Ignation Spirituality: Finding God in All Things
Before he was to be founder of the Jesuits, St. Ignatius of
Loyola was a war-wounded soldier. The year 1521 found him recovering from
grave injuries suffered during the battle of Pamplona. Those many months of
convalescence proved to be a journey of healing, not just for his body, but
also his soul. Ignatius documented his conversion experience in the
"Spiritual Exercises." They would become the foundations of Ignatian
spirituality.
This spirituality is deeply rooted in becoming more aware
of what is happening in your daily experience – finding God in all things.
You can then begin to discern where the spirits of light or darkness may
be trying to lead you. We become more aware of God’s presence in our lives
and more attentive to His desire’s rather than our own.
St. Ignatius had mystical experiences that gave him an
understanding of the importance of the Trinity–Three Persons in One
God–Father, Son and Spirit. He was also committed to laboring with Jesus
Christ carrying the Cross. Ignatius understood that God is an active God,
ever at work in people’s lives. We are called to be attentive to this
active God and promptly respond.
Ignatius found that what attracted and fascinated him,
filled his imagination with hope and motivated him, often came from God.
He learned that God encounters us in these affections, in powerful emotions
that move us to act. We need to be truly free to discern among the various
spirits that move us. Ignatius referred to them in terms of "consolation
and desolation." When we learn to properly interpret them we have a sure
way to distinguish between good and evil spirits and opt for life and not
death.
God thus encounters us interiorly and beckons us to fall
in love with and follow him by contemplating the Gospel, entering deeply
into the mystery of Jesus Christ. The habit of daily prayer is the key
for this ongoing process. We are called to follow Christ as disciples,
thus integrating our life through loving service of others, especially
the poor and marginal. And we live Christ’s values in the Church, in
Christian community.
We integrate our lives into our community by faithfully
responding to God’s creative generosity. We gratefully love in return
showing it "more in deeds than in words." Ignatian spirituality stresses
that the marvelous gift of "finding God in all things" is possible for all.
We become contemplatives in action united with God in ordinary activities
and not just in special moments of prayer. Ignatian spirituality breaks
down the barriers between the sacred and the secular, and so it is
specially suited to the laity, to men and women who seek to make sense out
of their busy lives.
Loyola
Inspired by the gospel of Jesus Christ, rooted in the spirituality of St. Ignatius, Loyola House of Retreats provides a sacred setting for retreats and programs of growth and development for people in the contemporary Church and society.
Loyola House of Retreats is staffed by Jesuit priests and religious women and is located on 30 acres of beautiful lawns, gardens and woodland in a quiet section of Morristown, New Jersey. It is in this peaceful atmosphere that thousands of retreatants have paused to search, ask and wonder since 1927. All are invited to come here to do the same - to sense God’s presence in a fresh and contemplative way.
Mission
Loyola House of Retreats is inspired by the person and Good News
of Jesus Christ in the tradition of the Spiritual Exercises of St.
Ignatius Loyola. The Jesuit and lay staff is committed to providing
spiritual retreats and spiritual support to laity, clergy and
religious in a contemplative atmosphere. We desire to foster growth
in the Gospel freedom and spiritual fire necessary for the
modern day apostle.
The Many Ways to Help Loyola House of Retreats
There are a number of ways -- large and small -- that you can support the mission of Loyola House of Retreats and its ministry. While outright gifts are most immediately helpful to Loyola, donors may make a contribution in a variety of ways. Many of these offer substantial tax, estate planning, and other financial benefits. As a result, donors may enhance financial security for themselves and their families, while also making a substantial commitment to strengthening the future of Loyola. The following lists some of the various ways you may be able to contribute.
If you itemize on your tax returns, your gift to the Jesuits will allow you to receive a full charitable income tax deduction.
Outside of financial contributions, there are many special projects that benefit Loyola. An examples of a current projects is the restoration of the stations of the cross. Please contact Loyola for areas of special need.
Generations To Come Endowment
Since 1927 Loyola House of Retreats has provided a place of silence, peace and contemplation for those who wish to come apart from the busyness and noise of life to listen intently for how God is moving in their lives. To continue our mission for generations to come a $4 million campaign is underway. Please join us! Click to download Generations to Come pdf.
