I’ve been wanting to make a retreat for some time now with the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, but have not been able to be away from home for as long as a month or even a week. And I just missed a weekend Ignatian retreat in a nearby town, didn’t find out until it was over. Plus there’s that little matter of not being able to afford to give even a small stipend to the retreat center for the great gift of the Exercises. But I really want to do this. I’ve never made a retreat of any kind and I know I need to do it.
Gary Zimak to the rescue! Gary, of Following the Truth, has decided (and was prompted by the Holy Spirit) to offer the Spiritual Exercises through his podcast via iTunes or BlogTalkRadio during Lent, starting Monday, Feb. 27, through Good Friday. (See promotional YouTube video below.)
Problem solved! And no excuse either. I don’t need to go anywhere, I can just download the podcast and listen on my iPod or computer, any time and as many times as I want to. For free. And I can keep these podcasts and make a retreat a month from now or next year or five years from now.
This is a God-send. A real God-send! Thank you, Gary! I’m looking forward to this. God is so good!
Catholic Heart and Mind 
Pingback: Update on the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises Retreat via Podcast | Catholic Heart and Mind
There is also a book that condenses the 30 day retreat into a weekend retreat…http://www.aquinasandmore.com/catholic-books/consoling-the-heart-of-jesus/sku/23774
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I’m taking this as a sign, David! I was out on the sidewalk in front of Planned Parenthood yesterday and one of my friends arrived to pray. I had seen her at Mass earlier and she had the book you’ve mentioned with her. I thought it looked interesting so when I saw her out there I asked her about it and I got to look at it for a few minutes. Turns out she’s met the author (at Casa Maria here in Birmingham) and spoke really highly of him. You have confirmed for me that I should definitely do the retreat and that I should get that book!
Thank you so much for commenting, David, and letting me know, and other readers, too. Have a happy and blessed Lenten season! God bless!
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You’re welcome. I’ve been watching Fr. Timothy as well, and feel lately that I’m called to at least read the Spiritual Exercises. I’ve also read St. Faustyna’s Diary (at the suggestion of Fr. Wade Menezes), but I have too much reading to do before I can circle back around to read it again. God bless you, too.
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Oh, I really like Fr. Wade. I’ve even gone to confession to him when he was at EWTN filming a show. I’m truly grateful that the network, the friary and the chapel are so close to where I live. And the Diary is here in the stack near the bed. I’m not reading it at the moment (so much reading to do!), but I like having it nearby so I can dip into it from time to time. Even a quick dip in the Diary is like bathing in a fountain of grace.
Peace be with you, David. :)
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I would, and have, even consider Atlanta to be ‘close’ to EWTN. My mother lives there, and twice when we visited, we’ve gone to Hanceville for Sunday Mass, and Irondale just to see the chapel.
Fr Wade is an acquaintance, we’ve hosted him at our parish, and I was the key contact. Went to his father’s funeral last year and consider him a friend. We have the Fathers of Mercy at least once a year.
God bless you, too.
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Well, I suppose Atlanta is “close” to Irondale. If you live in Montreal. Or L.A. Or sumpin. ;) And isn’t Hanceville beautiful? I don’t get to go up there as much as I’d like. And I have yet to attend Mass at the Shrine (though I have attended their Divine Mercy devotions, and also the Rosary for Life at the Lourdes Grotto on the Shrine grounds). I like to stop in Hanceville on the way up to Cullman to visit St. Bernard’s, the Benedictine abbey, and Ave Maria Grotto. They have a good-sized Catholic bookstore and I love to attend Mass or Vespers and hear their Gregorian chant. Been going up there for years. Now I’m going to see the Franciscans every day and that’s pretty good, too. :)
Peace be with you. (I’ve been Catholic for nearly 16 years officially and I still love saying Peace be with you.)
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I’m coming up on my 7th “birth”day myself, and I love it, too. Well, Atlanta is close, if you live in California, as I do…
When we went to Sunday Mass at Hanceville, we left Atlanta at 3:00 am to get there for the Divine Office, so didn’t see much scenery on the way. But afterwards, once we got back to the highway, yes, we saw beautiful God’s country. One unfortunate (but good for them) thing is that everything except the Church is closed on Sunday. So we didn’t get to go into the gift shop. We did go down into the crypt church because I knew there was a display of the Shroud of Turin. I didn’t realize there was a 3-d statue of the image in the Shroud…When I saw that, I nearly fell down in shock. It’s an image I will carry for the rest of my life-it’s a real illustration of what Christ suffered for you and me, and all of us…
We have Fr. Mitch coming out to the wine country in a couple of weeks. I can’t wait to listen to him. Do you go to morning mass in Irondale?
Last time we were in Atlanta, we took my mother to Nashville, met my cousins and took them up to the Fathers of Mercy generalate in Kentucky. That chapel is amazing as well. I highly recommend a trip up there to attend Mass or daily Adoration.
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A friend of mine and I want to go to Nashville to visit the Nashville Dominicans. I’d love to go visit the Fathers of Mercy, I’ll add it to my list. :)
And, no, I don’t go to morning Mass at EWTN, that’d be at 7am here, Central time, ya know. I’ve done it on rare occasions (okay, once), so you won’t be seeing me on the televised Mass. I go to the mid-day Mass on Sundays and weekdays. (On Saturdays I’m forced to go elsewhere since the mid-day option isn’t available.) I love hearing Fr. Mitch, Fr. Anthony, Fr. Joseph, Fr. Mark, and whichever priest is visiting the network. I also download the Audio Library podcast and the YouTube videos so I can listen or watch any time.
