Saints Who Help Us at Work: St Ignatius of Loyola
Continuing with "Saints Who Help Us at Work," here's the other saint I've designated in addition to St Joan of Arc as patron saint of my business: St Ignatius of Loyola. (We introduced this idea of a patron saint for your business a while ago.) If you don't know about him, he was, among other things, the founder of the Society of Jesus - the Jesuits. But our intent here is to focus on how he can help us at work, either in the general sense of sanctifying our work, or in some specific way related to some issue we face at work.
To help us sanctify our work, all we need to remember is that St Ignatius was the source of the phrase, "Ad maiorem Dei gloriam," which translates to "for the greater glory of God." St Ignatius came up with this phrase after his "conversion" from a superficial life filled with soldiering and reading tales of knightly chivalry to one devoted to spreading the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Although raised a Catholic, his faith meant little to him at first. But after being injured in a battle, during the time of his recovery, he "discovered" the real meaning of his Catholic Faith, specifically how he was called to live his Faith. And with this discovery, his every thought, word and deed became instruments of glorifying God rather than the enhancing the self-centered life he pursued before this.
We can all use a conversion from the self-centered to the God-centered life, especially at work. Work can sometimes turn us away from God, as we understandably focus our energy and attention on the demands of the day. Saint Ignatius' life demonstrates that the practical demands of daily work don't preclude our developing a rich spiritual life. He managed his fledgling Society as his first few companions grew to many, establishing the Jesuits' tradition of evangelizing and then educating generations lovers of Jesus Christ faithful to the Magisterium of His Holy Church. He carried an extraordinary work load administering the Order's affairs, writing detailed letters of instruction and encouragement to those who traveled the world defending the Faith in the face of the Protestant revolt in the West, as well reaching out to those parts of the world which had no knowledge of the Good News of Jesus Christ.
St Ignatius conscientiously attended to his duties as manager and administrator. But the extraordinary demands of "running" his new religious order never diverted our saint from his spiritual discipline. And while some of us might not be familiar with his excellence as a "chief executive" of his Society of Jesus, many of us do know that he was a supreme spiritual director, providing an enduring legacy in the form of his Spiritual Exercises, which continue to inform and inspire both us and those spiritual directors who help us grow closer to God by deepening our spiritual lives even as we grapple with the daily demands of our worldly responsibilities.
Fr. Thomas Dubay, in Fire Within, specifically identifies humility and detachment, working in conjunction with sound doctrine as essential ingredients in the quest for spiritual progress. Saint Ignatius demonstrated these critical characteristics and they enabled him to both excel in his worldly duties and personally grow ever closer to Our Lord even as he directed the development of others in the practical and spiritual realm. Fr. Dubay explains:
And so I turn to St Ignatius of Loyola as co-patron of my business, inspired by his conscientious attention to his daily work, done in a spirit of humility and detachment, his mind focused not on self, but on the greater glory of God.
To help us sanctify our work, all we need to remember is that St Ignatius was the source of the phrase, "Ad maiorem Dei gloriam," which translates to "for the greater glory of God." St Ignatius came up with this phrase after his "conversion" from a superficial life filled with soldiering and reading tales of knightly chivalry to one devoted to spreading the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Although raised a Catholic, his faith meant little to him at first. But after being injured in a battle, during the time of his recovery, he "discovered" the real meaning of his Catholic Faith, specifically how he was called to live his Faith. And with this discovery, his every thought, word and deed became instruments of glorifying God rather than the enhancing the self-centered life he pursued before this.
We can all use a conversion from the self-centered to the God-centered life, especially at work. Work can sometimes turn us away from God, as we understandably focus our energy and attention on the demands of the day. Saint Ignatius' life demonstrates that the practical demands of daily work don't preclude our developing a rich spiritual life. He managed his fledgling Society as his first few companions grew to many, establishing the Jesuits' tradition of evangelizing and then educating generations lovers of Jesus Christ faithful to the Magisterium of His Holy Church. He carried an extraordinary work load administering the Order's affairs, writing detailed letters of instruction and encouragement to those who traveled the world defending the Faith in the face of the Protestant revolt in the West, as well reaching out to those parts of the world which had no knowledge of the Good News of Jesus Christ.
St Ignatius conscientiously attended to his duties as manager and administrator. But the extraordinary demands of "running" his new religious order never diverted our saint from his spiritual discipline. And while some of us might not be familiar with his excellence as a "chief executive" of his Society of Jesus, many of us do know that he was a supreme spiritual director, providing an enduring legacy in the form of his Spiritual Exercises, which continue to inform and inspire both us and those spiritual directors who help us grow closer to God by deepening our spiritual lives even as we grapple with the daily demands of our worldly responsibilities.
Fr. Thomas Dubay, in Fire Within, specifically identifies humility and detachment, working in conjunction with sound doctrine as essential ingredients in the quest for spiritual progress. Saint Ignatius demonstrated these critical characteristics and they enabled him to both excel in his worldly duties and personally grow ever closer to Our Lord even as he directed the development of others in the practical and spiritual realm. Fr. Dubay explains:
"Without humility, detachment and sound doctrine there is no deep communion with the Lord...So it is today: men and women in any vocation who live the revealed word as Thomas More (married man), John Vianney (diocesan priest) and Catherine of Siena (consecrated virgin) lived it do enjoy a profound intimacy with the Lord they serve so completely and untiringly. Life-style and prayer grow or diminish together."To repeat: Life-style and prayer grow or diminish together. Both work hand in glove for the Catholic at work who aspires to grow closer to God each day.
And so I turn to St Ignatius of Loyola as co-patron of my business, inspired by his conscientious attention to his daily work, done in a spirit of humility and detachment, his mind focused not on self, but on the greater glory of God.
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