Greater Discernment: An Introduction to the Second Week Rules – Fr. Timothy Gallagher – Discerning Hearts Podcast

Episode 1 – Introduction – The Second Week Rules for the Discernment of Spirits: An Ignatian Guide to a Greater Discernment of Spirits with Fr. Timothy Gallagher In this opening episode of The Second Week Rules for the Discernment of Spirits, Fr. Timothy Gallagher reviews the foundation of the First Week Rules. He returns to the basic pattern of discernment: be aware, understand, and take action. He also revisits spiritual consolation and desolation, along with the practical rules that help us receive what is of God and reject the discouraging lies of the enemy. Fr. Gallagher then turns to a new and more subtle challenge. In the life of St. Ignatius, genuine spiritual consolation and good, holy thoughts sometimes appeared at the wrong time. At Manresa, consoling spiritual illuminations interfered with needed sleep. Later, in Barcelona, similar consolations distracted Ignatius from the Latin studies required for priesthood. These experiences opened Ignatius to a deeper level of discernment. A thought can be good in itself and still lead in the wrong direction. The Second Week Rules help us look not only at the apparent goodness of a spiritual movement, but also at where it leads and what its consequences will be. This episode prepares the way for the eight rules that guide this greater discernment. Discerning Hearts Questions for Reflection and Study Personal Reflection

1. How well can you recognize spiritual consolation and spiritual desolation in your own experience?
2. When a thought or spiritual experience seems good, do you also consider where it is leading you?
3. Can you recall a time when something good distracted you from something God was actually asking of you?
4. What do Ignatius’s experiences with sleep and his Latin studies teach you about looking at the consequences of spiritual movements?
5. How might the practice of being aware, understanding, and taking action deepen your discernment?

Group Reflection or Study

1. Why does Fr. Gallagher begin the Second Week Rules with a review of the First Week Rules?
2. What is different about Ignatius’s experiences at Manresa and Barcelona from the spiritual movements addressed in the First Week?
3. Why is it significant that Ignatius never doubts that the thoughts and consolations themselves are genuinely good?
4. What do the consequences of Ignatius’s consolations reveal about their true spiritual source?
5. How does this episode challenge the assumption that anything that feels spiritually consoling must necessarily be followed?

This series is based on Spiritual Consolation by Fr. Timothy Gallagher You can find the book here Also, here are the 2 handouts mentioned by Fr. Gallagher in Talk 1: Guidance for a Greater Discernment of Spirits with Fr. Timothy Gallagher O.M.V. For the PDF document: Handout Number 1 – The Text of the 8 Rules of the Second Week
https://www.discerninghearts.com/Gallagher/The_Text_of_the_Rules.pdf Handout Number 2 – Examples – Discernment of Spirits – 2nd Week rules
https://www.discerninghearts.com/Gallagher/EXAMPLES-DISCERNMENT_OF_SPIRITS-SECOND_WEEK_RULES.pdf Examples used by Fr. Gallagher in the first conference talk: A Review of the First Set of Rules: George: “This morning in the chapel, prayer was difficult. In spite of so many and fervent appeals to Christ’s love, there was no feeling in me of response from the Beloved. I then turned to Our Blessed Lady and said something like this – “Please ask your Son to grant...