Third And Fourth Weeks
(Prayer Units 23 --30)
 

Prayer Unit 23

Theme:	The suffering and death of Jesus begins with the last supper and the agony in the garden.
Grace:	During these Gospel Contemplations on the suffering and death of Jesus, I ask for sorrow with Jesus in sorrow, tears and deep grief because of the great affliction Jesus endures for me.

Prayer Texts:

        Before using the following scripture texts, it is important to know the grace that you are seeking -- to know the orientation and focus that Ignatius instructs in notations [190]-[199]. In order to keep this focus, you can use the Exercises text for the first two days or you could read carefully the text before you pray with scripture. In either situation, note 1) Grace; 2) six points; 3) notation [199]. You also may desire to continue to use the Triple Colloquy.

a) Mt 26:17-30	The last supper -- the passover meal and the giving of the eucharist.
b) Jn 13:1-17	The washing of the disciples' feet.
c) Mt 26:31-46	Jesus' anguish in the garden.
d) Repetition
e) Repetition
f) Application of Senses

        How can we be present to the sufferings of Jesus in our prayer? It may be compared to the way we read a letter recounting the last moments of a loved one. It may also be compared to the silence we maintain in the room of one who is dying. We stay silent. The one who is about to die has secrets about which we have no inkling. At the bedside of the dying, we cannot be present or sustain a presence with a heart filled with self-concern.

 -- adapted from "Direction Of Conscience" by Jean Laplace

Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times:
 

Jn 12:23-33	The interior struggle of Jesus ... unless a grain of wheat die ... now is my soul troubled.
Lk 22:24-38	The competition among the disciples for first place may have been one of Jesus' reasons for washing their feet.
Jer 31:31-34	At the last supper, Jesus fulfils this prophecy.
Jn 15:12-27	Jesus gives the key commandment of love and explains that true discipleship involves the experience of rejection that he experienced.
Ps 142	The prayer of one who is being stalked.

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Prayer Unit 24

Theme:	The suffering and death of Jesus continues with his arrest and trials.
Grace:	To ask for what I desire -- sorrow with Jesus in sorrow, tears, and deep grief because of the great affliction that Jesus endures for me.

Prayer Texts:
 

a) Mt 26:47-56	The arrest of Jesus.
b) Jn 18:12-27;  Mt 26:57-75	Jesus is brought before Annas and Caiaphas; night session of the Sanhedrin; Jesus is mocked.
c) Lk 22:66-71	Morning session of the Sanhedrin.
d) Repetition
e) Repetition
f) Application  of Senses

 1)  How do I perceive Jesus suffering in his members today?
 2)  How am I called to have compassion in the concrete details of my life?
 3)  What sorts of commitments to self, family, community, etc. are begging
      for my response?
 4)  How does my response involve the cross?

        This is a time for deeper intimacy with Jesus. Remember, however, to include in your Colloquies the practical implications of your decision-making and life stances as practical expressions of this intimacy.

Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times:
 

Ps 35	Prayer of the virtuous person under persecution ... now that I have fallen, they delight and crowd around me.
Ps 55	Prayer in persecution ... if an enemy were to have insulted me, I would put up with that ... but you a friend!
Ps 57	Take pity on me, O God. I lie surrounded by lions.
Ps 69	Save me, O God. The waters are already up to my neck.
Ps 70	A cry of distress ... may those who mock me be confused.
Ps 143	My spirit fails me and my heart is full of fear.
Is 50:4-7	I did not cover my face from insults. I know that I will not be ashamed.

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Prayer Unit 25

Theme:	The suffering and death of Jesus -- his last hours.
Grace:	To ask for what I desire -- sorrow with Jesus in sorrow, tears, and deep grief because of the great affliction that Jesus endures for me.

Prayer Texts:
 

a) Lk 23:1-25;   Jn 18:28—19:16	Jesus' trial before Pilate and Herod.
b) Lk 23:26-32	The way of the cross.
c) Lk 23:33-49	The crucifixion.
d) Repetition
e) Repetition
f) Application of Senses

For a variety of circumstances, you may need to adapt this Prayer Unit. If so, some of the following texts could be used either in place of or in addition to the above Repetitions.
Before the b) text above:

  Mt 27:26-31  Scourging and crowning with thorns.
  Jn 19:1-5       Pilate makes a spectacle of Jesus before the crowd and asks
                         them to gaze upon this man.

 After the c) text above:

  Lk 23:50-56 Taken down from the cross, Jesus is laid in the arms of his
                        mother.

Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times:
 

Ps 22	My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Ps 31	Prayer in time of ordeal ... to everyone of my oppressors, I am contemptible; to my friends, a thing of fear.
Ps 38	Prayer in distress ... my limbs are burnt with fever.
Is 52:13—53:12	Fourth servant song ... the crowds were appalled on seeing him, so disfigured did he look.
Rom 5:6-11	While we were still helpless, Jesus died for us.
Phil 2:1-8	Though divine, he became one of us and was obedient until he died.
2Cor 4:7-18	We carry in our body, the death of Jesus.

