Introduction: Created by St. Ignatius of Loyola, Ignatian contemplation engages the imagination and the whole human person to bring Scripture to life and to enter into intimacy with Jesus in the Gospels. The imagination is good and a gift from God! Because it is a gift from the Lord, we are called to return our imagination to Him by using it to grow in friendship with Christ. 

In Ignatian contemplation, a person prays by imagining a passage from Scripture and becoming a part of that Scripture passage. He imagines all of his senses at work so that the story can become as vivid as possible and so that Christ is given permission to work through Scripture once more. There are no right or wrong ways to be in the Scripture passage. Sometimes in Ignatian Contemplation of the Passion, a person may imagine himself as John the Apostle or Mary Magdalen. Other times, he may imagine himself as Judas or Pilate. Trust that the Holy Spirit is working through your imagination and let Him love you as you offer Him yourself in this time of prayer.

Instructions:

1. Using the introduction as a reference, explain Ignatian contemplation to your students and explain that you are going to walk them through this form of prayer.
2. Begin with the Sign of the Cross, and a brief prayer for guidance. (Come, Holy Spirit, teach us how to pray. Through the intercession and example of Mary, guide us through this encounter with Jesus.)
3. Read the following Scripture passage aloud (Mark 5:21-43): 

When Jesus had crossed again [in the boat] to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him, and he stayed close to the sea. One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward. Seeing him he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him, saying, “My daughter is at the point of death. Please, come lay your hands on her that she may get well and live.” He went off with him, and a large crowd followed him and pressed upon him.

There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years. She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors and had spent all that she had. Yet she was not helped but only grew worse.  She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.” Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who has touched my clothes?” But his disciples said to him, “You see how the crowd is pressing upon you, and yet you ask, ‘Who touched me?’” And he looked around to see who had done it. The woman, realizing what had happened to her, approached in fear and trembling. She fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction.”

While he was still speaking, people from the synagogue official’s house arrived and said, “Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any longer?” Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said to the synagogue official, “Do not be afraid; just have faith.” He did not allow anyone to accompany him inside except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official, he caught sight of a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. So he went in and said to them, “Why this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.” And they ridiculed him. Then he put them all out. He took along the child’s father and mother and those who were with him and entered the room where the child was. ]He took the child by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” The girl, a child of twelve, arose immediately and walked around. [At that] they were utterly astounded. He gave strict orders that no one should know this and said that she should be given something to eat.

      4. Read aloud the following questions, pausing after each bullet point:

• Picture the scene. What does Jesus look like?  What does the sea look like? How does it smell? Are you inside the crowd or are you watching from a distance? Are you Jairus, begging Jesus for a miracle? Are you the woman with the hemorrhage?
• As the hemorrhaging woman, what has your suffering been like over the last twelve years? Because you are considered unclean in Jewish law, you are not allowed to touch anyone or be near anyone. What has it been like to be so isolated and alone for over ten years?  How did you feel when you heard about Jesus for the first time? 
• What is it like to approach Jesus in the crowd? Are you afraid of people seeing you? Are you afraid that you will make others unclean? 
• What color is Jesus’ cloak? What is its texture? How does it feel in your hand? When you say, “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured,” do you speak in a whisper? What does it feel like to be healed?
• What is your reaction as Jesus looks for you? Are you afraid? Do you want him to find you and see you? 
• What is it like to tell Jesus the whole truth and hold nothing back? Do you feel fear? Relief? Love? What does His voice sound like? 
• When Jesus hears that Jairus’ daughter has died, he says, “Do not be afraid; just have faith.” Do you have faith in Jesus? Or does it feel impossible to see how He can fix this?
• What does the commotion and weeping sound like? Are you one of the people weeping? Are you the father or mother of the little girl? Are you one of the Apostles who is watching? Or are you the little girl who has died?
• What does Jesus’ voice sound like?  What is the look in His eyes as He speaks to the little girl? Now do you believe? 
• Now Jesus turns and looks at you. He has just healed the hemorrhaging woman and Jairus’ daughter. What is a way that you need Jesus to heal you? Is there a place in your life where you feel like you are constantly bleeding and never healed? Are you dead in sin, or is there a heavy grief that you carry? Tell Jesus what you are suffering. Do you have faith that He can heal you, if it is His will, and that if He does not heal you yet, it is only because He has an even more beautiful plan for you in the future? Ask Jesus to speak to you.

      5. Discussion and Reflection: Invite students to share the following with the rest of the class:

• Which character were you in the story?
• Were there any details from the story or the setting that caught your attention?
• When did you feel closest to God during this time of prayer? How did Jesus speak to you?

Larisa Tuttle is a 2024 Summer Editorial Curriculum intern for Ave Maria Press. She is a senior at the University of Dallas where she is a double major in English and Theology.