Thesis

Ignatius considered the Examen indispensable and many still consider it one of the most important prayers one can perform. The Lord’s Prayer is considered the most perfect prayer by Christ himself.

I posit that the Examen is essentially the daily concrete application of the Lord’s Prayer within our lives. This is a very short post so it does not intend to touch on the full richness of either prayer, but rather focus on the commonality between the two as if we were looking at the center of a Venn Diagram.

The structure of the Ignation Examen

Transition into the Examen and then perform the following five steps:

  1. Praise
  2. Ask for help and guidance (petitions)
  3. Reflect on the day
  4. Ask forgiveness
  5. Make resolutions for tomorrow

Once complete, transition out of the Examen. (Ignatius actually recommends ending the Examen with the Lord’s Prayer.)

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

Putting them together

Transition into the Examen

Also referred to as salutation; coming into God’s presence.

Our Father, who art in heaven,

Step 1: Praise

hallowed be thy name;

AMDG

Ignatius’ motto (and that of the Jesuits) is Ad maiorem Dei gloriam which means “For the greater glory of God.” Alphonsus Liguori (another favorite saint of mine) was fond of asking all be done for God’s “greater good pleasure”. So although still part of praising God in Step 1, this next section of the Lord’s Prayer especially echoes these sentiments.

thy kingdom come,
thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.

Step 2: Petitions

There are three main things we can ask of God: providing for our needs and those of others, forgiving us, and protecting us. These also form the basis of the final three steps of the Examen.

Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

Step 3: Reflect on the day

Breaking these lines down, the first petition implies Step 3 in that we reflect on how our needs were provided for today.

Give us this day our daily bread

Step 4: Ask forgiveness

and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;

Step 5: Make resolutions

The final lines imply Step 5. After reflecting on our sins and asking forgiveness for them, we make resolutions for how we will proactively avoid temptation in the day ahead.

and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

Transition out of the Examen

“I believe”

Amen.

Summary

  1. Salutation, coming into God’s presence (Transition in the Examen)
  2. Praise (Step 1)
  3. AMDG/”greater good pleasure” (Ignatius/Liguori)
  4. Petitions: (Step 2)
    1. Provide for our needs (Step 3 implied: how our needs were provided for today)
    2. Forgive us (Step 4)
    3. Protect us (Step 5 implied: how we will proactively avoid temptation in the day ahead)
  5. “I believe” (Transition out)

Structured differently

I have a very hierarchical mind and love making lists with indented sublists to organize and view relationships in bullet-point format. Here’s how I see the Lord’s Prayer when looking at it that way (no words are changed, just punctuation, line breaks, and capitalization):

  • Our Father who art in Heaven.
  • Hallowed be thy Name.
  • Thy Kingdom come.
  • Thy Will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.
  • Give us:
    • This day our daily bread; and
    • Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and
    • Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
  • Amen.

I find it very powerful to pray the words and phrases with these different pause breaks than we are used to. To me, it really drives home some of the points better.