--- Last words of Jesus ---

 Mt 27:46;   Lk 23:34,  43,  46;   Jn 19:26-28,  30

 i thirst

     i thirst for a drink
       from your tarnished cup
      but
       teach me first
      to sup life's water,
       soothe
       some tired, bleeding feet,
     and bandage
      broken, wounded souls.

      then ...

       let me stroke
      the battered cup,
       draw it
      to my feeble lips,
       and taste the liquid
      of your Spirit.

 -- Ruth McLean

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Prayer Unit 26

Theme:

The paschal mystery.

----- Holy Week Themes -----

Grace:

To ask for what I desire -- sorrow with Jesus in sorrow, tears, and deep grief because of the great affliction that Jesus endures for me.

Prayer Texts:
 

a) For Holy Thursday	pray the first half of the passion of Jesus from Mk 14:12-72.
b) For Good Friday	pray the last half of the passion of Jesus from  Mk 15:1-47.
c) For Holy Saturday	pray with one of the gospel accounts of the whole passion.
	During your prayer and from time to time throughout the day, you might reflect upon the whole passion from Mary's point of view. Jesus has just been buried on Friday, and on Saturday Mary remembers and recalls all the events of the past few days. Spend your time today remembering with her. Let the effect of Jesus' death permeate your whole being and the world around you for the whole day. Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times from Mary's perspective:
	Ps 42;  Lam 3:13-26;  Lk 2:25-35;  Wis 4:7-14;  Job 1:21;  Is 42:1-9.

----- Easter Week Themes -----

Theme:	Jesus is risen.
Grace:	To ask for what I desire -- to have a deep interior joy because Jesus is filled with glory and joy.

Prayer Texts:
 

d) For Easter Sunday	make a Gospel Contemplation on how Jesus, now Lord, appears to his mother, Mary. There is no scripture for this. But as Ignatius suggests in notation [299], it is presumed. Before you make this prayer exercise, make sure you read the focus given in notations [218]-[225].
e) Repetition	of Jesus' appearance to his mother.
f) Repetition or   Jn 20:1-10	Peter and John find the empty tomb.

Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times:

 Lk 1:46-55;   Eph 1:3-14;   Ps 89;   Ps 116;   Prov 8:22-36

 Light ...

     kicking stones
       eating dust
     tearing vines
        along the road
        to find some answer.

      thrust deep in sand
       lost far in forest
      bent low in dream .....

    and then that Light,
      that glorious light
       breaks through
            again.

 -- Ruth McLean

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Prayer Unit 27

Theme:	Jesus in his risen life.
Grace:	To ask for what I desire -- a deep interior joy because Jesus, now Lord, is filled with glory and joy.

Prayer Texts:

In all the Gospel Contemplations on Jesus' risen life, keep the same focus as suggested in [218]-[225].

a) Mt 28:1-10	Jesus appears to the women at the tomb.
b) Jn 20:11-18	Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene.
c) Lk 24:13-35	Jesus appears to the disciples on the way to Emmaus.
d) Repetition
e) Repetition
f) Application of Senses

Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times:
 

Readings associated	with Jesus as consoler --
Mt 18:19-20	Where two or three meet in my name, I am there.
Lk 22:31-32	Peter, I have prayed for you ... you must strengthen your companions.
Jn 14:16-20,    25-31	I will not leave you orphans ... the Holy Spirit will instruct you in everything.
Jn 17	Jesus' prayer for us.
Heb 4:14—5:10	Our high priest understands from his own experience.
2Cor 1:3-7	God comforts us in our sorrows so that we too can comfort others.
2Cor 12:7-10	Jesus' power makes up for our weakness.
Readings associated	with the gentle delicacy of the resurrection --
Song 2:8-17	My beloved is like a gazelle ... peering through the lattice.
Song 3:1-4	Have you seen the one whom my heart loves?
Is 54:4-10	For now, your Creator is your spouse.
Ps 121	God is your guardian and shade.
Jn 10:14-18	I am the good shepherd.

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Prayer Unit 28

Theme:	Jesus in his risen life.
Grace:	To ask for what I desire -- a deep interior joy because Jesus, now Lord, is filled with glory and joy, and a deeper appreciation of how Jesus is present to me in my daily living.

Prayer Texts:
 

a) Lk 24:36-45;  Jn 20:19-23	Notice how Jesus consoles the apostles and how he will remain with them.
b) Jn 20:24-29	Jesus appears to Thomas.
c) Repetition
d) Repetition	or the Application of Senses.
e) Contemplation  to Gain Love	[230]-[237]. Before you do this contemplation, read the whole exercise of St. Ignatius. Today do the first point [234] with the preludes and pre-notes.
f) Contemplation  to Gain Love	Repetition of the first point and/or second point [235].

Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times:

        How is Jesus present in our daily living? First of all, Jesus gives us a spirit of wisdom and enlightens our eyes to see the hope to which we are called (Eph 1:15-23). He is present when two or three are gathered in his name (Mt 18:19-20). Jesus strengthens us inwardly by the power of his Spirit and does more in us than we can ask or imagine (Eph 3:14-21). With his Abba and the Spirit, he makes his home with us (Jn 14:23) and nourishes us as the vine nourishes the branches so that he helps us to bear fruit more abundantly (Jn 15:1-17). Our response to this presence is to live a life of faith (Lk 17:5-6) like our ancestors did (Heb 11) and to live a life of good deeds which is characterized by the experience of the beatitudes (Mt 5:3-12). Our daily living should manifest Jesus' attitude towards others (Phil 2:1-11). Our activities are the sign of his presence and love within us (Jas 2:14-26)

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Prayer Unit 29

Theme:	Contemplation to Gain Love -- Jesus, the risen Lord, is present in all things.
Grace:	To ask for what I desire -- a deep-felt knowledge of the many blessings received that, filled with such gratitude, I may be able to respond with total love and service.

Prayer Texts:
 

a) Contemplation                  to Gain Love	Repetition of the first [234] or second point [235].
b) Contemplation                  to Gain Love	the third point [236].
c) Jn 21	Jesus appears to his disciples by the Sea of Tiberias. Jesus serves, cooperates, consoles, calls and empowers.
d) Repetition
e) Contemplation  to Gain Love	the fourth point [237].
f) Repetition	or the Application of Senses.

Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times:
 

Ps 136	Throughout history, God works with creative power, and God's mercy endures forever.
Ps 138	Song from a heart filled with gratitude.
Ps 104	Praise to God the Creator who works throughout history.

       Also helpful are the Fourth Eucharistic Prayer of the Roman Liturgy or the First Eucharistic Prayer from the Anglican Book of Alternative Services.

        Jesus as risen Lord is the image of the invisible God and is present in all things and all the experiences of life (Col 1:15-20). Thus, like his Abba, he continually works for and in us (Jn 5:17,19-20). Without his work in our life, we cannot bear fruit (Jn 15:4-8). He is with us always, even to the end of time (Mt 28:20). God's power is at work even when we seem weak and helpless (2Cor 12:7-10). Because God loves us first, we are called to love others in deed and truth (1Jn 4:7-5:5; 1Jn 3:18). In Jesus the risen Lord, we are given life and are chosen like Peter and Paul themselves to confound the wise (1Cor 1:26-2:5).

Dancing is not a matter of steps, patterns and body movements,
although these matter.
Dancing is when these become incidental
and your body melts into the music and you exalt.

-- David Howells

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Prayer Unit 30

Theme:	Jesus sends the Spirit to form us into one body.
Grace:	To ask for what I desire -- a deepening awareness of the power of Jesus' Spirit in us and a growing desire to cooperate with others in the development of a more caring world.

Prayer Texts:
 

a) Lk 24:36-53	Be present at the Ascension, and hear Jesus saying, "You are my witnesses."
b) Acts 2:1-24	Be present at the events of Pentecost.
c) Acts 2:42-47;      4:32-37	Be present in the early Christian community.
d) Repetition
	Through the power of the Spirit, we are a people Jesus claims as his own (1Pet 2:9). Built together as parts of a new building (Eph 2:19-22) and as members of one body (Rom 12:4-5), we are knit together in unity with a diversity of gifts (1Cor 12:4-7). Hence when we cooperate with each other as one body, Jesus is in our midst (Mt 18:19-20), and the cooperative decisions that we make with respectful care for each other are influenced by Jesus' Spirit (Jn 14:26). Thus we are more likely to bear much fruit (Jn 15:5).
e) Repetition
f) Application  of Senses

Additional Readings for reflection outside prayer times:
 

Acts 1:1-11	Jesus ascends into heaven and says, "You are my witnesses."
Acts 4:5-22	Peter and John speak in the power of the Lord Jesus before the Sanhedrin.
2Cor 5:14-21	The love of Jesus impels us to be people of reconciliation.
Col 1:24-29	In our own flesh, we make up what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ.
Phil 4:4-13	Hence we rejoice because in Jesus' spirit who is the source of our strength, we have strength for everything!
1Cor 12	What are my gifts that I bring to his body? Where is the body to which I bring them?
Eph 4:1-16	How do I function within the unity of the one body? Where is the body in which I function?

Soul of Christ, sanctify us
Body of Christ, save us
Blood of Christ, inebriate us
Water from the side of Christ, wash us
O good Jesus, hear us
Within your wounds, hide us
Permit us not to be separated from you
From the wicked enemy, defend us
At the hour of our death, call us
And bid us come to you
That with your saints we may praise you
For ever and ever.
Amen.

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