Jerusalem lay at the heart of Ignatius’ life journey. He visited the Holy Land and Jerusalem as a pilgrim in 1523, and it remained the destination for him and for the first companions at their vows at Montmartre in 1534, had Divine Providence not led them otherwise.

The encounter with Christ through the Gospels — asking for “interior knowledge of the Lord, who for me has become man, that I may love and follow him more” [Spir. Ex. 104] — lie at the very heart of the Exercises. As for Ignatius, the encounter with Christ takes places in history, in a particular land. A God who encounters humanity in history, through the Incarnation.

Walking and praying the Holy Land is a powerful reminder of this truth.

For further information, please contact:
Fr Wiesław Jonczyk SJ
jerusalem.sj.programs@gmail.com
mob. +972 58 670 5574

1. Living the Pascal Mystery

13-29 April 2022
Holy Week & Easter in Jerusalem, 8-day retreat

Celebrate in a unique way the Holy Triduum and Easter in Jerusalem, each day with celebrations in the various Churches and sites tied to the last week of Jesus in Jerusalem.

During Easter week, eight days of Spiritual Exercises* are proposed, contemplating the journey of Jesus in Jerusalem.

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2. On the footsteps of Jesus

15-30 June 2022
8-day retreat in Jerusalem, visits to Galilee and Judea

Live your annual 8-day Spiritual Exercises* on the footsteps of Jesus in Jerusalem. After the retreat, we shall visit some Judean and Galilean towns & sites.

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Grotto of the Nativity (Photo: Dirk D. CC BY-SA 3.0 wikimedia)

3. Bible and spirituality in the Holy Land

04 July-01 August 2022
Immersion programme for Jesuits in formation

Pray, visit, study and share the Land of our roots, where everything began. A unique experience of faith and of the Society, lived with other Jesuits in their formation journey from different parts of the world, with the Bible, the Holy Land, Jesus and Ignatius as our guides.

The programme offers eight days of Spiritual Exercises** in Jerusalem, followed by pilgrimage in the Land, with a focus on the journey of God with the people of Israel (Judean Desert and Negev) and through the incarnation (Galilee). The last days focus on Ignatius and his journey to Jerusalem and our way of proceeding in the Society. 

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** Spiritual Exercises in Jerusalem

A key component of all our programmes are the Spiritual Exercises—lived in the Holy City itself. Taking advantage of praying in Jerusalem, a short input (or points) for prayer is given daily in  different places according to the journey proposed, leaving all the time of the day for prayer. The sites provide a very useful compositio loci where to make meditations and contemplations.

During each day the Jesuit staff offers the possibility for a personal dialogue (colloquium) in different languages to help the personal journey of each participant.