SECCION PRIMERA DEL GOBERNADOR

In his book Spiritual Exercises, Ignatius of Loyola outlines a spiritual practice called

Examen. Ignatius wanted his fellow monks to practice a form of self-reflection each day

so that they could understand their own hearts and motivations better. These practices would also allow the practitioner to look for ways in which God was present in her/his own life at various points throughout the day.

Specifically, Ignatius describes two forms of examination: a particular examination of

conscience and a general examination of conscience. Each plays an important role in

Ignatian spirituality, specifically in the discernment of the spirits and the resolution to be transformed by God.

In the particular examination, Ignatius calls those who are participating in the Exercises to examine their hearts twice a day in order to discern the presence of God. When you arise in the morning, you are to pray about the one particular sin or fault that you want to overcome that day. Each time you sin you are recognize that sin when you commit it during the day and ask forgiveness for that sin. Twice a day (typically noon and supper) you are challenged to reflect on your day to this point, particularly in light of the sin that you resolved earlier in the day to correct. Each hour should be examined, and you should place a dot on the line for the number of times you fell into that sin. The same practice is repeated at supper, and then the subsequent day. Throughout the week the chart is consulted to see what progress is being made, and the goal is to have fewer dots as each day of the week progresses.12 The ultimate goal is to “rid myself of [the sins] to the extent they hinder me.”13

The general examination of conscience is the second type of Examen. This is to help discern any particular sins or problems in our lives that we might need to confess to another.14 Ignatius summarizes the general Examen in five points:

1. Give thanks to God for his benefits 2. Ask grace to know my own sins

3. Ask an account of the soul from the hour of my arising 4. Ask pardon for my faults.

5. Resolve to amend them, with God’s grace.

The Examen is then closed with prayer. Also, if any confession is warranted you are encouraged to seek out someone to whom you can confess your sins and need for forgiveness.

12. Summarized from Spiritual Exercises, 24-32. 13. Ibid., 23.

14. Ignatius attributes these sins to three factors: our own desires, good spirits, and evil spirits. These three war within our souls. See Ibid., 32.

Each of us is going to practice the general Examen throughout this week. Twice a day we will spend a few moments with God, looking back over the course of the day and seeing the ways in which God is present (or absent) in our lives. While you are welcome to spent lengthy amounts of time in the Examen, typically one should aim for seven to ten minutes per session.

Each day has a guide for reflection, ways in which you can practice this discipline in a fresh way. Feel free to record your thoughts, emotions, and experiences after completing the Examen, whether here or in a separate journal. We will share about these experiences together next week.

Session 3 – The Phronesis of Christ

Purpose: By the end of this session participants should be able to define phronesis and state why it is important to understanding the letter of Philippians. They should also begin to understand that a phronesis based on Jesus’s example changes the way that leaders think about and interact with God, ourselves, and others.

To begin…

Read these words from Philippians 2:5 – “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus…”

- What does this verse mean to you? How do you understand it?

Try and have them make this personal for their own lives, not just a generic understanding of the words of the text.

Maybe follow up with questions like, “In what relationship(s) is it easy to behave like Christ? In what relationship(s) is it difficult?

- What is the “mindset” of Christ? How do we see this same attitude in Jesus’s life?

Share your insights with one another.

Background…

The Greek word that is translated as “mindset” is the word phronesis. It is a word that is used twenty-three times in the Pauline corpus. Ten of those occurrences are found in the book of Philippians, making phronesis one of the pivotal ideas of the entire letter. Throughout the New Testament, phronesis is translated in a number of different ways: mindset, attitude, mind, thinking, and wisdom, just to name a few.

Theologian Stephen Fowl defines phronesis as a pattern of thinking , feeling , and acting .

- Rewrite verse 5 below with this new definition in place of mindset:

o In your relationships with one another, have this same pattern of

thinking, feeling, and acting as Christ Jesus…

- How does that definition change our understanding of verse 5? This isn’t just

about my thinking or my attitude; this Christlike phronesis is about every aspect of my being.

Paul uses the term phronesis ten times in the book of Philippians: 1:7; 2:2 (twice); 3:19; 4:2; and 4:10 (twice). Each of these verses is listed below, in context, and the words used as translations for phronesis are written in bold. Let’s read through them together:

Maybe have each participant read at least one verse. Have them interact with the texts as they read them: highlighting key words or ideas, write thoughts in the margin, etc. 1:3-7 – “3 _{I thank my God in all my remembrance of you,} 4 _{always in every prayer of}

mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 _{because of your partnership in the gospel}

from the first day until now. 6 _{And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in}

you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. 7 _{It is right for me to feel this} way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of

grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.” 2:1-3 – “So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love,

any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 _{complete my joy by being of}

the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 _{Do nothing}

from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.”

2:5 – “Have this same mind/attitude among yourselves as was in Christ Jesus…”

3:12-15 – “12 _{Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to}

make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 _{Brothers, I do not}

consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 _{I press on toward the goal for the prize of the}

upward call of God in Christ Jesus.15 _{Let those of us who are mature think this way, and}

if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.”

3:17-19 – “17 _{Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who}

walk according to the example you have in us. 18 _{For many, of whom I have often told}

you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 _{Their end}

is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.”

4:2 – “2 _{I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord.” (Literally “to have}

the same mind in the LORD.”)

4:10 – “I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity.”

Pick one of these verses and summarize how Paul uses the idea of phronesis in that section. What is Paul saying about their “pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting”?

As you have listened to one another’s interpretations of these verses, what stood out to you? What is the gist of Paul’s argument in these various verses?

Paul is calling them to a distinctly Christian phronesis, a way of being that encompasses every aspect of their lives.

The Philippians lived in the midst of a polytheistic, unaccepting culture. Their religion was viewed with distrust and antagonism because it wasn’t like the other religions in the Greco-Roman world.

- Greco-Roman religions accepted a plethora of deities, while Christianity said

that only God (as Father, Son, and Spirit) was to be worshiped.

- In the Roman Empire, being a good citizen meant worshiping the Emperor as a

god. But Christians proclaimed that only Jesus Christ was Lord.

- Many of these religions had various mysteries and rituals that went against

Christian faith. They also practiced forms of magic and sorcery that stood opposed to God.

- The worship of gods and goddesses didn’t just take place at temples and

shrines. Instead, it pervaded across all sorts of areas of life: trade guilds, places to eat and assemble, shrines in the home, holidays and holy days, etc.

- Christians would not worship the idols, assemble in the temples, eat food

sacrificed to idols, join guilds associated with these deities, or worship the emperor. All of these things made them different from their surrounding culture.

Although these Christians would have grown up in Philippi and the surrounding area, they were now seen as outsiders because of their faith.

Why would having a distinctly Christian phronesis be important in the midst of that situation?

It would help them maintain a sense of identity in the midst of a polytheistic culture. A Christian phronesis would also teach them how to live out their faith in every aspect of their lives. Etc.

In your opinion, what should a Christian phronesis look like? What would be the important actions and characteristics of a phronesis shaped like Christ?