Ignatian Prayer and Reflection Day for Couples St. Ignatius Parish, Chestnut Hill, MA
by Zandra Schiemann
On Saturday, May 2, St. Ignatius Loyola Parish hosted an Ignatian Prayer and Reflection Day for Couples under the theme “Listening to the heart to choose the path together.” Nine couples participated in this formative and spiritual gathering focused on communication and Ignatian discernment.
The session included three core dynamics:
Communication: The Illustrator and Perceptions, an exercise that revealed how communication becomes distorted when we do not ask, clarify, or verify what we hear.
Perceptions and Communication, which helped couples identify needs, desires, and points of connection within their relationship.
Letting Go and Keeping, a symbolic practice—both personal and shared—to recognize and preserve what nurtures love, and to identify and release what hinders it.
The gathering concluded with a prayer as a couple and an invitation to continue growing, listening, and discerning together.
“A couple that listens, understands. A couple that understands, discerns. A couple that discerns, walks together.”