New Jesuit Review 2010 Vol. 1, No. 3 ------ Ignatian Obedience in the Light of the Spiritual Exercises Download this Article as PDF by Fr. Andrew Garcia, S.J. Andrew Garcia, S.J., is the spiritual director of the regional seminary in Naples, Italy. St. Ignatius, in his letter addressed to the Jesuit community in Portugal (March 26, 1553) says that Jesuits may allow themselves to be surpassed by other religious orders in fasts, vigils and other austerities, but those who serve in the Society of Jesus must distinguish themselves in the purity and perfection of obedience. He stresses that obedience is the virtue in which all Jesuits should excel and it should be characteristic of them. Underscoring the great importance of obedience, he writes: Although in all virtues and spiritual graces I desire perfection from all of you, it is true (as you have heard from me in other occasions) that in God our Lord, I desire that you, in more than any other virtue, excel especially in obedience… He concludes the letter with a final exhortation desiring that obedience should be observed as if the whole welfare of the Society depended upon it. The Constitutions of the Society resonate with the same exigencies of obedience. Using examples of obedience taken from monastic tradition, Ignatius notes that a Jesuit should be like a cadaver that can be handled and disposed of at will, or that he should be like the walking cane of an old man, ready to help him in any way that he chooses. All should take care in obeying not only in things where obedience is expected, but also where there is the slightest hint of the Superior’s will -- making the Superior’s will one’s own. In obeying, one should have first and foremost the Lord before his eyes, obeying as if the order came from the voice of the Lord himself, “most especially placing all our efforts in the virtue of obedience, first and foremost to the sovereign Pontiff” (Cons 547). The germ of this special and particular obedience to the Pope finds its origin at Montmartre where St. Ignatius and his first companions desired and sought to wholly offer their services to God. In the rules of the Spiritual Exercises dealing with Holy Mother Church (Ex 352, 365), he writes that one must be willing and ready to obey in everything the true spouse of Christ Our Lord, being ready to believe black what one sees white if the hierarchical Church determines it thus. This is the most perfect obedience, that of the understanding and can also be called “blind obedience.” The various degrees of obedience and the variety of examples Ignatius used to elaborate upon it, both in the letter on obedience and in the Constitutions, demonstrate that he had carefully thought over and discerned what the nature of Ignatian obedience was to be. In fact, the famous letter on obedience was not the first of its kind. There were three letters dealing with the matter of obedience that preceded it. These letters were sent on July 29, 1547, to the college of Gandia, then six months later on January 14, 1548. Another letter was sent to the college of Coimbra, then once again on March 27, 1548 to Fr. Andrés Oviedo. Five more years passed when finally the definitive letter on obedience issued forth from the hand of Ignatius on March 26, 1553. The theme of obedience is one that runs through many of Ignatius’ important writings, from the most pressing letters that he produced in Rome to the composing of the Constitutions of the Society itself. Indeed, the very fact that he thought that the whole well-being of the Society depended upon obedience makes it quite clear that it is a fundamental component of Ignatian spirituality. As such, it is of no slight value to examine the origin and development of his idea of obedience. However, to undertake such a task, one must necessarily begin from the font of all Ignatian spirituality, that is, the Spiritual Exercises. They are the distilled fruit of the mystical experiences and spiritual graces received by Ignatius. As such, the Spiritual Exercises can be viewed as a type of “Rule” of Ignatian spirituality. Therefore, any study of Ignatian obedience ought to find its primary source in the Spiritual Exercises. A more detailed study should include the Trinitarian and Marian dimension of Ignatian obedience. However, the scope of this brief paper is limited to an examination of the general nature of Ignatian obedience in its Christological dimension in the light of the Spiritual Exercises. The paper will be divided into two basic sections: the first dealing with the idea or “spirit” of Ignatian obedience and the second dealing with the praxis or “incarnation” of it. * * * During the years of his conversion and his subsequent pilgrimage to the Holy Land and even up to the time of the recruiting of his companions in Paris, the idea of obedience and its fundamental role was never explicitly addressed by Ignatius. The actual vow of poverty appeared only at the end of the studies in Paris along with the vow of chastity (although informally). In fact, the only vow which he and his companions professed on August 15, 1534 on the feast of the Assumption of Our Lady at Montmartre was that of poverty with the intention of going to Jerusalem, with the permission of the Pope, where they hoped to spend the rest of their days, helping souls for the greater glory of God. If this was not possible then they intended to offer themselves to the Pope for whatever mission he might have entrusted to them: During this time, they had all already decided what to do: go to Venice and Jerusalem in order to spend their lives helping souls. If they were unable to obtain permission to stay in Jerusalem, they would return to Rome, to the Vicar of Christ, so