May 13 will be our last schoolwide liturgy for this semester. Since we are not in session on the Feast of St. Ignatius (July 31), we typically make our May liturgy the Mass of St. Ignatius. At this year’s liturgy, one of our seniors will be offering a reflection on his time at Verb and his gratitude for his Jesuit education.
May 20, 2021 was the 500th anniversary of when St. Ignatius had his leg shattered by a cannonball during the Battle of Pamplona. Up to that point, he prioritized worldly goods, military prowess, and women. However, once he was injured, he had nothing to entertain himself while bedridden except for a book on the saints and the life of Jesus. Some may say that getting hit by a cannonball was all part of God’s plan so that the vain Iñigo would become the faithful St. Ignatius of Loyola. However, at Verb we teach our students that our loving God doesn’t cause suffering. We have free will that we sometimes use poorly, and there are natural laws that sometimes lead to events that cause suffering. When that happens, God offers us ways to transform the suffering – to bring something good from it. God offers us the grace we need to respond in such a way that we can make meaning of the experience. When St. Ignatius’ leg was shattered by that cannonball, he could’ve wallowed in self-pity or acted violently in revenge. But he didn’t. He opened himself to the grace God was offering him. He had a conversion of heart. He prayed in solitude. He went back to school for an education. He met companions in the faith and founded the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits). They went out on missions. They started schools.
Because St. Ignatius opened himself to God’s grace and responded to the call, Verbum Dei is now offering a quality, faith-based, justice-oriented education to the young men of Los Angeles. When we listen for those little “nudges” that God so often offers us (wouldn’t it be nice if it were a big booming voice?!), we have no idea the ripple effect it will have for years (or even centuries!) to come.
Right now, our seniors have been actively putting into practice the skill of listening to God’s nudges. In addition to selecting their colleges, they are putting on the final touches of their senior capstone project. This project is a product of their year-long reflection on what they’ve learned, of their passions, and of their true selves that God is calling them to be. They are starting to spread those eagle wings that will cause ripples of positive effect in our world that will last for years to come.
Let us use St. Ignatius and our seniors as our own inspiration. Let us pause and reflect on our lives and on how God might be “nudging” us. How are we listening to God’s nudges in our own lives? How are we responding to the graces God offers us? How are we being authentic to our true selves – to who God desires us to be?