Ryan Hagens

10/3/06
Ignatian Spirituality
Period 1

Mental Prayer Reflection #9

The Baptism of Jesus

I started my prayer with a centering exercise that I learned in

Ms. Pell’s class. I sat with my hands face up on my knees and slowed

my breathing. I then imagined a golden cord extending from my

spine down to the middle of the earth. I relaxed every muscle in my

body starting with my head and working down, feeling heavier and

heavier until I felt one with the earth. This centering activity brought

me to a deep sense of relaxation and inner peace.

I chose the biblical scene of the Baptism of Jesus (Luke 3:21-22),

because I felt that it relates to me since I am so involved with the

water. In this way, I decided to use the prayer of meditation. When I

read the passage, I thought of how I, just like Jesus, am a child of God

and that He loves me. I need to be more accepting of His love and

make a conscience effort to use His love in a more positive and

helpful way to make society better. I then would be fulfilling our

school’s motto: being a Man for Others.

I ended with a colloquy in which I asked God for the strength

and guidance to be a better Man for Others and give more of myself.

I desire the persistent nature to make a difference for the better and

I also asked God for that quality. This prayer experience took me

little under 25 minutes because it was late at night and I was

becoming really drowsy. I hope that I will be able to continue this

prayer in later experiences. I found it to be much like my other

prayers in that it was a meditation and I all biblical passages that I

hear to my own life and experiences.