Pastor’s Corner for the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, by Rev. Billy Davies

 

January is a time of new beginnings – the beginning of a new year, school, or university, or for some of us, including myself, it is a time of taking on new challenges and making changes. Maybe, like Jesus and the disciples in today’s Gospel, you are starting a new career. Wonderful, and we pray that your new beginning will be successful.

But of course, some are unclear about what this year will bring, where they are headed, and what the future holds. We may have prayed about this, but we don’t seem to hear God’s response and find ourselves saying: “God’s not speaking to me.”

Saint Ignatius, the founder of the Jesuits, the spiritual fathers of the Holy Trinity parish, teaches us that one of the many ways God speaks to us directly is through our imagination and emotions. In the Ignatian Spiritual tradition, praying with our imagination is called contemplation, which is an active way of praying that engages the mind and heart and stirs up thoughts and emotions.

We encourage you to try this method. Use today’s Gospel, where Jesus is starting His ministry and needs help building the Kingdom on earth by calling His first disciples, to decide where God is calling you this year to help build His parish, His Kingdom and serve Him.

This week spend some quiet minutes meditating on His meeting with Peter and John as they go about their work. Imagine that instead of Peter and John, it is you he is walking towards. To help with your contemplation, pay attention to the details: what do you see, hear and feel as Jesus approaches you? When He is standing in front of you, He speaks directly to you. What is Jesus saying to you? What is He asking of you? Ask Him where He wants you to serve Him this year.

Use this Ignatian Contemplation exercise as an opportunity to use an effective, and maybe for some, a new way of engaging with God to hear Him speaking directly to you.

Let us know how you managed to use this new way of praying. Speak to us if you need our help.

Rev William (Billy) Davies