I love that I can use all this wonderful technology to help me grow in my faith. God is so good! :D
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Oh! Forgot to tell you, David! I got that book you were telling me about: Consoling the Heart of Jesus. I got it at the EWTN gift shop, they had to bring it over from the Religious Catalogue warehouse. I started reading it today after Mass and I really like it already. Thank you so much for recommending it! :)
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We wanted to go see the Dominican convent, too, but just didn’t have time. I hadn’t seen my Nashville relatives in years (in fact, hadn’t seen my cousin in decades…) and had to devote time to them. There will be a next time, in fact, we’re thinking of going to the Fathers of Mercy in August for their renewal of vows on the Feast of the Assumption. My wife got to know one of the new priests of the Fathers of Mercy’s mother, they’re the same nationality, and she’s convincing us to go. If we do, we’ll go see the Dominican convent, too.
I love listening to all their homilies, because I hope one day to be ordained a deacon and want to give good homiles. I often download to mp3 and listen and listen again.
God bless.
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Do you download the Dominicans or the Fathers of Mercy? I suppose it’s the Fathers of Mercy. I didn’t even realize you could download their homilies. I’ll check into that. Have you been to the Institute of Catholic Culture website? They have a marvelous media library. URL: http://instituteofcatholicculture.org/media.htm.
Oooh, a deacon! That’s wonderful, David! I’m keeping you in my prayers. :)
God bless you, too! :)
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Well, at EWTN, if you go to the audio library under “Today’s Homilies” I believe, you can pick and choose. I was referring to all the Franciscans and Fathers of Mercy. At the Fathers of Mercy website, you can download their homilies from the Chapel mass on Sunday.
I really appreciate the link. There’s a wealth of stuff there… I have so many, sometimes I forget which ones are good and which ones aren’t. I had bookmarked your site a while back, and have been going through trying to refresh my memory about why I bookmarked them. Mostly it’s because they have good faithful Catholic stuff. What kinds of links are you attracted to? I can trade you some in return.
Thanks for following mine, btw.
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Yeah, I’ve been downloading EWTN files for years. Now I get the YouTube videos to watch via Aplle TV. :) I have so much to watch and listen to and to read, I’ll never get through all of it. But that’s ok. I do what I can and love to share. Ýou can tell what kind of stuff I like by looking at my audio page. :)
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I DID THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES FROM HIS BOOK. GREAT EXERCISES TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE. ONE OF THEM WAS “TO THINK HOW MANY SOULS ARE GOING TO HELL TODAY.” FROM THAT DAY ON I HAVE ALWAYS PRAYED FOR PERISHING SOULS. I FELT AS THE SADNESS OF GOD ENTERED INTO MY HEART FOR ALL THOSE HE HAS TO TURN AWAY. LIFE CHANGING IT WAS FOR ME. THANKS FOR POSTING THIS. GOD BLESS, SR
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Ever since I saw Fr. Timothy Gallagher’s series on EWTN, Living the Discerning Life, I’ve been wanting to learn more about the Spiritual Exercises and discernment. I have a couple of his books, but I haven’t gotten very far with them yet. I’m really looking forward to the podcast retreat. What a wonderful idea! Later I would like to make a traditional retreat but I welcome this opportunity.
What got me praying for souls was reading Saint Faustina’s book, Divine Mercy In My Soul. That has been such an important book in my own spiritual journey. Her book really helped me develop a feel for how to live as a Catholic, too. I’ve given so many copies of that book away. I’ve given a few copies of Fr. Timothy’s book, Discernment of Spirits, away, too.
Imagine how far along the path of discipleship I’d be by this time if only I had known these things and lived them all those years ago! Life is so short and look at all the time I have wasted. Or misspent. Well, all I can do now is hope in the Lord and press onward. God is patient. Thanks be to God!
Hope you’re having a happy Lent, SR. Peace be with you. :)
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HEY DISCIPLE,
ST. FAUSTINA: SHE IS MY PATRON SAINT AND I READ HER DIARY EVERY YEAR, DURING LENT. WAS SHE NOT WONDERFUL???? WHEN I READ HER DIARY ALL I CAN THINK OF IS……”IT IS SURELY PURGATORY FOR ME:>)” DO YOU EVER WONDER HOW THE SAINTS GOT THAT HOLY?? I DO ALL THE TIME.
BEING FARTHER ALONG IN OUR PATHS: OH……..I THINK THAT STANDS TRUE FOR US ALL. I HAVE LEARNED THOUGH, “ALL IN GOD’S TIMING AND NOT MINE.”
I HAVE SEEN SOME DO IT IN A YEAR AND OTHERS IT TAKE FIVE.
I AM HAVING A GOOD LENT AND GETTING SOME THINGS WORKED OUT ALSO. I HOPE I CAN GET IT ALL SETTLED WITHIN ME BY EASTER. IF NOT I WILL DO AS YOU, AND “CONTINUE TO PRESS FORWARD.”
YOU HAVE A GOOD LENT ALSO, AND A GREAT WEEKEND. GOD BLESS, SR
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I love Saint Faustina. And Saint Therese. And Saint Teresa. And Saint Augustine. And Saint Benedict. And Saint Francis. And Saint Dominic. And Saint Thomas. And this could go on for a while. I love the Saints!
Have a great weekend yourself, SR. I’m looking forward to going to Mass in the morning. Maybe back out on the sidewalk after that. After my feet rest tonight. Oy. :)
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