"Discern" (Mark E. Thibodeaux)

TITLE: Discern: Listening for God's Whispers
AUTHOR: Mark E. Thibodeaux
PUBLISHER: Chicago, IL: Loyola Press, 2024, (100 pages).
 

How do we listen to God? The Bible tells how Elijah could distinguish God's voice from the earthly elements of earthquake, wind, and fire? In a busy distraction-filled world, how do we discern God's leading? Based on the teachings of St Ignatius of Loyola, author Mark Thibodeaux leads us through the two key Ignatian themes: Consolation and Desolation. Consolation is feeling uplifted, peaceful, and connected to God. Desolation is a state of emptiness, restlessness, or inner turmoil. The way of discernment is the way of consolation over desolation. Each page comprises a subject to think, ponder, and pray about. Presented with a brief and concise description, the empty spaces let the subject percolate through our minds and encourage us to pray. We learn to distinguish listening to God versus listening to other voices of distraction. This requires fine-tuning our spiritual senses. It puts the being before the doing. Listening helps us detect the forces pulling us away or toward God. Each page shows us how to recognize the tensions between consolation and desolation. This includes questions to challenge ourselves. Discerning desolation are questions like: 

"The Ignatian Guide to Forgiveness" (Marina Berzins McCoy)

TITLE: The Ignatian Guide to Forgiveness: Ten Steps to Healing
AUTHOR: Marina Berzins McCoy
PUBLISHER: Chicago, IL: Loyola Press, 2020, (144 pages).
 

Forgiveness is more like a dance. Our first dance partner is God, followed by everyone else at a party. Then, regardless of wealth or social status, all come together to interact as people. The party is by invitation. The mood is celebratory. Call it a ten-step dance or as the author calls it, a "road map." Each step helps to till and loose any hardened soil of bitterness. Not only that, it helps one be more aware of the changes happening inside, to let God draw one closer to Him and His heart. Due to sin, forgiveness is never a default human inclination. That is why we all need God's help, and this book guides us in that direction. Based on the spiritual teachings of St Ignatius of Loyola, this book is a companion to guide readers through the fundamentals of prayer and especially the prayer of examen. After laying down some basic themes of Ignation spirituality, McCoy takes time to commit the book to prayer, praying the concluding prayer of pilgrims traveling along the Camino de Santiago (Way of St James). This is a reminder that prayer is a pilgrimage with God. Like a spiritual expedition, we prepare our hearts to encounter milestones, twists and turns, highs and lows, and all manner of terrain. She then launches into the steps proper, starting with three challenging questions: