Opening the Windows: Pathways to the Spiritual Exercises
by Dave de la FuenteThis story originally appeared in the Summer 2025 issue of JESUITS magazine, published by the USA East Province of the Society of Jesus.
A few years ago, having the opportunity to teach an undergraduate course on Ignatian Spirituality, I realized the best method was to have my students not only read the text of the Spiritual Exercises but to engage in appropriate reflections and assignments that simulate the experience of making the Exercises. My students quickly gravitated to speaking of the Exercises and Ignatian Spirituality as a "window into" wholeness— and they came away transformed. Windows became path-ways: immediately after that course, four students applied to and were accepted into Fordham's dynamic retreat ministry team. Even beyond this class, many still talk about the transformative power of the Examen and of the grounding they have received in Ignatian Spirituality.
At the Office of Ignatian Spirituality (OIS), our commitment is to open these windows and make the Spiritual Exercises more available in more formats for more people. Animated by the Universal Apostolic Preferences and the province Apostolic Plan, we are implementing several new initiatives to open more pathways to the Exercises. We have garnered a wide range of resources, such as MakeTheExercises.org, and have several initiatives that have served as key waypoints to the Exercises. This includes exciting work by our Ministerio Hispano Ignaciano in partnership with Casa Kino Spirituality Center in San Diego. Soon we will debut a one-year formation program called Via and a Spiritual Exercises in everyday life adaptation for young adults called When Ignatius Was Young.
Through these programs, we will continue to foster transformative experiences like that of Vanesa, a participant from Richmond, VA. She participated in our Casa Kino Center for Ignatian Spirituality programs Ejercicios Espirituales de Iniciación (Spiritual Exercises of Initiation) and Ejercicios Espirituales del Peregrino (Pilgrim Spiritual Exercises).
"Our life is a pilgrimage," writes Vanesa. "The experience of the Exercises allows us to see that journey deeply, beyond geographical borders, and the best part is that we do it hand in hand with God. I never imagined the message that God had for me. His love has no limits, and he came to show me that."
Alicia, coordinator of the Hispanic Ignatian Community at St. Aedan's Church in Jersey City, also participated, recounting,
"Participating in the Spiritual Exercises of Initiation and the Pilgrim Spiritual Exercises have been a profoundly transformative experience. I have learned how to know myself better, to identify my gifts, and to clearly recognize the place I occupy within my community. The path of discernment has helped me understand more deeply where and how I am called to serve others."
Via will serve as an entryway for a wide range of spiritual seekers and newcomers to Ignatian Spirituality, as well as newer members of Jesuit apostolates. Sindy Collazo, associate director of Hispanic Ministries for OIS, has taken a leading role in crafting the content of Via and has intentionally drawn on the weekend retreat program Escuchando a Dios como Ignacio (Listening to God Like Ignatius) to foster a journey that progressively deepens the experience of journeying alongside Ignatius to become partners in the Jesuit charism. Sindy explains,
"This weekend retreat introduces elements of the Spiritual Exercises and moments of silence in a progressive manner. Each person has opportunities to share in small groups. They pray about their own history, their identity, how they relate to the world, the meaning of silence, their free time, their relationship with Jesus, Ignatius's story, and their call to service."
Likewise, over the course of one year, Via participants will engage in regular cohort meetings, virtual workshops with leaders in the Jesuit tradition, days of reflection, and a closing weekend retreat to undergo a progressive formation that will serve as a pathway into deeper engagement with Ignatian Spirituality by encouraging people to seek ongoing opportunities like retreats, spiritual direction, and additional formation.
When Ignatius Was Young: Nine Communal Spiritual Exercises for Young Adults is another newly created OIS program we plan to launch this coming year, rooted in the insight that Ignatius himself was a young adult when he had his initial conversion experience. This program aims to equip young people to more deeply discern and navigate the challenges and tensions of contemporary life while opening a pathway for them to seek the Spiritual Exercises in Daily Life and position them to pursue ongoing spiritual direction, regular retreats, and similar experiences in deepening their relationship with God.
We are still in the aftermath of the death of Pope Francis and in the early days of Leo XIV's papacy.
Francis's famous refrain of "todos, todos, todos" still rings fresh in my ears, as does his evocative image dating from the groundbreaking 2013 interview: We need to have "a big heart open to God and to each other."
At OlS, we desire nothing more than to open more windows and pathways into the spirituality that formed Francis— a spirituality he powerfully commissioned the Jesuits and the entire Ignatian family to share in his Ignatian year message: "Let us be signposts for others, showing the way to God...an inspiration to go out in the world to help souls, and to see all things new in Christ."
If you're interested in OIS's new Via program,
visit IgnatianVia.org to find out more!
To learn more about the upcoming Spiritual Exercises offering between Ministerio Hispano Ignaciano and Casa Kino Center for Ignatian Spirituality, visit MinisterioHispanolgnaciano.org.
