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"I have to become present to myself in God. In my culture I am constantly dragged away from myself. The phone, lights, emails, noise—everything is going on to drag me away from myself. So the first thing I have to do is come present to myself as an individual whom Almighty God has chosen as his own. I belong to God and I have to become aware of that now and that means becoming aware of the gifts that God is giving to me—not in general, not in the past, but right now, today."
Fr. Joe Tetlow SJ
Listen to Fr. Tetlow explain how to do the Examen (8:48 )
The Ignatian Examen is a spiritual treasure that has helped countless people become more aware of God's presence in their daily lives. It is a very simple, yet profound way of praying that comes directly from the Spiritual Exercises.
An Advent Examen links the regular Ignatian Examen with another treasure of Church tradition, the "O Antiphons" from the Liturgy of the Hours for the week before Christmas. The O Antiphons give us a way of looking at Jesus and finding the events in his life that speak to us.
There is an individual prayer for each of the seven days in the cycle. Just click on one of the icons above to open the prayer for that day. You can begin anytime: just start with day one, then do day two, etc. Once you finish the full cycle of seven days, start over. Repetition of a prayer is one of the things St. Ignatius teaches us. As you go through Advent longing for the Lord, you will go deeper into your prayer with each repetition of the cycle.
| Fr. Tetlow explains how Ignatius' prayer can be adapted. |
Fr. Mark Thibodeaux gives another explanation of the Examen. |
The O Antiphons are a rich part of the Church's liturgical heritage. |