Action Counterattacks:

Ignatius offers the principle of constancy of resolution and decision: “In time of desolation we should never make any change, but remain firm and constant in the resolution and decision which guided us the day before the desolation.” Here are the typical spiritual exercises of counterattack:

First, we must pray more in an affective way, that is, involve our heart, feelings, and desires by telling God how we feel and by paying attention to God’s response in our affectivity.

Second, we must involve our minds and imaginations more through meditation.

Third, we must involve our heart, mind, imagination, and memory through self-examination.

Fourth, we must engage our behaviour by taking concrete actions, such as fasting or other penances. Zen Buddhism also teaches that one of the ways to free ourselves from the downward spiral of the Ego is to compassionately hold it and its wiles and to deliberately let it go, symbolizing in some manner a willingness to detach from it, and to take up a stance of emptiness within our Divine Self. (Continue)