Program Date: Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026; 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm ET
Program Fee: $30
Program Leader: Rev. Mark Thibodeaux, SJ (view bio)
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This program is the second in our annual series Back to the Basics and Beyond: Exploring Key Components of Ignatian Spiritual Direction.
This year’s virtual program will delve into the important topic of Ignatian discernment. Many spiritual directors are familiar with St. Ignatius’s Rules for Discernment. Many also long to find practical ways to draw from the deep well of wisdom these rules offer. This program invites spiritual directors to contemplate the contemporary applications of St. Ignatius’s Rules and seek fresh insights as they relate to the ministry of spiritual direction.
Drawing from his book Ignatian Discernment of Spirits for Spiritual Direction and Pastoral Care: Going Deeper, program leader Mark Thibodeaux, SJ, will build on the foundations of the Rules. He will share ideas that have evolved from his practice of employing the Rules in spiritual direction while offering guidance for spiritual directors eager to apply the Rules with their own directees.
This program is open to all spiritual directors – new, seasoned and everywhere in-between – who are eager to learn more about Ignatian discernment as it relates to spiritual direction. All who attend are expected to be familiar with St. Ignatius’s Rules for Discernment. (source: BeckyEldredge.com)
The program will be recorded and all registered participants will receive a link to the recording.
About Our Program Leader
Rev. Mark Thibodeaux, SJ, serves as pastor at Holy Name of Jesus Parish in New Orleans. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1988 and was ordained a priest in 2001 at the parish he now oversees as pastor. He has served as novice director, spiritual director and high school campus minister for over thirty years. He has authored many popular books on prayer and spirituality, including God’s Voice Within and Reimagining the Ignatian Examen.