that he might use them in a way that he judged was for the greater glory of God and the service of souls (Autobiography 85). In the vow at Montmartre there was no clear mention of the religious vow of obedience. It was not until the founding of the Society itself with the deliberations on the Formula of the Institute that the formal religious vow of obedience was considered and professed by the first companions. Moreover, it was only during the years which followed the approbation of the Society that Ignatius actually elaborated his matured idea of obedience, making it explicit in all of its consequences and in concrete terms and examples. Nevertheless, it is important to note that, at Montmartre, the germ that developed into Ignatian obedience sprung forth from the original intention of the first companions to offer themselves completely to the Pope, being ready to be deployed wherever there was work to do for the greater glory of God. Already here it can be seen that obedience, as Ignatius and his companions implicitly understood it, was not in the first place, a means of personal sanctification or way of perfection as it was understood in the monastic tradition. Rather, it was a means of being ready and available or “disponible” for the Pope in order to be sent there where they could be of greater service to God and the Church. There is therefore, an organic link between obedience and disponibilidad. An understanding of Ignatian obedience cannot preclude the concept of disponibilidad. What exactly is the origin of this disponibilidad and what is its necessary relation to Ignatian obedience? The answer to these questions will be examined in the light of the Spiritual Exercises, the main source of all Ignatian spirituality. * * * Upon entering the Spiritual Exercises, the exercitant immediately comes across the Principle and Foundation, which is the very first consideration of the first week of the Exercises. It is the basis on which all of the following spiritual exercises turns for it defines the reason for which man is created and delineates man's fundamental relationship and attitude towards God and all creation. The Principle and Foundation states that, “Man is created to praise, reverence and serve God our Lord” (SpEx 23) and that everything on the face of the earth is created for man to help him reach the end for which he is created. Man must use creation in as far as it helps him reach his end and must abstain from its use in as far as it impedes him from reaching it. Therefore, the ideal attitude of man in relation to all of creation should be one that permits him to be both open to the use or non-use of creation. The important factor here is that from the onset, man is neither prejudiced nor predisposed in a manner that will prevent him from using (or not using) creation. Rather, he is “to be open” to everything that can help him reach his end. Ignatius describes the underlying component of this attitude as being one of “indifference”. This indifference, which he emphasizes in the Principle and Foundation, is neither one of a passive nor apathetic nature, but rather a dynamic and involved one. This is evident in Ignatius’ use of the term “hacernos indiferentes” (SpEx 23). The literal meaning of the original Spanish is “to make ourselves indifferent” -- a term that connotes an active principle of man rendering and making himself indiferente, so that he may consequently be completely disposed to the end for which he is created. Accordingly, in man's willed attitude of indifference, he disposes of himself to this end: the praise, reverence and service of God. Thus, the attitude of indifference leads to and is the basis for disponibilidad -- a ready and poised openness to whatever God’s will may be. (The Spanish terms “disponible” and “disponibilidad” have been retained for lack of a single term in English that adequately expresses both the characteristics of “ready openness” and a “poised availability). Man is indifferent so that he may be disponible. In turn, man’s disponibilidad is naturally directed to God. Through it, man orients himself towards God. Disponibilidad can be described as a dynamic disposition of man in relation to God -- a being ready to receive and accept in order to conform his own will entirely to that of God. This, in essence, is the foundation of Ignatian obedience: a ready conformation of man's will (through the spirit of disponibilidad) to that of God's. This orientation of man to God finds its concrete expression in his search to fulfill God's will -- best expressed in the Lord’s prayer, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven...” (Mt 6:10). It is interesting to note that almost every colloquy of the Exercises concludes with the praying of the Our Father. It is exactly in the service of God’s will “on earth” that Ignatian obedience acquires its form; service is the form that Ignatian obedience takes. The heart of Ignatian obedience is thus rooted in man’s spirit of disponibilidad, which is the fruit of his attitude of active indifference (hacernos indiferentes -- to make ourselves indifferent). Hence, the following relation can be made: just as disponibilidad is the end of indifference, so is service the end of Ignatian obedience. In the Principle and Foundation, however, the ideas of indifference and service remain on a conceptual level. The life of St. Ignatius illustrates that he was a man of deep life experience and not one of abstract ideas and concepts; he did not write down what he first did not live himself. As a result, to contextualize the origins of indifference and service and to understand the passage he makes from disponibilidad to obedience, one must go to the source of