Apostleship of Prayer History of the Apostleship of Prayer

John L. Vessels, SJ

Part Nine
Papal Approval: 'A Way to Holiness"         So when the second founder Ramiere, brought this programme to Rome for the Popes' blessings, the popes were eager to approve it. The popes said, "This is the way to become a saint. Anyone who begins the day with an authentic offering of his or her life to Christ or to the Father for the building up of the kingdom and then lives that offering and takes that offering to the Eucharist so that Christ himself can assume it and blend it with his own and make it a part of his own, this person is on the road the way to sanctity. The Principle and Foundation was the first exercise:" Man is created to praise, reverence and serve God and save his soul and use everything else on the face of the earth to attain this end; and he becomes indifferent to his own long life or short life, health or bad health of whatever in order to do what God wants him to do and be what God wants him to be and allow God to work his will in him."
        This is the beginning of the Exercises and it builds up beautifully through the different week, the different phases of the Exercises to the moment at which at the very end when one finds God in everything one offers to God to be used by God. "Take Lord and receive all my liberty, my memory and my understanding and my will, all that I am and have you have given me, to you I return it to use as you would. Give me only your love and your grace, with these I am rich enough and desire nothing more."
        Thus Ignatius established this simple set of prayer practices, called The Spiritual Exercises, which were all founded in the heart. These Exercises were not just for the elite and the leaders but also for the hearts of simple people. This simple spirituality was engrained in the people from the beginning of the Society. Even though the Society was suppressed from 1772 to 1814, this form of spirituality was still in the hearts of people. Thus, beginning with the Jesuits Scholastics of Val, the Apostleship of Prayer brought the Exercises to the hearts of all people. Older people recognized the Ignatian charism that they had been given in their youth, this praying the morning offering, this heartfelt devotion to the Word of God, to the building of the Kingdom, to the following the King to the cross and beyond to the resurrection.
        This was Catholicism, this was what they had been taught and were still being taught by others who has assumed the works of the Jesuits - the Franciscans, the Dominicans, others in their mission fields. But it was the familiarity that rang chords in the hearts of the people, as they made their morning offering and consecrated their families to the heart of Jesus.
This solid spirituality was taken to Rome for the Pope's approval after it began to spread around the world and as we say it spread around the world because the Society of Jesus was re-spreading around the world. As they did so they recognized in their own missionary tradition the validity of this simple form of prayer, this simple school of Prayer. These Jesuits, imitating Ramiere they started magazines. Thus they started the Messengers of the Sacred Heart, leading this form of prayer into groups and communities, parishes, groups. They became the instruments of this school of prayer and thereby of its rapid growth around the world. It was not a movement but a school of prayer. It was at the service of everyone. The Apostleship of Prayer is a missionary effort to spread the kingdom and the message of Jesus Christ around the world.

To be continued

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