If you itemize on your tax returns, your gift to the Jesuits will allow you to receive a full charitable income tax deduction.
Matching Gifts
If your employer will match your gifts and you complete the necessary forms, you will benefit Loyola and those they serve two-fold. Contact your personnel office for details or call the Loyola Development Office for more assistance.
Outside of financial contributions, there are many special projects that benefit Loyola. An examples of a current projects is the restoration of the stations of the cross. Please contact Loyola for areas of special need.
Remember Loyola in Your Will
As you provide for your loved ones in your will, you may also wish to leave an additional amount for your charitable interests. You may name a specific amount, a percentage of your estate, or "what’s left" (the remainder or residual). Because bequests are exempt from federal and state inheritance taxes, and subject to an unlimited deduction, you may find that a commitment through your will - combined with an outright pledge - may allow you to contribute more significantly to Loyola than you thought possible.
Our Retreats
Loyola House of Retreats provides a refuge to feed today’s spiritual
hungers by enabling people to discover God’s life within them through
contemplative silent retreats. People come looking for answers and
solutions and leave with insight and enthusiasm. They return home with
a renewed sense of peace and are empowered to act on the call of Jesus
Christ to communicate and share that life with others.
In silence and solitude, in conversation and discussions, let the hours
of this experience at the Jesuit Retreat House heighten your awareness
of His presence. Let this be a journey of the soul. Nourish your hunger
for growth as a person.
Think of your experience at Loyola House of Retreats as a gift to yourself.
Capture the sense of your own place as a child of God called to goodness,
filled with hope, and rich in love. Live with confidence in a time of
restlessness.
Have you taken enough time to care for yourself?
Newsletters
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Permanent Retreat Directors
Fr. Charles Moutenot, S.J. joined the Loyola Retreat Staff in January of 2004. After completing a doctorate in Systematic Theology in 1990, Fr. Moutenot served as spiritual director for Jesuit Seminarians and taught Theology at Fordham University in the Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education until 1996.
In 1996, he was appointed Rector of the Jesuit Community at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, California, a position he held until 2002.
During a sabbatical year at Fordham University from 2002 to 2003, Fr. Moutenot studied spirituality. He was appointed Director and President of Loyola House of Retreats in 2004.
Fr. Moutenot’s relationship with Loyola goes back to 1972 when, as a young layman, his father invited him to make a retreat.
It was his first, but not his last, encounter with Jesuits. He entered the Society of Jesus three years later in 1975 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1984.
In addition to his administrative duties, Fr. Moutenot continues to give weekend retreats, days of prayer, and does spiritual direction at Loyola.
Fr. Edmund W. Nagle, S.J. entered the Society of Jesus on July 30, 1951, residing at St. Andrew–on–Hudson in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. His first vows were taken here on July 31, 1953, with Classical Studies following from 1953 – 1954. He pursued the study of Philosophy at Bellarmine College, Plattsburgh, NY from 1954 – 1955 and at Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak, NY from 1955 – 1957. Fr. Nagle worked as teacher of English, Latin, and Public Speaking at McQuaid Jesuit High, Rochester, NY from 1957 – 1960. He went on to study Theology at Woodstock College, MD from 1960 – 1964.
On June 20, 1963, Fr. Nagle was ordained at Fordham University Church, Bronx, NY. After his ordination, he worked at St. Beuno´s College, Wales UK from 1964 – 1965. Following, from 1965 – 1967, he worked in the Provincial´s Office in the NY Province, as Secretary to Provincial Superior.
Fr. Nagle worked as principal at Colegio San Ignacio from 1967 – 1969. He was Student Counselor at Canisius High School in Buffalo, NY from 1969 – 1978, spending his summers in Gonzaga Retreat House, Monroe NY, directing week long and 30 day retreats. From 1978 – 1980, he was Community Superior at the McQuaid High School in Rochester, NY. After a year sabbatical at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, CA, he became a member of the Formation Staff at Murray–Weigel Hall, Bronx, NY. Fr. Nagle joined the staff at Loyola House of Retreats in 1989.
On June 20, 1963, Fr. Nagle was ordained at Fordham University Church, Bronx, NY. After his ordination, he worked at St. Beuno´s College, Wales UK from 1964 – 1965. Following, from 1965 – 1967, he worked in the Provincial´s Office in the NY Province, as Secretary to Provincial Superior.