St. Ignatius’ life experiences of these concepts, i.e., the meditation of the life of Christ Our Lord. * * * Christ our Lord lives in perfect relationship to God the Father, in him lies the reason for which man is created. As such, he is the archetype, the objective model of man, who lives to perfection the Principle and Foundation of the Exercises. Through the contemplation of Christ’s life in the Exercises, the exercitant also desires to live and participate in the same relationship of love between Christ and the Father. He desires to be indifferent so that he may grow in the spirit of disponibilidad to the will of the Father. He desires to feel as Christ feels (Anima Christi) and longs to participate in his mission (SpEx 144-146) in complete service to the Father. Indeed, Ignatian obedience, which springs from indifference and disponibilidad, receives its full significance in the life of Christ; particularly so in Christ who agonizes in the garden of Gethsemane and who suffers under the weight of sin epitomized by his death on the cross. When Christ goes to pray in the garden of Gethsemane, he prays to the Father, “Abba, Father, all things are possible to thee; remove this cup from me; yet not what I will, but what thou wilt” (Mk 14:36). At first, he prays that “the cup” may pass, but then he no longer chooses upon what he wants, but rather, renders himself “indifferent” (hacerse indiferente), leaving himself open to whatever the will of the Father may be. This is exemplified in his words, “not what I will, but what thou wilt.” This underscores the strict and dynamic relationship between indifference and disponibilidad . This indifference to one’s own will and consequent openness towards whatever God’s will may be is, in fact, the spirit of disponibilidad. Thus, what was conceptually described of indifference and disponibilidad in the Principle and Foundation is here incarnated in the mystery of Christ's agony and passion. It is important to remember that just as man lost his friendship with God in his disobedience in the garden of Eden, so does man regain his friendship with God through the obedience of the Son of Man in the garden of Gethsemane. This obedience of Christ to the Father was such that he “emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men; and being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross” (Ph 2:7-8). There is an important relationship made here between service and obedience: through the mystery of the Incarnation, Christ truly becomes man. As man, he takes the form of a servant. Christ is the Son of Man who “came not to be served but to serve” (Mt 20:28). He is the “suffering servant” (Is 53), who comes to do the Father’s will, “Lo, I have come to do thy will, O God” (Hb 10:9). Truly, to do the Father's will is the source of his sustenance, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work” (Jn 4:34). And as a servant, he is completely obedient to the Father. He accomplishes this “work” (or mission) through the service of obedience; “and being found in human form he humbled himself [as a servant] and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross” (Ph 2:7-8). The mission of Christ, who as man becomes a servant to do God’s will, forms the basis and model for the “mission” of all men, for indeed as the Principle and Foundation states, “man is created to praise, reverence, and serve God our Lord.” Therefore, the fundamental basis of Ignatius’ concept of obedience is rooted directly in the heart of Christ’s mission to the Father. He is the incarnated Son of God, the “suffering servant”, who being sent, comes not to do his own will, but that of his Father, whatever it may be. And in serving the will of his Father, he is obedient: an obedience whose origins are rooted in the love of the Father -- a love that is made manifest in the form of service. In its deepest sense, then, Ignatian obedience finds its true meaning and significance in the light of Christ and his love of the Father; a love expressed in service and revealed in the glory of the cross, for he was “obedient unto death, even death on a cross”. In Christ, obedience may simply be described as loving and serving God in all things. And so for Ignatius, obedience is intimately linked to the Sequela Christi -- a following of the Son who is sent on his mission by the Father. * * * The last section presented Ignatian obedience in the light of the Sequela Christi; obedience finds its true meaning and significance in the light of Christ and his love of the Father -- a love that he expressed in the unconditional service of the Father's will. Similarly, Ignatian obedience, which springs from the love of the Father and Son, drives one to offer all of one’s service unconditionally to God under the banner of his Son, doing all in distinguished service for his kingdom (SpEx 95; 147). For the Jesuit, this service takes the form of participation in the mission of Christ. However, in order to serve Christ and his kingdom, it is of utmost importance to know two things: where he manifests his kingdom on earth and the nature of the mission of Christ. The dogmatic constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, is illuminating on both questions: The Son, accordingly, came, sent by the Father who, before the foundation of the world, chose us and predestined us in him for adoptive sonship. For it is in him that it pleased the Father to restore all things. To carry out the will of the Father Christ inaugurated the kingdom of heaven on earth and revealed to us his mystery; by his obedience he brought about our redemption. The Church -- that is, the kingdom of Christ -- already present in mystery, grows visibly through the power of God in