1st Step - Egan Chapel Plaza | Thanksgiving
Lord, I realize that all, even myself, is a gift from you.
Today, for what things am I most grateful?
Gratitude is the hallmark of Ignatian spirituality. Anyone who considers the basic truth that we are created out of love will grow in a sense of awareness and reverence. We will have a deepened sense of the sacredness of all things if we think of everything as a gift. In Ignatian terminology, gratitude enables us to find God in all things. Look at the world with gratitude and awe, and look at yourself with the same attitude. The kind of gratitude we are talking about is a window into the deepest truth about ourselves; we are in relationship with the world and connected to everything. When we catch sight of this, giving thanks is the right response. Take as much time with this step as needed. The Examen’s invitation to thanksgiving makes our blessings concrete. In time, with practice, gratitude can become living meditation, a humble recognition that all is gift and all will be well.
The Walking Examen, a one-mile prayer journey around Fairfield University’s scenic campus, is based on a prayer method popularized by St. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits, in the 16th century. The intention of the meditation is to invite participants to trust, allow and delight in God’s love through a five-step process of contemplation and presence.
The Examen walk, open to community members and visitors of all faiths, begins near the Egan Chapel plaza and continues toward Campus Ministry’s entrance on the lower level, and then winds its way through the fields and past the library toward the steps at the Mary Garden, Bellarmine Pond, and lastly the lawn of the Jesuit Community Center. Each step of the Examen is marked with a boulder and a plaque identifying the prayer prompt: Thanksgiving, Illumination, Examination, Contrition and Hope.
For more information visit The Murphy Center for Ignatian Spirituality