How to make a decision, Jesuit style

This letter has been hanging round for years and I finally decided to type it up so I can keep it in a safe place! By way of introduction, this was one of the very last lessons I learned while working on the Spirituality Course run by the Jesuits. While I initially thought I would just transcribe the letter, I ended up making minor adjustments, purely for my own referencing convenience. Perhaps it will be helpful to others.

There are three elements in Decision Making - Prayer, Data and Confirmation.

Prayer needs to accompany every stage. Prayer in a spirit of freedom from bias, and obedience to God. We should be listening a fair bit, because we are asking which direction to take, to be closest to Jesus. I don't know Jesus always says loud and clear 'come to Me' but ah, crucially, discernment is about recognising Jesus inviting me to accompany Him and to work with Him. Jesus doesn't 'send' without consent. So, prayer and discernment is about looking for Jesus.

Secondly, as all good researchers know, your data is only as good as your question. So in the Data section, how we focus and frame the issue is a simple and powerful exercise. Avoid negativity because it confuses the issue. Think in the context of options if we give up our current position. It helps to make us face up to the real issues. There is usually somethiing we don't want to lose in the present we are in. Next, we have to pray about the 'for' and 'against' reasons. We need to find out all the information. From all relevant angles. Be practical.

Confirmation is both internal and external. We are taught that we first arrive at a tentative conclusion (draft 1) and offer it up to God. It is a great help to have someone listen as you try to describe your moods (how you feel as you visualise / process the data) That is the internal part. External confirmation is quite funny i.e. actually we are advised that this part can be quite practical. Ever had the feeling that things just 'fell into place' or that it was 'meant to be'? God opens doors, in more ways than one.

Conclusion: The decision making process may seem quite practical, perhaps too practical to qualify as a 'spiritual' way of decision making in obedience to God. Recall however, that St Ignatius, as a courtier and soldier was first and foremost trained in practicalities.