The book is titled “What Matters Most and Why.” So what does matter most, and why?

It’s a book of 365 daily reflections flavored by the spirituality of Saint Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits and one of the great spiritual masters. Ignatius thought that God is present in all things, and is powerfully working to save and heal the world.  What matters most is finding our part in God’s work—and doing it. 

How do we find out what we’re supposed to do?

Ignatius would have us look inward—at our desires and feelings.  Many spiritual traditions view desires with suspicion.  Ignatius loved desires.  He said that our deepest desires have been placed in our hearts by God.  When we access these desires—when we know what we really want—we will know what God wants.

Sounds simple.

Simple maybe, but not easy.  Our most authentic desires are obscured by what Ignatius called “disordered attachments”—cravings for money, power, sex, fame and other yearnings.  These are usually not bad things but they are “disordered”—in the wrong place, influencing our decisions too strongly.  Ignatius developed methods of discernment—ways to sort through our desires to distinguish what’s important from what’s irrelevant.

What’s distinctive about the Ignatian outlook?

The Ignatian mindset is reflective. Since God is present in all things, especially in our daily experience, it’s important that we pay attention. This mindset is self-aware, alert to the ebb and flow of our inner life. It’s keenly alert to our spiritual and psychological blind spots — the ways we fool ourselves and find reasons to do what we want to do. It’s suspicious of the conventional wisdom.

What if you’re not a Christian? What if you’re not sure you believe in God?

Ignatian spirituality speaks to everyone.  It isn’t sectarian. In the book, I quote people like the Dalai Lama, Andy Warhol, and Nelson Mandela as well as Christian and Jesuit writers.  I include readings from Buddhist, Hindu, and Jewish texts as well as the Bible and the writings of Ignatius.  I quote from novelists, scientists, screenwriters, and journalists. Ignatian spirituality is a thoroughly Christian spirituality, but it has a universal appeal.  It draws on wisdom wherever it can be found.

How did you get into this?

I learned something about Ignatius in college at St. Peter’s University in New Jersey, but my entrée into Ignatian spirituality came in the early 2000s when a Jesuit taught me a prayer called the Daily Examen.  This is a simple  method of reflection to become aware of God’s presence in my everyday life. It helped me understand that God is here, not out there. I could simply notice him and respond to him.

How do you practice Ignatian spirituality?  How do you get started?

Do what I did—develop a regular practice of reflection like the Daily Examen.  That’s the basis for the Ignatian process of transformation.  We experience life; we reflect on that experience; we act; then we do it all over again, going deeper into the love that’s at the center of all things.  My book is organized around this process.  Experience, Reflection, Action—it’s a continuous practice.

According to Ignatius, in one sentence, how do you live a happy life?

I’d like to ask him that question too. I don’t want to speak for him.  But I think it would be something like this: Find your desires, and have a conversation with God about them.  God gave you your deepest desires.  And he’s nearby, in your everyday life, ready to talk.