For almost five hundred years, the little book The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola has been an important source for Christian prayer-life. However, many Church ministers (priests, deacons, religious, and laypersons) do not have the time to make the full thirty-day Ignatian retreat with a spiritual director. This helpful resource seeks to lead a retreatant prayerfully into the heart of an Ignatian retreat by using contemplations and themes from the Spiritual Exercises as well as other meditations on the life of Jesus-but within an eight-day time frame. With a particular focus on ministry, both ordained and nonordained, the short chapters present mysteries from the life of Jesus and considerations that correspond to the dynamics of the Exercises. They represent a preparation for prayer, not to instruct but to move the imagination and hopefully the heart. An appendix offers additional scriptural texts. An 8 Day Ignatian Retreat for Priests, Religious, Deacons, and Lay Ministers enables busy and hardworking Church ministers to apply the Ignatian insights to their own interior life, which will result in rejuvenation and growth in their pastoral ministry.
