EMBRACING THE SPIRIT: THE IGNATIAN PNEUMATOLOGY OF LOUIS LALLEMANT

Abstract

The Pneumatology of the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius of Loyola is famously discreet. However, other Ignatian authors give the Holy Spirit a central place in their spirituality. This article analyzes the Pneumatological contribution of Louis Lallemant’s Spiritual Doctrine to Ignatian spirituality, in dialogue with the Spiritual Exercises. Anchored in the guidance of the Holy Spirit, this spiritual teaching advocates a docility to the Spirit nurtured by the “guard over the heart” and an on-going responsiveness to the Spirit’s promptings. The “second conversion” promoted by Lallemant to his hearers is revealed as a Pneumatological event. It nonetheless conforms the believer to Christ, acknowledging the Christological focus of Ignatian Spirituality, while expanding its Pneumatological dimension.

KEYWORDS: Spiritual Exercises. Pneumatological. Louis Lallemant. Spiritual Doctrine.