the world [LG 3]. Thus, the mission of the Son is to restore all things back to the Father. This is brought about by the fulfillment of the Father’s will, that is, to inaugurate the kingdom of heaven here on earth. And it is in the Son’s “inauguration” of the kingdom that he brings about our redemption. The mission to establish his kingdom on earth is only possible in an obedience to God’s will; the words of the Our Father sum this up succinctly, “thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” One thus realizes that in the “Our Father” the Son is describing nothing less than his mission here on earth: it is he who praises and thanks the Father (“hallowed be thy name”); it is he who brings about the kingdom of heaven by perfectly carrying out the Father's will (“thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”); it is he who gives us our daily bread in the sacrament of Eucharist and asks for our forgiveness to the Father on the cross in the sacrament of confession (“give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses”); and it is he who prays for us, as he did for Peter, in our moment of trial and temptation by the evil one (cf. Lk 22:31-32 “and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one”). And in fulfilling his mission, we can all say with him and in him “Our Father, who art in heaven...” Moreover, the kingdom can only “come” if the Father’s will is “done on earth as it is in heaven.” To do the Father's will on earth as it is in heaven necessarily requires a perfect obedience that only the Son himself is able to carry out to the end. Thus, Ignatian obedience to the Father is only possible in as far as it is linked to the obedience of the Son and carried out in the Son. In other words, to obey the Father, one must be like the Son (Imitatio Christi). One must, in a sense, identify oneself with Christ, having not only the same feelings, but also the same mind, “have the same mind yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Ph 2:5). Therefore, to identify truly with Christ who reigns in heaven, one must identify with Christ who reigns on earth in his corpus mysticum which, as Lumen Gentium states, is none other than the Church. Because in order to feel like Christ and think like him, one must feel oneself not only as being “in” the Church, but also “thinking with” the Church. As such, Ignatian obedience by its very nature inspires and urges one to submit one’s obedience as service to the kingdom of Christ as it manifests itself here on earth, i.e. in the Church, or in the words of St. Ignatius, “Putting aside all private judgment, we should keep our minds prepared and ready to obey promptly and in all things the true spouse of Christ our Lord, our Holy Mother, the hierarchical Church” (SpEx 353). * * * Since Ignatian obedience is intimately linked to the service of Christ's mission in the Church (especially as it is concretely manifested in obedience to the hierarchical Church), it is by consequence necessary that this obedience be submitted to the head of the Church. For just as Christ was sent on his mission in obedience to the Father, likewise Ignatian obedience requires that one be sent on one's mission in obedience to the head of the Church. It can be said that just as service is linked to obedience, so is mission (“being sent”) linked to obedience because in the Ignatian sense, “mission” and “service” are synonymous. The term “apostolic obedience” is appropriate here. Indeed, this apostolic dimension of Ignatian obedience brings us back to the initial vow at Montmartre where St. Ignatius and his companions presented themselves to the Pope, the Vicar of Christ, ready and willing to be sent (missio) there where they could be of greatest service for the greater glory of God. In fact, after Ignatius’ conversion, he sought nothing else but to serve alongside the Son in his mission as a “companion” of Jesus. The vision at La Storta was the confirmation of his offer being accepted. The particularly significant words of God the Father, “I will be propitious to you in Rome”, established a particular link between St. Ignatius and “Rome” (the Church) and a special relationship between him and Christ. Henceforth, he and all his sons would follow the Son as “companions” of Jesus in the service of his mission “in Rome”, i.e. in the Church. Forevermore, Ignatius and his companions would seek to be led by no other head than that of Christ and he that represents him on earth, his Vicar, the Pope. In fact, the fourth solemn vow that a Jesuit professes manifests in a unique way this special participation in the obedience of Christ. In making this particular vow of obedience to the Vicar of Christ, he is bound personally to Christ and his mission for the Father. Finally, all of this is brought to bear most especially in the Formula of the Institute, where the raison d’être of the Society is clearly delineated. It is the point of reference for every Jesuit who desires to wholly and unconditionally offer his service in obedience to God and his kingdom. It is that through which every Jesuit can "incarnate" in his life the spirit of the Principle and Foundation: Whoever desires to serve as a soldier of God beneath banner of the cross in our Society, which we desire to be designated by the name of Jesus, and to serve the Lord alone and the Church, His spouse, under the Roman pontiff, the vicar of Christ on earth, should, after a solemn vow of perpetual chastity, poverty, and obedience, keep what follows in mind. He is a member of a Society founded chiefly for this purpose: to strive especially for the defense and propagation of the faith and for the progress of souls in Christian life and doctrine… (FormInst 3).

