Robert Stephan, Director of Ignatian Formation and Adult Spirituality at Loyola High School in The United States shares an Advent prayer book – 4th edition,  composed by Loyola colleagues; lay persons and Jesuits who are companions in the mission of Jesuit education.

« Since May of this year the Ignatian family has been celebrating the Ignatian Year, marking the 500th anniversary of Ignatius’ “cannonball experience”; a near-mortal injury that during Ignatius’ convalescence opened a path of conversion. We have contemplated personal cannonball experiences and acknowledged the “global cannonball” that has been the Covid-19 pandemic, alongside the many additional challenges of this time. Words and concepts like pivot, change, disruption and re-thinking are common.

For Ignatius, it doesn’t end with the cannonball; it is in fact the beginning of his journey to, for, and with God. Advent is a time for beginning and renewal. It is a time to consider Emmanuel, intimately present in our lives through the mystery of the Incarnation and made real in the
everyday relationships and encounters we experience. It is a time to wonder at how we might, like Ignatius, emerge from our cannonball experiences with more awareness of God’s daily presence in our lives.

It is a privilege and joy to share this 4th edition of Advent reflections. This year every entry has been composed by Loyola colleagues; laypersons and Jesuits who are companions in the mission of Jesuit education. Advent Blessings! Loyola’s Office for Mission »

Please click here to download the Advent prayer book – 4th edition.