will not fall into these pitfalls again. Thanks a lot for sharing this.
Wonderful . Love it! the Joke also. What a great man and Saint , and all so true. I have to remind myself. The scent of a rose the wind blowing my white Bottle brush tree, the pollen landing all over my garden ; it is covering it . The birds large and small feasting on my native shrubs and trees; all God’s work. Yet sometimes even though I am enjoying watching, I forget to say thank you. And the longing to be with family; whom I hope are with God. I live alone and rarely see family. I thank you for the reminder. I will try harder not to be sad.(Getting too old) Life is very different for me now and finding it hard to adapt to being fairly useless at DOING everything! More time to Pray. A.M.D.G.
Thanks for the reflection, Meg. I’m praying for you!
Thanks for sharing, I have very similar feelins…?
Meg,
Thank you also for the reflection. I am blessed with lots of family and your words reminded me to appreciate them more every day. I am praying for you, Meg. You sound like a person that I would enjoy knowing.
I’m wondering how you are doing Meg. It has been 4 years since your comment on this post. I hope you are able to find God’s presence no matter your circumstances. I’m praying for you. May God bless your day!
Amen!
What a great reflection! And I laughed out loud at the joke. We all need a little more hilarity in our lives.
Thanks!