Season 2. Ep 43. The Discernment of Spirits

I have often heard the saying “listen to your heart." Sometimes my heart wants to skip work, eat gallons of ice cream, and watch Youtube all day, but are all my internal inclinations always wrong? How can we ever hope to sort out the mix of attractions and repulsions in the human heart? This episode of Physically Spiritual explores St. Ignatius of Loyola’s answer to this question, the Discernment of Spirits.

Video Version

Audio Version

Timestamps

2:30 Discernment of Spirits in the Scripture

3:45 Discernment, Reason, & Freedom

6:30 St. Ignatius of Loyola & The Rules

9:40 The Context: Rules 1 & 2

13:30 Consolation & Desolation: Rules 3 & 4

18:00 What to do in Desolation: Rules 5 - 8

27:00 Why Desolation?: Rule 9

33:45 What to do in Consolation: Rules 10 - 11

36:00 Practicing Discernment

39:30 A Summary of Rules 12 - 14

Notes

“Beloved, do not trust every spirit but test the spirits to see whether they belong to God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” 1 John 4: 1 - https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1john/4

“Man participates in the wisdom and goodness of the Creator who gives him mastery over his acts and the ability to govern himself with a view to the true and the good. The natural law expresses the original moral sense which enables man to discern by reason the good and the evil, the truth and the lie” Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1954. - https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P6U.HTM

“The Holy Spirit makes us discern between trials, which are necessary for the growth of the inner man, and temptation, which leads to sin and death. We must also discern between being tempted and consenting to temptation. Finally, discernment unmasks the lie of temptation, whose object appears to be good, a "delight to the eyes" and desirable, when in reality its fruit is death.” Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2847. - https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__PAC.HTM

Spiritual Exercises - Free Version Online - https://ccel.org/ccel/ignatius/exercises/exercises.i.html

Physically Spiritual 17 | “Sacred Story” with Fr. Bill Watson, S.J. - https://www.becominggift.com/post/sacred-story

Further Resources

Dan Burke.  Spiritual Warfare and the Discernment of Spirits. - https://www.sophiainstitute.com/products/item/spiritual-warfare-discernment-of-spirits

Divine Intimacy Radio Series with Fr. Gallagher - https://spiritualdirection.com/2020/09/16/overcoming-spiritual-discouragement-with-fr-timothy-gallagher

Fr. Timothy Gallagher, OMV.  The Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living - https://www.frtimothygallagher.org/product-page/the-discernment-of-spirits-an-ignatian-guide-for-everyday-living

-. The Discernment of Spirits in Marriage: Ignatian Wisdom for Husbands and Wives - https://www.sophiainstitute.com/products/item/discernment-of-spirits-in-marriage

Talk Series Introducing the Rules - https://www.discerninghearts.com/catholic-podcasts/fr-timothy-gallagher-discernment-of-spirits/

Fr. Bill Watson, S.J. - https://sacredstory.net/discernment-briefs/

Full Text of the Discernment of Spirits - https://ccel.org/ccel/ignatius/exercises/exercises.xix.i.html

Alternate Translation of the Spiritual Exercises - Fr. Louis Puhl, S.J. - http://spex.ignatianspirituality.com/SpiritualExercises/Puhl

Physically Spiritual S2 E9 | The Map (3 Ages of the Spiritual Life) - https://www.becominggift.com/post/the-map