TOPIC
Listening to Care & Identify Genuine Needs
Handout: Learning Community Gathering #5

PRAXIS

Practice the “Cycle of  Prayerful Listening & Genuine Caring” on page 6 as well as using the imaginative prayer below to intentionally care for two people. For each person, this involves:

  1. What was the quality of my presence or tenderness? Meeting up once or twice with the person or check in with them via text or a phone call throughout the month. Try to listen with presence and tenderness, as described in last month’s praxis.

  2. Praying 2-3 times for the person using the imaginative prayer below. Then practice Ignatian noting guided by the questions below the prayer.

3. After each encounter or interaction with the person, practice Ignatian noting guided by the following prompts:

  • What was the quality of my presence or tenderness?

  • How was I attentive or aware of the person’s genuine needs

  • How did God and I “do it together,” or not (i.e. how was I “in God” or “outside God?) as I interacted with the person?

After the prayer, practice noting guided by the following questions:

  • Was there anything surprising that came up during the prayer?

  • Did I notice any concrete invitation from Jesus? How do I feel about this invitation?

  • Is there any point to which am I invited to return and listen deeper?