25 years of Spiritual Exercises for families
The 25th Anniversary Conference of the Spiritual Exercises for Families took place on 7 and 8 September 2024 at the Pontifical Oratory of San Paolo in Rome.
On Saturday at 15.30, a panel discussion took place on “Responding to the desire of families for spirituality”, with recollections, testimonies and contributions.
On Sunday 4 pilgrimages in the footsteps of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, starting from the Church of the Gesù and ending in St Peter’s Square were organised. In recent years, as a CIS network, we have accompanied the development of this experience which, together with others, promotes the Ignatian spiritual experience with couples and families“, Fr Paolo Monaco, the Director, explains.
“This development highlights the need to interpret Ignatian spirituality from the point of view of the family couple. This point of view is in addition to that of priests, consecrated men and women and, of course, Jesuits.
We are slowly realising, not without resistance and blockages, that the experience of St. Ignatius can be understood in depth and in truth when all these points of view dialogue and live in communion”.
How the Spiritual Exercises for Families were born
by Francesco Cavallaro
Twenty-five years ago, the blissful intuition of the Spiritual Exercises for Families “In the Footsteps of Saint Ignatius of Loyola” was born. At that time, about fifteen Roman couples asked Fr. Enrico Deidda, a Jesuit, to accompany them for a few days of “relaxed and easy” encounter with the Lord. Even the children, all very young, participated with their parents through playful activities and catechesis.
The main points of the initiative
Because of the many spiritual fruits gathered at the end of the first experience (in the Sacred Heart Village of the Little Handmaids at Alpe di Poti, in the province of Arezzo), the families themselves asked for the summer initiative to be continued in a more structured way. Specifically, an outline for the days of retreat was drawn up which, after so many years, remains more or less the same.
First of all, there are the prayers points, which are biblical passages explained by a Jesuit Father; then there are long periods of silence, both in the morning and in the afternoon, interspersed with various “instructions” on the exercises themselves. There is also the possibility of a personal talk with a guide, once a day, for those who wish. There will also be a couple’s dialogue (spouses are invited to share what they have been experiencing within them during the days of the exercises) and the ‘climax’ is a gathering of the whole family to share the experience of the day. These are the cornerstones of a journey of growth, usually six days long, for the whole family.
Today, however, the children still take part in playful activities organised by the older children, as well as catechises, often led by some of the parents.
The network today
Over the years, this summer programme, in which more than 700 families have participated for more than two decades, has spread throughout Italy.
There are now ten places, from Piedmont to Sicily, where the exercises take place from June to the end of August. These numbers demonstrate that Grace, like the wind, has blown (and continues to blow) where it wishes. In addition, for the last three years “Cenacles”, have sprouted which are “small domestic churches” scattered in almost every region, where it is possible to continue the journey of the Exercises during the winter months.
Online monthly points
The week-long retreat once a year was no longer enough; families felt the need to be together during the holidays. Thanks to online platforms, prayer points are given once a month, and each person meditates on them the following month according to his or her availability. Also, once a month, the families meet in the home of one of the couples to share their faith in person.
A beautiful exchange, even with the leaders and religious of the territories”, the national leading spouses, Andrea Melchionna and Cristina Santanché, from Ascoli Piceno explain. We started the journey in 1999: looking back, we can really see the fruitfulness of the program. For us,’ they insist, ‘the Exercises are a powerful support both for us as a couple and for the whole family. They are a place of intimacy with the Lord and between husband and wife. Out of this richness, “we felt called to offer ourselves as leaders, first of the Alpe di Poti office, then of the national organisation. This will allow us to keep in touch with the contact persons of the other summer sites, the Cenacles, the guides and the Centre for Ignatian Spirituality”. To God,” they conclude, “we give our deepest thanks for the infinite gifts we have received.
