Mark Thibodeaux, SJ is one of the foremost experts in Ignatian spirituality. I have appreciated several of his books, and this one is no exception. He offers brief but rich reflections to engage the reader in Ignatian discernment on a daily basis. I recommend this book to anyone discerning issues in their lives.

How do we listen to God? The Bible tells how Elijah could distinguish God's voice from the earthly elements of earthquake, wind, and fire? In a busy distraction-filled world, how do we discern God's leading? Based on the teachings of St Ignatius of Loyola, author Mark Thibodeaux leads us through the two key Ignatian themes: Consolation and Desolation. Consolation is feeling uplifted, peaceful, and connected to God. Desolation is a state of emptiness, restlessness, or inner turmoil. The way of discernment is the way of consolation over desolation. Each page comprises a subject to think, ponder, and pray about. Presented with a brief and concise description, the empty spaces let the subject percolate through our minds and encourage us to pray. We learn to distinguish listening to God versus listening to other voices of distraction. This requires fine-tuning our spiritual senses. It puts the being before the doing. Listening helps us detect the forces pulling us away or toward God. Each page shows us how to recognize the tensions between consolation and desolation. This includes questions to challenge ourselves. Discerning desolation are questions like:

- Are we able to notice the two spirits within us?
- What things disrupt our peace of mind?
- What are some examples of holy distractions?
- What causes us to be listless and restless?
- What events cause us to question or doubt God?
- How much is fear driving our decision-making?
- What are the sins of omission that cause desolation in us?
- What pushes our buttons?
- .....

Some examples of consolation questions are:

- What helps us discern God's will?
- How do we regain perspective?
- What are some ways to resist desolation?
- How do we lay low during times of desolation?
- What is the most spiritually bold thing we have ever done?
- What are some events in the past that we can attribute to the Hand of God?
- Who brings objectivity to our perspective?
- What can we do regularly to tune down the volume of distractions and tune up our awareness of God's presence?
- ......

My Thoughts
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Do not let the size of the book deceive our expectations. In fact, this little book packs a wallop for anyone facing periods of desolation, discouragement, or despair. Written like a mini-devotional, Thibodeaux gives us bit-size information about Ignatian spirituality. The purpose of spiritual discernment is three As of Awareness: Attenuation, Amplification, and Action. The first is Attenuation. We need to distinguish between forces of consolation versus those of desolation. Like housecleaning, this step aids us in knowing what to keep and what to throw out. Once we can do that, we attenuate or cast aside the things that hold us back from God. Things like world distractions or the temporal glitters of the world that mislead us. We cannot steer into peace and serenity as long as these things preoccupy our minds. Second, we look at the Amplification of the things toward consolation of the soul. This calls for courage to move forward in faith in the face of fear. The fruit of the Spirit are attributes to be amplified. We can enlist the help of mentors, friends, or spiritual guides to enable our orientation toward the things that matter to God. Finally, as we amplify our sensitivity toward God, we take Action to grow closer to God. This requires trust in God's timing and decision-making that honours God.

All three As are different aspects of spiritual discernment. What I like about this book is the brevity and the space offered to us to ponder and to wonder. It is hoped that the simplicity of this book can enable readers to practice self-awareness, pray, and grow. Thibodeaux has managed to condense core aspects of Ignatian Spirituality into this book for practical use. That said, perhaps, this book might encourage more readers to comb the primary Ignatian texts for themselves.

Mark E. Thibodeaux, SJ, is an acknowledged expert on prayer and discernment. For ten years, he served as the director for Jesuits in formation, and he is currently the pastor of Holy Name of Jesus Parish in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is the author of several books, including Reimagining the Ignatian Examen and Ignatian Discernment of Spirits for Spiritual Direction and Pastoral Care.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5.

conrade
This book has been provided courtesy of Loyola Press via NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

This was a good book talking about the difference between your wants and how God could be giving you signs in your life. And how to discern the difference.

For a book written by a Roman Catholic, I would have expected it to be more rigorous and theologically/historically grounded. The book in its present state reads like something I would find at the self-help section of a low-church Christian bookstore. I suppose it appeals to a certain audience and I would recommend it to them, but not to someone looking for more theologically grounded spiritual disciplines.

I have often found it difficult to distinguish God's voice in the cacophony that seems to dominate my life. But this book offered down-to-earth recommendations for tuning in to the Master's insights.

This is a book that would be perfect to take to Adoration or to any quiet time before the Blessed Sacrament. In it, the reader can discover gems which will likely help immensely in fine-tuning a relationship with God.

The work also offers practical tips for dealing with the devastation of desolation, which can make one feel distant from God's love. It would be a wonderful Christmas gift for the seeker in your life!

I find that reading books like this on a “limited” timeframe as an advance copy means that you don’t always find the current relevance in some parts, that may resonate months later.

Overall it was solid, some interesting questions that I have noted to come back to.

I wouldn’t recommend it widely, as it is more an intermediate level - if I was to see it in the store I would probably purchase for my mother

A very Catholic devotional type book. There are a few nuggets of good information but overall just okay. I wouldn't recommend this book, but I also wouldn't not recommend Discern either. It falls straight in the middle for me.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher.

A book to slow down and listen and discern what God really wants us to do in our life, not too fast, not so instant, but pondering.

When I saw this available on NG I gladly downloaded it. Thank you, Loyola Press, for granting me access.

I've read some of Father Thibodeaux's work previously and found it enlightening. There are nuggets of gold in this short book but they get lost in the brevity and insufficient detail to encourage further pondering.

The author is a disciple of St Ignatius's teaching and this book follows the principles of that teaching. The book is a series of 'soundbites' from the author's reflections of consolation and desolation when it comes to discernment. The 'soundbites are a few lines, with 2 questions to ponder, however, I found myself skipping past the questions due to insufficient detail.

The book feels like a summary of a longer book. I would happily invest in the time reading a longer version if the author was encouraged to write it.

I suspect this would be a very handy summary for those who know St Ignatius's teaching well and seeking to discern a future direction in an aspect of one's life.

Discern
By Mark E. Thibodeaux

Book Review

I want to call it a daily devotional but I suspect for some they will read this is one sitting and then go back to discern it more fully. Perhaps it could be described thus: A series of brief, accessible reflections and questions for spiritual exploration. 

It follows the way of Ignatius of Loyola of thinking in terms of desolation and consolation. It gives wise metaphors to allow the reader to ngage with the short workshop pieces.

I say workshop pieces because I can imagine this being taught/ facilitated in a group setting. There are various well known Ignatian stories along with new ones that Mark has found to be helpful in his work as a Spiritual Accompanier. Monkeys on backs being one of the metaphors to ensure the Accompanier does not join in with some weltsmertz.

A short read and a long read, a dipping in and out of and a prescribed journey. How can we avoid the false spirit? I could write reams just about that. Go read for yourself!

I don’t know what I was expecting from this book, but it definitely wasn’t this.

This book gave ‘whispers’ Of gods word, But it barely gave biblical references to back up the points given. You can tell that the author has did the research, and has probably read the Bible more than once, but the information given was dry, and I felt like it was more of a lecture than a book to show that God was always there for us and ‘whispering’ to us (so to speak)

Overall, it sounded like a list of rules That God had given us- which is fine… But if I wanted to read about our rules, I would’ve just read the Ten Commandments.