David
Fleming, SJ describes Ignatian Spirituality in several ways, and one way he
defines it is a “Spirituality of the Heart” (What is Ignatian Spirituality? 2008) He writes that the “heart does
not mean the emotions … but refers to our inner orientation, the core of our
being… Jesus observed that our heart can get untethered from our actions” when
Christ said in the Gospel of Matthew – “This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.” Fleming continues to write, “When we say to
someone ‘my heart goes out to you,’ we mean something more than a feeling of
concern. If said sincerely, it communicates
a sense of solidarity with someone… It means something like, ‘I stand with you
in this.’ It is an expression of a fundamental choice.” (p.15)
The
very fact that God chose to become a human being in all ways but sin (Hebrews 4:15) shows us the Heart of
God. God loves us so much that God
wanted to experience life the way we experience it. But with one exception – the Son of God lived
a human life with a Heart like no other.
Jesus
came to show us how to live as our Heavenly Parent wants us to live, with
compassion, mercy, love, forgiveness, and devotion to our Creator. Jesus’s heart went out to the poor, the sick,
and the marginalized. Jesus ate and
drank with those who needed him most, as the Healer of bodies and hearts. He stood in solidarity with the “least of
these” and will continue to do so until the end of time.
So
now, I ask who have we been standing with this week? Whose story or life has caused us to feel our
heart going out to them? With whom do we
stand during these trying times? Are we
honoring God with more than our lips but also with our hearts – by the very way
that we move throughout our day, interacting with people, interacting with the
earth?
How are we becoming like
the Heart of Jesus?
Click
here to read a free online copy of David Fleming’s book
What is
Ignatian Spirituality?