Fr. Nagle worked as principal at Colegio San Ignacio from 1967 – 1969. He was Student Counselor at Canisius High School in Buffalo, NY from 1969 – 1978, spending his summers in Gonzaga Retreat House, Monroe NY, directing week long and 30 day retreats. From 1978 – 1980, he was Community Superior at the McQuaid High School in Rochester, NY. After a year sabbatical at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, CA, he became a member of the Formation Staff at Murray–Weigel Hall, Bronx, NY. Fr. Nagle joined the staff at Loyola House of Retreats in 1989.
Fr. William P. Poorten, S.J. was born in Buffalo, N.Y. in 1930. After High School and a year of College there, he entered the Society of Jesus in 1949. The usual 15 years of training followed, including 3 years of High School teaching and a year of spiritual study in Wales, after his ordination in 1963.
Eighteen years of teaching Religion, Latin, and English in High School were followed by full time commitment to retreat work. Twenty of these last 29 years were spent on the staff and as Director of Loyola, eight other years at Auriesville, N.Y.
Fr. Bill has a special love for this work of prayer and spiritual direction, and a long distance commitment to the Buffalo Bills.
Eighteen years of teaching Religion, Latin, and English in High School were followed by full time commitment to retreat work. Twenty of these last 29 years were spent on the staff and as Director of Loyola, eight other years at Auriesville, N.Y.
Fr. Bill has a special love for this work of prayer and spiritual direction, and a long distance commitment to the Buffalo Bills.
A New Jersey native, Fr. Bill Rakowicz, S.J. entered the Jesuits in 1966 after graduation from St. Peter’s Prep. He then was graduated by Fordham University in 1972 and did his graduate work in theology at Loyola University, Chicago. A year before his ordination in 1980, Fr. Rakowicz worked at Loyola House of Retreats. Afterwards, he was assigned to work in the Caroline Marshall Islands in various positions from director of the local Jesuit high school to spiritual and retreat director. In 1987, he received a licentiate and masters in canon law from St. Paul’s and the University of Ottawa and afterwards served as the judicial vicar in the two dioceses of the region while continuing to assist in Jesuit, parish and school work. Father Rakowicz returned to the United States and after a sabbatical was reassigned to Loyola.
A Jesuit now for forty-six years, Fr. Gerald J. McIntyre came to Loyola a little over three years ago, after almost thirty years in the classroom teaching English composition, American and English literature, dramatics, rhetoric, and African literature (all of which can, on occasion, bubble to the surface in his preaching, his speaking, or his directing). Part of those nearly thirty years he spent working in Africa (first for two years in Nigeria, then for eight years in Zimbabwe), dividing his time there between the seminary classroom and seminary administration, winding up in his last few years in Harare as vice–rector, and then as acting rector, of Arrupe College, the Jesuit college of philosophy and humanities which he helped to found in 1994.
Throughout the ’80’s and ’90’s, Fr. Gerry capitalized on opportunities to receive training and supervision in Jesuit retreat houses in Ireland, the North of Wales, Africa, around the U.S., as well as here in Morristown in the mid ’80’s. And the training, of course, continues every day right here at Loyola.
Throughout the ’80’s and ’90’s, Fr. Gerry capitalized on opportunities to receive training and supervision in Jesuit retreat houses in Ireland, the North of Wales, Africa, around the U.S., as well as here in Morristown in the mid ’80’s. And the training, of course, continues every day right here at Loyola.
Throughout the ’80’s and ’90’s, Fr. Gerry capitalized on opportunities to receive training and supervision in Jesuit retreat houses in Ireland, the North of Wales, Africa, around the U.S., as well as here in Morristown in the mid ’80’s. And the training, of course, continues every day right here at Loyola.
The sixty-some years of my life in the Society of Jesus have been enriched by the wisdom and love of Saint Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises; “wisdom” in their genius; “love” from the men and women with whom I have shared them or – better “the men and women who have poured out their own love and wisdom upon me!” Most of that treasure was bestowed on me here in Morristown. Blessed Morristown – where God´s love wraps us round.
