CHRISTIAN

Downey

SPIRITUALITY

by

Michael
Ascetical means practice and growth of the
virtues rather than acts of austerity and selfdenial. It was the logical consequence of the
Christocentric and eschatological aspects of
Christian spirituality.

Christian spirituality refers to both:

Lived experience
Academic discipline

At first instance, Christian spirituality

describes the whole of Christian life as
oriented to self-transcending knowledge,
freedom, and love in the light of the
ultimate values and highest ideals perceived
and pursued in the mystery of Jesus Christ
through the Holy Spirit in the church, the
community of disciples.
Spirituality is concerned with everything
that constitutes Christian experience,
specifically the perception and pursuit of
the highest ideal or goal of Christian life
(e.g. intense union with God).
At second level, it is an academic
discipline, increasingly interdisciplinary in
nature, that attempts to study religious
experience
and
to
promote
its
development and maturation.

CHARACTERISTICS OF EARLY CHRISTIAN

SPIRITUALITY
1. Christocentric
The words and deeds of Christ were still
fresh in the minds of Christians and because
Christians lived in anticipation of the return
of the risen Christ.
Christ is the mediator between God and
the Church. The entire economy of
salvation is effected in 3 stages:
a) Christ is sent by the Father
b) Apostles are sent by Christ
c) From apostles we receive
good news of salvation

the

2. Eschatological
Primary concern of first Christians was
vigilant preparation for the Parousia or
the second coming of Jesus Christ.
3. Ascetical

Through St. Pauls teaching, St. Ignatius of

Antioch had urged the imitation of Christ
as duty for all Christians.
Martyrdom supreme example of the
imitation of Christ.
The imitation of Christ was achieved by
practice of virtue.
Virtues of fraternal charity, humility,
patience, obedience, chastity and practice of
prater, as we learn from moral teaching of
Didache (the teachings of the 12 apostles).
St. Clement and St. Ignatius never allowed
the Christians to forget the greatest of all
virtues, is charity.
4. Liturgical
Three important rites dominated the liturgy
of apostolic times:
a) Baptism
By baptism, candidate was admitted
as full-pledged member of the
Christian community.
b) Imposition
of
Hands
By imposition of hands on baptized
Christians conferred the Holy Spirit,
and sometimes accompanied by
special graces or charisms.
c) Breaking
of
the
Bread
The most solemn ceremony of
Christianity, done in memory of the
Last
Supper
as
Christ
has
commanded. It was in this ceremony
more than any other that the Christian
experienced,
the
presence
of
Christ. Here Christ in his paschal
mystery, was present, here the
Parousia or the second coming of
Christ was anticipated.
5. Communal/Social

From the Acts of Apostles, the common life

was an essential element of the Church.
Theologically, it provided a setting in which
Christians could practice fraternal charity;
liturgically, it was required by the very
nature of Eucharistic liturgy and common
prater.
Common life was most fundamental, and
of all the practices of common life, the
sharing of goods seems to have received the
greatest emphasis. Testimony from Acts
2:42-47
ST. IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA and IGNATIAN
SPIRITUALITY
(From Christian Spirituality in the
Catholic Tradition by Jordan Aumunn,
1985, Ignatius Press)
Spiritual Exercises (SpEx) of St. Ignatius
of Loyola

An interior combat, a warfare which

one wages against own sins and
predominant faults in order to prepare
himself for the action of the Holy Spirit
and the works of the apostolate.

St. Ignatius contributions to Christian

Spirituality:
Practice of spiritual exercises or
retreats
Successful method for practice of
mental prayer
Universal popularity of general and
particular examen
Recognition of need for mortification
Importance of spiritual director
Theology of the apostolate as an
obligation for all Christians
Adaptation of religious life to the
needs of times

SpEx received the endorsement of:

St. Louis de Blois

St. Charles Borromeo
St. Vincent de Paul

1920 Pope Benedict XV proclaimed St.

Ignatius as patron of spiritual retreats
1948 Pope Pius XII stated that the
Exercises of St. Ignatius will always remain
one of the most efficacious means for the
spiritual regeneration of the world, but on
condition that they continue to be
authentically Ignatian.

Points:

St. Ignatius never lost sight of the fact

that man must exert every effort to
cooperate with Gods grace
He emphasizes the importance of
prayer of petition for obtaining Gods
assistance, as individuals cooperation
with grace
Ignatian
spirituality
will
not
tolerate
passivity.
A
spiritual
combat in which the chief weapons
are meditation and particular examen
(P-G-H-E-R)

GUIDELINES
FOR
Richard McBrien

SPIRITUALITY

by

Karl Rahner, greatest theologian of 20th

century, began an essay on spirituality with
this warning: Spirituality is a mysterious and
tender thing, about which we can speak only
with difficulty.
Romans 5:8 For those who live according
to the flesh set their minds on the things of
the flesh, but those who live according to the
Spirit set their minds on the things of the
Spirit.
What does it mean to live according to the
Spirit?

To be spiritual, or to live according to

the Spirit is to know and then to live
by the knowledge that there is more to
life than meets the eye, that theres a
deeper dimension to reality than first
appears.
To be spiritual means, beyond
that, to know and to live by
knowledge that God is present to
all of us.

Christians call this divine presence

the Holy Spirit.
The
theological
term
for
the
indwelling of the Holy Spirit
within us is grace, which means
literally as the gift. Grace is the gift
of Gods presence.

Christian spirituality quality or style of life

that flows from the presence of the Holy
Spirit not only within us as individuals but
also within the Church, which means that
Christians believe it to be the Temple of the
Christ.
Spirituality is rooted upon the life of the
triune God Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is
centered on the Jesus Christ.
Christian Spirituality is:

Visionary (new way of seeing reality

in Christ)
Sacramental (visible signs of invisible
presence of God)
Relational (intimately linked with God
and with one another)
Transformational
(people
are
suffused with and draw upon lifegiving power of the Holy Spirit)

Guidelines for Christian Spirituality by

the Second Vatican Council
1st principle, it is not only for those of the
clergy and the member of the religious
communities alone, it is also for the ordinary
people (or laity). It is made in the title of the

5th chapter of the councils Dogmatic

Constitution on the Church entitled The Call
of the Whole Church to Holiness. Everyone
is called to the fullness of the Christian
life and to the perfection of charity.
2nd principle, By holiness, a more human
way of life is promoted even in this earthly
society.
Holiness,
therefore,
comprehends much more that souls
personal relationship with God. Holiness
has a social, even a political dimension.
3rd principle, It is the love of God and
love of neighbor (as two commandments)
which points out the true disciple of Christ.
Each of us must adapt the call to
perfection to his or her own situation in
life, what will always be common to
every form of spirituality is love of God
and love of neighbor.
4th principle, worship or liturgy is the
summit and the source of whole spiritual life.
Liturgy is centered in the Eucharist, or Lords
Supper.
Spirituality
is
primarily
nourished
and
deepened
through
communal (social) worship.
How is one to decide which of these and
other spiritualties offers a genuinely healthy
and balanced approach to a life lived
according to the Spirit?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality
scope.

must be holistic.
must be other-oriented.
must be humane.
must be responsible.
must be universal in

The gift awaits those who live

according to the Spirit and who set
their minds on the things of the Spirit.