Returning from Retreat

The Cloister at the Jesuit Center - I spent many parts of each day here.

No – I did not just get back!  Nothing like returning from retreat over a month ago and not getting to post about it until now! Today, I’ll post today about the 30 day experience (though I’m unsure proper words exist to properly explain the experience).  Then in the next few weeks, I’ll write about some of my experiences here at St. Anne’s and some of the work involved in the preparation for Ordination.

As I wrote before I left, the Spiritual Exercises, developed by St. Ignatius, allow one the time and space to more fully enter into the Scriptures about Jesus. As the post and the link indicate, the Spiritual Exercises are an intense experience of prayer and reflection.  Throughout the four “weeks” of the retreat, I have no doubt that I gained tremendous insight into my relationship with the Lord and the Church.  I am even more certain I have some significant work to do  - and always will. (And yes, I kept quiet, off the phone and the computer for the 30 days!)

Fr. Joseph Currie, S.J.

One of the most important dynamics in the retreat experience is one’s relationship with his Spiritual Director. In today’s post, I’d like to talk to you a little about him. Fr. Joseph Currie, S.J. is the  Executive Director of the Jesuit Center and the Rector of the Jesuit Community at Wernersville. God definitely entrusted me to a good and holy man to guide me on this journey.

Fr. Joe has spent his whole life serving and ministering to others. From formation and missionary work in India to serving and leading Campus Ministry programs at Loyola and Fordham Universities to now leading and directing a powerful ministry in Pennsylvania, he appears to have always been open to where the Spirit might be calling him. Today, while also leading the Retreat Center and serving as a spiritual director, he is the leader of the community of Jesuits in Wernersville. This involves taking care of some of the older Jesuits, helping them make difficult decisions about ministry and health issues and providing encouragement and direction in difficult moments.

As a spiritual director, I think he got a sense of me pretty quickly and was able to gently lead me through the Spiritual Exercises. Always encouraging, Fr. Joe didn’t hesitate to raise some difficult questions about my experience on the retreat, my vocation to the priesthood and my role in the Church. Often when I thought I had it figured out, he’d raise another question and ultimately lead me back to prayer to discover the answer, or at least a direction. When I struggled, he always encouraged me to have faith that God would ultimately lead me through. (He was right.)

I have come to believe, throughout my life, that God has put different people on the path of this journey for reasons, that at times, I cannot understand. I am blessed to have met Fr. Joe for he not only led me through what was a grace-filled, but challenging 30 days, but provided a powerful example of what it means to be a good and holy priest. If I could have a quarter of the qualities of a man like Fr. Joe, I’m in good shape.