New Jesuit

Review

2010

Vol. 1, No. 3

------

Ignatian Obedience in the Light of the Spiritual Exercises

Download this Article as PDF

by Fr. Andrew Garcia, S.J.

Andrew Garcia, S.J., is the spiritual director of the regional seminary in Naples, Italy.

St. Ignatius, in his letter addressed to the Jesuit community in Portugal (March 26, 1553) says that Jesuits may allow themselves to be surpassed by other religious orders in fasts, vigils and other austerities, but those who serve in the Society of Jesus must distinguish themselves in the purity and perfection of obedience. He stresses that obedience is the virtue in which all Jesuits should excel and it should be characteristic of them. Underscoring the great importance of obedience, he writes:

Although in all virtues and spiritual graces I desire perfection from all of you, it is true (as you have heard from me in other occasions) that in God our Lord, I desire that you, in more than any other virtue, excel especially in obedience…

He concludes the letter with a final exhortation desiring that obedience should be observed as if the whole welfare of the Society depended upon it.

The Constitutions of the Society resonate with the same exigencies of obedience. Using examples of obedience taken from monastic tradition, Ignatius notes that a Jesuit should be like a cadaver that can be handled and disposed of at will, or that he should be like the walking cane of an old man, ready to help him in any way that he chooses. All should take care in obeying not only in things where obedience is expected, but also where there is the slightest hint of the Superior’s will -- making the Superior’s will one’s own. In obeying, one should have first and foremost the Lord before his eyes, obeying as if the order came from the voice of the Lord himself, “most especially placing all our efforts in the virtue of obedience, first and foremost to the sovereign Pontiff” (Cons 547). The germ of this special and particular obedience to the Pope finds its origin at Montmartre where St. Ignatius and his first companions desired and sought to wholly offer their services to God.

In the rules of the Spiritual Exercises dealing with Holy Mother Church (Ex 352, 365), he writes that one must be willing and ready to obey in everything the true spouse of Christ Our Lord, being ready to believe black what one sees white if the hierarchical Church determines it thus. This is the most perfect obedience, that of the understanding and can also be called “blind obedience.”

The various degrees of obedience and the variety of examples Ignatius used to elaborate upon it, both in the letter on obedience and in the Constitutions, demonstrate that he had carefully thought over and discerned what the nature of Ignatian obedience was to be. In fact, the famous letter on obedience was not the first of its kind. There were three letters dealing with the matter of obedience that preceded it. These letters were sent on July 29, 1547, to the college of Gandia, then six months later on January 14, 1548. Another letter was sent to the college of Coimbra, then once again on March 27, 1548 to Fr. Andrés Oviedo. Five more years passed when finally the definitive letter on obedience issued forth from the hand of Ignatius on March 26, 1553.

The theme of obedience is one that runs through many of Ignatius’ important writings, from the most pressing letters that he produced in Rome to the composing of the Constitutions of the Society itself. Indeed, the very fact that he thought that the whole well-being of the Society depended upon obedience makes it quite clear that it is a fundamental component of Ignatian spirituality. As such, it is of no slight value to examine the origin and development of his idea of obedience. However, to undertake such a task, one must necessarily begin from the font of all Ignatian spirituality, that is, the Spiritual Exercises. They are the distilled fruit of the mystical experiences and spiritual graces received by Ignatius. As such, the Spiritual Exercises can be viewed as a type of “Rule” of Ignatian spirituality. Therefore, any study of Ignatian obedience ought to find its primary source in the Spiritual Exercises. A more detailed study should include the Trinitarian and Marian dimension of Ignatian obedience. However, the scope of this brief paper is limited to an examination of the general nature of Ignatian obedience in its Christological dimension in the light of the Spiritual Exercises. The paper will be divided into two basic sections: the first dealing with the idea or “spirit” of Ignatian obedience and the second dealing with the praxis or “incarnation” of it.

* * *

During the years of his conversion and his subsequent pilgrimage to the Holy Land and even up to the time of the recruiting of his companions in Paris, the idea of obedience and its fundamental role was never explicitly addressed by Ignatius. The actual vow of poverty appeared only at the end of the studies in Paris along with the vow of chastity (although informally). In fact, the only vow which he and his companions professed on August 15, 1534 on the feast of the Assumption of Our Lady at Montmartre was that of poverty with the intention of going to Jerusalem, with the permission of the Pope, where they hoped to spend the rest of their days, helping souls for the greater glory of God. If this was not possible then they intended to offer themselves to the Pope for whatever mission he might have entrusted to them:

During this time, they had all already decided what to do: go to Venice and Jerusalem in order to spend their lives helping souls. If they were unable to obtain permission to stay in Jerusalem, they would return to Rome, to the Vicar of Christ, so that he might use them in a way that he judged was for the greater glory of God and the service of souls (Autobiography 85).

