The Core Of Jesuit Spirituality

The Core of Jesuit Spirituality A Tract Book Essay By Anthony J. Fejfar, B.A., J.D., Esq., Coif © Copyright 2007 by Anthony J. Fejfar Ignatius of Loyola, the Founder of the Jesuit Order, The Society of Jesus, summed up Jesuit spirituality best when he said, “Find God in all Things.” Now, of course this does not mean that we are to go out and try to find God in all Things by punching an innocent person in the mouth, for example, but it does mean that we are to try to find God in the Gray areas of life and existence. In other words, I might just find God Windsurfing or jumping with a parachute from an airplane, or helping a little old lady across the street. The long version of the Ignatian injunction is that we are to “Find God in all things that are ordered toward the Good, that is , the Individual Good.

Ignatius was a neo-

thomist and so it only makes sense to interpret him in light of the Platonist Ideal of the Good. Remember, the Good is not the Common Good, it is the Individual Good. The Individual Good is based on each of us ordering our lives on the fundamental Liberal values of:

1. My Autonomy (my self-directedness) 2. My Rational Self Interest (my enlightened Rational Self Interest) 3. My Self-Actualization (my bringing about my meaningful projects) 4. My Self-Transcendence (compassion for myself and others)

By each of us individually, and collectively following the Individual Good, we achieve the real Common Good, not just the unreflective will of the mob. In this way the

“Invisible Hand” of Rational Self Interest and the Individual Good, leads to the Greater Good for all.