Fr. Kirk Reynolds, S.J. has a Masters in Social Work and is fluent in Spanish. Most of his ordained life was divided between parish work and retreat work. His parish work consisted of 5 years in our former predominantly Hispanic parish of Nativity on the Lower East Side and 8 years in our parish in Oceanside, N.Y., where he served as pastor 7 of those 8 years. Fr. Reynold´s spent 2 years at St. Ignatius Retreat House in Manhasset, N.Y. (´84–86) in retreat work and spiritual direction. He has been on staff here at Loyola since 2001, where he continues his retreat work and spiritual direction.
Adjunct Retreat Directors
Fr. Dan Fitzpatrick S.J.
Fr. Steve Schoenig S.J.
Fr. Ken Boller S.J.
Fr. Richard Grogan S.J.
Fr. Tom Benz S.J.
Fr. Bill Scanlon S.J.
Mrs. Anna Graziano
Permanent Retreat Staff
Sr. Margaret Ellen Burke, S.C.
Sr. Helen Beairsto, RC
Mrs. Judy Warenkiewicz
Mrs. Anna Graziano
Sr. Marylin Gramas, SU
Mrs. Carol Otto
Mrs. Judy Slominski
Mrs. Pat Davies
Sr. Sheila Brosnan, SC
Sr. Pat Reid, OSF
Mrs. Judy Schiavo
Fr. Richard Grogan, S.J.
Fr. Tom Benz, S.J.
Fr. Ken Boller, S.J.
Fr. Steve Schoenig, S.J.
Fr. Dan Fitzpatrick, S.J.
Fr. Bill Scanlon, S.J.
Sr. Barbara Connell, SC
Msgr. James Burke
Sr. Marion Baumler, SSMN
Sr. Corita Clarke, RDC
Sr. Mary Gilmore
Sr. Marlene Butler, GNSH
Management Staff
Mr. Joseph Albarella, Executive Director, President
Mr. Albarella first came to Loyola in 1985 and has since made 21 Weekend Retreats with the Garibaldi-Tighe Group. In the fall of 2006 he joined Loyola’s fulltime staff as Director of Business Operations. At the November 2007 meeting of Loyola’s Board of Trustees, Mr. Albarella was elected Executive Director, VP - Treasurer.
Mr. Albarella’s work experience spans 39 years starting with Ernst & Young, Pepsi International and The Church Pension Fund. In the last 24 years he held senior financial executive positions within the Cable TV Industry: Maclean Hunter, Comcast, Advance /Newhouse and Cablevision.
He earned his undergraduate degree in Accounting at St. John’s University and his MBA within the PACE University Executive Program. With wife, Jackie, and son, Kris, he is a long- term resident of Haworth, NJ, where he was publicly elected to Town Council and served as Fire Commissioner. Three other children and their families reside in the NY Metro Area. Mr. Albarella is a parishioner at Sacred Heart in Haworth, where he has been a choir member and is presently a Leader of Song.
Mrs. Teresa Elko, Controller
Mr. John Lucchese, Executive Chef
Renee R. Owens, Director of Administration
Mr. Luis Muņoz, Manager – Maintenance
Wanda Zimniewicz, Supervisor – Housekeeping
Loyola Board of Trustees Members, September, 2009
Mr. Joseph Albarella, President
Mr. Albarella first came to Loyola in 1985 and has since made 21 Weekend Retreats with the Garibaldi-Tighe Group. In the fall of 2006 he joined Loyola’s fulltime staff as Director of Business Operations. At the November 2007 meeting of Loyola’s Board of Trustees, Mr. Albarella was elected Executive Director, VP – Treasurer.
Mr. Albarella’s work experience spans 39 years starting with Ernst & Young, Pepsi International and The Church Pension Fund. In the last 24 years he held senior financial executive positions within the Cable TV Industry: Maclean Hunter, Comcast, Advance /Newhouse and Cablevision.
He earned his undergraduate degree in Accounting at St. John’s University and his MBA within the PACE University Executive Program. With wife, Jackie, and son, Kris, he is a long- term resident of Haworth, NJ, where he was publicly elected to Town Council and served as Fire Commissioner. Three other children and their families reside in the NY Metro Area. Mr. Albarella is a parishioner at Sacred Heart in Haworth, where he has been a choir member and is presently a Leader of Song.