In the vow at Montmartre there was no clear mention of the religious vow of obedience. It was not until the founding of the Society itself with the deliberations on the Formula of the Institute that the formal religious vow of obedience was considered and professed by the first companions. Moreover, it was only during the years which followed the approbation of the Society that Ignatius actually elaborated his matured idea of obedience, making it explicit in all of its consequences and in concrete terms and examples.

Nevertheless, it is important to note that, at Montmartre, the germ that developed into Ignatian obedience sprung forth from the original intention of the first companions to offer themselves completely to the Pope, being ready to be deployed wherever there was work to do for the greater glory of God. Already here it can be seen that obedience, as Ignatius and his companions implicitly understood it, was not in the first place, a means of personal sanctification or way of perfection as it was understood in the monastic tradition. Rather, it was a means of being ready and available or “disponible” for the Pope in order to be sent there where they could be of greater service to God and the Church. There is therefore, an organic link between obedience and disponibilidad. An understanding of Ignatian obedience cannot preclude the concept of disponibilidad.

What exactly is the origin of this disponibilidad and what is its necessary relation to Ignatian obedience? The answer to these questions will be examined in the light of the Spiritual Exercises, the main source of all Ignatian spirituality.

* * *

Upon entering the Spiritual Exercises, the exercitant immediately comes across the Principle and Foundation, which is the very first consideration of the first week of the Exercises. It is the basis on which all of the following spiritual exercises turns for it defines the reason for which man is created and delineates man's fundamental relationship and attitude towards God and all creation. The Principle and Foundation states that, “Man is created to praise, reverence and serve God our Lord” (SpEx 23) and that everything on the face of the earth is created for man to help him reach the end for which he is created. Man must use creation in as far as it helps him reach his end and must abstain from its use in as far as it impedes him from reaching it. Therefore, the ideal attitude of man in relation to all of creation should be one that permits him to be both open to the use or non-use of creation. The important factor here is that from the onset, man is neither prejudiced nor predisposed in a manner that will prevent him from using (or not using) creation. Rather, he is “to be open” to everything that can help him reach his end. Ignatius describes the underlying component of this attitude as being one of “indifference”.

This indifference, which he emphasizes in the Principle and Foundation, is neither one of a passive nor apathetic nature, but rather a dynamic and involved one. This is evident in Ignatius’ use of the term “hacernos indiferentes” (SpEx 23). The literal meaning of the original Spanish is “to make ourselves indifferent” -- a term that connotes an active principle of man rendering and making himself indiferente, so that he may consequently be completely disposed to the end for which he is created. Accordingly, in man's willed attitude of indifference, he disposes of himself to this end: the praise, reverence and service of God. Thus, the attitude of indifference leads to and is the basis for disponibilidad -- a ready and poised openness to whatever God’s will may be. (The Spanish terms “disponible” and “disponibilidad” have been retained for lack of a single term in English that adequately expresses both the characteristics of “ready openness” and a “poised availability).

Man is indifferent so that he may be disponible. In turn, man’s disponibilidad is naturally directed to God. Through it, man orients himself towards God. Disponibilidad can be described as a dynamic disposition of man in relation to God -- a being ready to receive and accept in order to conform his own will entirely to that of God. This, in essence, is the foundation of Ignatian obedience: a ready conformation of man's will (through the spirit of disponibilidad) to that of God's.

This orientation of man to God finds its concrete expression in his search to fulfill God's will -- best expressed in the Lord’s prayer, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven...” (Mt 6:10). It is interesting to note that almost every colloquy of the Exercises concludes with the praying of the Our Father. It is exactly in the service of God’s will “on earth” that Ignatian obedience acquires its form; service is the form that Ignatian obedience takes. The heart of Ignatian obedience is thus rooted in man’s spirit of disponibilidad, which is the fruit of his attitude of active indifference (hacernos indiferentes -- to make ourselves indifferent). Hence, the following relation can be made: just as disponibilidad is the end of indifference, so is service the end of Ignatian obedience.

In the Principle and Foundation, however, the ideas of indifference and service remain on a conceptual level. The life of St. Ignatius illustrates that he was a man of deep life experience and not one of abstract ideas and concepts; he did not write down what he first did not live himself. As a result, to contextualize the origins of indifference and service and to understand the passage he makes from disponibilidad to obedience, one must go to the source of St. Ignatius’ life experiences of these concepts, i.e., the meditation of the life of Christ Our Lord.

