“Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds”-Albert Einstein (BrainyQuote.com). This quote is important in the story of Gil Pender. The bad spirit is driven without much thought and is instinctual and pleasurable. While the good spirit usual can take more time to develop because it can be the hardest decision to make. People and experiences in life drive good and bad spirits to formulate our decisions. To discern which spirit is the right one, we need to take in Ignatian Spiritual teaching on discernment to know what is right. In this paper, we will examine how Gil Pender experienced consolation of the good spirit and desolation of the bad spirit, in relation to Ignatian teaching and his experiences in the past and present.
God reveals the truth and good through our experiences, therefore we must trust our experiences and value the journey to find true happiness. Gil Pender experiences consolation of the good spirit through the famous writers, painters of the 1920’s and Adrianna. In Brian Incigneri’s article Discernment: Recognizing God’s …show more content…
Inez embodies the bad spirit on Gil’s life. In the Rules for the Discernment of Spirits it states, “The enemy conducts himself as a bully. He is a weakling before a show of strength, and a tyrant if he has his will” (Loyola 325). The “enemy” or bad spirit, Ignatius says pushes us into situations that are undesirable. Inez is the “bully” to Gil’s spiritual journey. While in Paris instead of just stilling back and enjoying the pleasant views that Paris offers, like Gil wants to, she keeps him on a tight schedule. Gil tries to convince her to relax and enjoy the beauties of the city, but she refuses and leads to her having an affair when Gil decides to not go out with them. But this decision is a blessing in disguise for Gil. It helps him to finally break it off with Inez releasing the bad spirit of his
God reveals the truth and good through our experiences, therefore we must trust our experiences and value the journey to find true happiness. Gil Pender experiences consolation of the good spirit through the famous writers, painters of the 1920’s and Adrianna. In Brian Incigneri’s article Discernment: Recognizing God’s …show more content…
Inez embodies the bad spirit on Gil’s life. In the Rules for the Discernment of Spirits it states, “The enemy conducts himself as a bully. He is a weakling before a show of strength, and a tyrant if he has his will” (Loyola 325). The “enemy” or bad spirit, Ignatius says pushes us into situations that are undesirable. Inez is the “bully” to Gil’s spiritual journey. While in Paris instead of just stilling back and enjoying the pleasant views that Paris offers, like Gil wants to, she keeps him on a tight schedule. Gil tries to convince her to relax and enjoy the beauties of the city, but she refuses and leads to her having an affair when Gil decides to not go out with them. But this decision is a blessing in disguise for Gil. It helps him to finally break it off with Inez releasing the bad spirit of his