Mr. Hughes Bakewell
Mr. Frederick Bender
Mr. John Bergin
Rev. Dave Ciancimino, S. J., Provincial NY Province
Mr. Andrew Coll, Secretary
Mr. Thomas Floyd
Mr. Charles Kelchner
Mrs. Erma McCarthy
Rev. Gerry McIntyre, S. J.
Rev. Charles Moutenot, S. J.
Mr. Edward Nolan, Chair
Rev. Patrick O'Donovan
Rev. Edward Quinnan, S. J.
Rev. Bill Rakowicz, S. J.
Mrs. Dorothy Soi
Mr. Frederick Bender
Mr. John Bergin
Rev. Dave Ciancimino, S. J., Provincial NY Province
Mr. Andrew Coll, Secretary
Mr. Thomas Floyd
Mr. Charles Kelchner
Mrs. Erma McCarthy
Rev. Gerry McIntyre, S. J.
Rev. Charles Moutenot, S. J.
Mr. Edward Nolan, Chair
Rev. Patrick O'Donovan
Rev. Edward Quinnan, S. J.
Rev. Bill Rakowicz, S. J.
Mrs. Dorothy Soi
What To Expect
What should I expect from a weekend retreat?
Loyola offers a time to relax, away from business problems and family worries; a time to reflect and get a fresh slant on your life; a time to pray, to reawaken a sense of the reality of God and to grow in the precious gift of faith.
Retreat directors offer scripturally-based reflections for prayer and meditation each day. Relaxation, prayer and growth in awareness of the presence of the Lord all are enhanced by an atmosphere of silence.
Below is a sample schedule for a weekend retreat. Attendence at each function is optional. You are encouraged to spend time with God, as the Spirit moves you.
Loyola offers a time to relax, away from business problems and family worries; a time to reflect and get a fresh slant on your life; a time to pray, to reawaken a sense of the reality of God and to grow in the precious gift of faith.
Retreat directors offer scripturally-based reflections for prayer and meditation each day. Relaxation, prayer and growth in awareness of the presence of the Lord all are enhanced by an atmosphere of silence.
Below is a sample schedule for a weekend retreat. Attendence at each function is optional. You are encouraged to spend time with God, as the Spirit moves you.
Friday
7:15 – Dinner
8:30 – Orientation – Reflection for prayer
Saturday
8:00 – Breakfast
9:00 – Morning prayer - Reflection for prayer
10:15 – Free time, consultations
11:15 – Communal service of Reconciliation
12:15 – Lunch
1:00 – Stations of the Cross
2:00 – Free time, consultations
3:15 – Reflection for prayer
4:45 – Healing (anointing) Eucharist
5:45 – Dinner, followed by optional recreation (first floor only)
7:30 – Night prayer, followed by Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and Benediction.
Sunday
8:00 – Breakfast
9:00 – Morning prayer – Reflection for prayer
10:15 – Consultations, free time
11:15 – Rosary
11:30 – Eucharist
Dinner
Departure
Free Will Offering
Weekend and Midweek Scheduled Retreats / Free Will Offering
Since opening its’ doors for retreats in 1927, Loyola has successfully adopted a Free Will Offering approach to request donations for its Scheduled Retreats. This is the primary source of revenue for Loyola. In this regard Loyola is unique, even compared to its other Jesuit Retreat Houses. In essence, all are welcome at Loyola – lay and religious, women and men, youth and seniors – regardless of their financial status. Said differently, no one should avoid coming to Loyola due to a particular financial hardship, and no one is ever turned away from Loyola. We understand that financial hardship is one of many hardships / life’s challenges which retreatants need to bring to Loyola for prayer / communication with God and healing.
We do ask all retreatants to consider the reality of the value of all that is received during their 40–hour weekend retreat. We disclose the recent cost per person for Loyola to provide a weekend retreat. This is presently $275 per Retreatant.
In actuality, with God’s blessings, many retreatants have donated generously – generally making up the shortfall of those less financially fortunate. Most importantly, we emphasize that each Retreatant should be comfortable with whatever they donate.