* * *

Christ our Lord lives in perfect relationship to God the Father, in him lies the reason for which man is created. As such, he is the archetype, the objective model of man, who lives to perfection the Principle and Foundation of the Exercises. Through the contemplation of Christ’s life in the Exercises, the exercitant also desires to live and participate in the same relationship of love between Christ and the Father. He desires to be indifferent so that he may grow in the spirit of disponibilidad to the will of the Father. He desires to feel as Christ feels (Anima Christi) and longs to participate in his mission (SpEx 144-146) in complete service to the Father. Indeed, Ignatian obedience, which springs from indifference and disponibilidad, receives its full significance in the life of Christ; particularly so in Christ who agonizes in the garden of Gethsemane and who suffers under the weight of sin epitomized by his death on the cross.

When Christ goes to pray in the garden of Gethsemane, he prays to the Father, “Abba, Father, all things are possible to thee; remove this cup from me; yet not what I will, but what thou wilt” (Mk 14:36). At first, he prays that “the cup” may pass, but then he no longer chooses upon what he wants, but rather, renders himself “indifferent” (hacerse indiferente), leaving himself open to whatever the will of the Father may be. This is exemplified in his words, “not what I will, but what thou wilt.” This underscores the strict and dynamic relationship between indifference and disponibilidad . This indifference to one’s own will and consequent openness towards whatever God’s will may be is, in fact, the spirit of disponibilidad. Thus, what was conceptually described of indifference and disponibilidad in the Principle and Foundation is here incarnated in the mystery of Christ's agony and passion.

It is important to remember that just as man lost his friendship with God in his disobedience in the garden of Eden, so does man regain his friendship with God through the obedience of the Son of Man in the garden of Gethsemane. This obedience of Christ to the Father was such that he “emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men; and being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross” (Ph 2:7-8). There is an important relationship made here between service and obedience: through the mystery of the Incarnation, Christ truly becomes man. As man, he takes the form of a servant. Christ is the Son of Man who “came not to be served but to serve” (Mt 20:28). He is the “suffering servant” (Is 53), who comes to do the Father’s will, “Lo, I have come to do thy will, O God” (Hb 10:9). Truly, to do the Father's will is the source of his sustenance, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work” (Jn 4:34). And as a servant, he is completely obedient to the Father.

He accomplishes this “work” (or mission) through the service of obedience; “and being found in human form he humbled himself [as a servant] and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross” (Ph 2:7-8). The mission of Christ, who as man becomes a servant to do God’s will, forms the basis and model for the “mission” of all men, for indeed as the Principle and Foundation states, “man is created to praise, reverence, and serve God our Lord.”

Therefore, the fundamental basis of Ignatius’ concept of obedience is rooted directly in the heart of Christ’s mission to the Father. He is the incarnated Son of God, the “suffering servant”, who being sent, comes not to do his own will, but that of his Father, whatever it may be. And in serving the will of his Father, he is obedient: an obedience whose origins are rooted in the love of the Father -- a love that is made manifest in the form of service. In its deepest sense, then, Ignatian obedience finds its true meaning and significance in the light of Christ and his love of the Father; a love expressed in service and revealed in the glory of the cross, for he was “obedient unto death, even death on a cross”. In Christ, obedience may simply be described as loving and serving God in all things. And so for Ignatius, obedience is intimately linked to the Sequela Christi -- a following of the Son who is sent on his mission by the Father.

* * *

The last section presented Ignatian obedience in the light of the Sequela Christi; obedience finds its true meaning and significance in the light of Christ and his love of the Father -- a love that he expressed in the unconditional service of the Father's will. Similarly, Ignatian obedience, which springs from the love of the Father and Son, drives one to offer all of one’s service unconditionally to God under the banner of his Son, doing all in distinguished service for his kingdom (SpEx 95; 147). For the Jesuit, this service takes the form of participation in the mission of Christ. However, in order to serve Christ and his kingdom, it is of utmost importance to know two things: where he manifests his kingdom on earth and the nature of the mission of Christ. The dogmatic constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, is illuminating on both questions:

The Son, accordingly, came, sent by the Father who, before the foundation of the world, chose us and predestined us in him for adoptive sonship. For it is in him that it pleased the Father to restore all things. To carry out the will of the Father Christ inaugurated the kingdom of heaven on earth and revealed to us his mystery; by his obedience he brought about our redemption. The Church -- that is, the kingdom of Christ -- already present in mystery, grows visibly through the power of God in the world [LG 3].