Since opening its’ doors for retreats in 1927, Loyola has successfully adopted a Free Will Offering approach to request donations for its Scheduled Retreats. This is the primary source of revenue for Loyola. In this regard Loyola is unique, even compared to its other Jesuit Retreat Houses. In essence, all are welcome at Loyola – lay and religious, women and men, youth and seniors – regardless of their financial status. Said differently, no one should avoid coming to Loyola due to a particular financial hardship, and no one is ever turned away from Loyola. We understand that financial hardship is one of many hardships / life’s challenges which retreatants need to bring to Loyola for prayer / communication with God and healing.
We do ask all retreatants to consider the reality of the value of all that is received during their 40–hour weekend retreat. We disclose the recent cost per person for Loyola to provide a weekend retreat. This is presently $275 per Retreatant.
In actuality, with God’s blessings, many retreatants have donated generously – generally making up the shortfall of those less financially fortunate. Most importantly, we emphasize that each Retreatant should be comfortable with whatever they donate.
President's Welcome
My sincere hope, and I know it
is that of our Staff and our other retreatants, is that you will
find God here – in perusing our web page and through an actual
retreat at Loyola. Please come and pray with us in and with our loving
God.We the members of the Society of Jesus
and our Lay Colleagues have been giving retreats at Loyola since 1927
when Mr. Welcome Bender and Fr. Hermann Storck, S.J. collaborated to
open Loyola as a place of prayer in the tradition of St. Ignatius Loyola’s
Spiritual Exercises - a unique path for personally appropriating the
Gospel of Jesus Christ for life.
Loyola sits on 33 acres of quiet, wooded land within a stone’s throw of Route 287 in Morristown, NJ, and about the same distance from the Morristown NJ Transit Train Station. Although not far from these two convenient transportation arteries, Loyola is a quiet place and lends itself to the contemplative atmosphere we cherish and carefully tend for all of our retreats.
Please take a look at our schedule for dates and themes of our retreats. Preached retreats for men and women are given just about every weekend from September to June (our prime retreat season). Two Matt Talbot retreats are given each year, in January and July, for those in recovery. Our summer program includes two week-long preached retreats, and three week-long individually directed retreats. The full Spiritual Exercises are also available during the summer for those who have experience in the spiritual life and want to deepen it in and with the Lord.
Loyola’s contemplative space is also available to groups in line with our values and mission statement who would like to use the facility for their own programs. Although weekends are limited in our prime retreat season, due to our own programs, other weekends and weekdays are available. Finally, individually directed and private retreats can be arranged outside of our regularly scheduled retreats, according to the availability and schedule of the Staff.
Please accept my invitation to visit Loyola and to take advantage of the peace and quiet of a holy space dedicated to God. We welcome your inquiries but most of all your presence.
Sincerely in Christ
Rev. Charles L. Moutenot, S.J.
Director of Spiritual Programs
Executive Director's Welcome
Without much fanfare we hereby launch
our redesigned
Loyola House of Retreats Website. Appropriate timing in that we’re
surrounded by springtime growth and renewal, in this beautiful Easter
Season of Resurrection.
It is not surprising that some have come to Loyola, as a direct result of an internet search, where general information and directions have been obtained. In response to today’s cyberspace world, this website is intended to provide a more robust tool to better understand the unique spiritual offerings and other opportunities to utilize and see this beautiful facility and grounds. Our focus is not only on attracting new friends and promoting Loyola, but to provide a deeper status update to all our existing retreatants, benefactors and friends.
The word "change" has arguably been exploited in this overexposed political season. At Loyola, however, where we have always been anchored by The Gospel and Ignatian Spirituality, we are on the move. This change is at many levels – from the restructuring of the Board of Trustees, to our internal systems and Organizational Chart, to our outreach program in parishes – to the many projects underway that will enhance and restore our buildings and grounds. We are very excited about what has and what will continue to evolve here, all of which would not be possible without the ongoing devotion, support and prayers of retreatants, benefactors and friends.
I invite you to browse this new website. Please partake of our efforts to communicate the past and present and to keep you informed of future events. As a concomitant to the constant spiritual offerings and the evolution of Loyola, we also plan our website’s evolution and welcome your input and suggestions.
Joseph J Albarella,
Executive Director, President
Executive Director, President