Thus, the mission of the Son is to restore all things back to the Father. This is brought about by the fulfillment of the Father’s will, that is, to inaugurate the kingdom of heaven here on earth. And it is in the Son’s “inauguration” of the kingdom that he brings about our redemption. The mission to establish his kingdom on earth is only possible in an obedience to God’s will; the words of the Our Father sum this up succinctly, “thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” One thus realizes that in the “Our Father” the Son is describing nothing less than his mission here on earth: it is he who praises and thanks the Father (“hallowed be thy name”); it is he who brings about the kingdom of heaven by perfectly carrying out the Father's will (“thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”); it is he who gives us our daily bread in the sacrament of Eucharist and asks for our forgiveness to the Father on the cross in the sacrament of confession (“give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses”); and it is he who prays for us, as he did for Peter, in our moment of trial and temptation by the evil one (cf. Lk 22:31-32 “and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one”). And in fulfilling his mission, we can all say with him and in him “Our Father, who art in heaven...”

Moreover, the kingdom can only “come” if the Father’s will is “done on earth as it is in heaven.” To do the Father's will on earth as it is in heaven necessarily requires a perfect obedience that only the Son himself is able to carry out to the end. Thus, Ignatian obedience to the Father is only possible in as far as it is linked to the obedience of the Son and carried out in the Son. In other words, to obey the Father, one must be like the Son (Imitatio Christi). One must, in a sense, identify oneself with Christ, having not only the same feelings, but also the same mind, “have the same mind yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Ph 2:5).

Therefore, to identify truly with Christ who reigns in heaven, one must identify with Christ who reigns on earth in his corpus mysticum which, as Lumen Gentium states, is none other than the Church. Because in order to feel like Christ and think like him, one must feel oneself not only as being “in” the Church, but also “thinking with” the Church. As such, Ignatian obedience by its very nature inspires and urges one to submit one’s obedience as service to the kingdom of Christ as it manifests itself here on earth, i.e. in the Church, or in the words of St. Ignatius, “Putting aside all private judgment, we should keep our minds prepared and ready to obey promptly and in all things the true spouse of Christ our Lord, our Holy Mother, the hierarchical Church” (SpEx 353).

* * *

Since Ignatian obedience is intimately linked to the service of Christ's mission in the Church (especially as it is concretely manifested in obedience to the hierarchical Church), it is by consequence necessary that this obedience be submitted to the head of the Church. For just as Christ was sent on his mission in obedience to the Father, likewise Ignatian obedience requires that one be sent on one's mission in obedience to the head of the Church. It can be said that just as service is linked to obedience, so is mission (“being sent”) linked to obedience because in the Ignatian sense, “mission” and “service” are synonymous. The term “apostolic obedience” is appropriate here.

Indeed, this apostolic dimension of Ignatian obedience brings us back to the initial vow at Montmartre where St. Ignatius and his companions presented themselves to the Pope, the Vicar of Christ, ready and willing to be sent (missio) there where they could be of greatest service for the greater glory of God. In fact, after Ignatius’ conversion, he sought nothing else but to serve alongside the Son in his mission as a “companion” of Jesus. The vision at La Storta was the confirmation of his offer being accepted. The particularly significant words of God the Father, “I will be propitious to you in Rome”, established a particular link between St. Ignatius and “Rome” (the Church) and a special relationship between him and Christ.

Henceforth, he and all his sons would follow the Son as “companions” of Jesus in the service of his mission “in Rome”, i.e. in the Church. Forevermore, Ignatius and his companions would seek to be led by no other head than that of Christ and he that represents him on earth, his Vicar, the Pope. In fact, the fourth solemn vow that a Jesuit professes manifests in a unique way this special participation in the obedience of Christ. In making this particular vow of obedience to the Vicar of Christ, he is bound personally to Christ and his mission for the Father.

Finally, all of this is brought to bear most especially in the Formula of the Institute, where the raison d’être of the Society is clearly delineated. It is the point of reference for every Jesuit who desires to wholly and unconditionally offer his service in obedience to God and his kingdom. It is that through which every Jesuit can "incarnate" in his life the spirit of the Principle and Foundation:

Whoever desires to serve as a soldier of God beneath banner of the cross in our Society, which we desire to be designated by the name of Jesus, and to serve the Lord alone and the Church, His spouse, under the Roman pontiff, the vicar of Christ on earth, should, after a solemn vow of perpetual chastity, poverty, and obedience, keep what follows in mind. He is a member of a Society founded chiefly for this purpose: to strive especially for the defense and propagation of the faith and for the progress of souls in Christian life and doctrine… (FormInst 3).