Forgiveness: A Guide for Prayer

by Jacqueline Bergan, Marie Schwan CSJ

Overview

Since its original release in the late 1980s, the Forgiveness book in the Take and Receive prayer-book series has been helping people re-imagine what it means to pray and see with new eyes God’s presence and activity in their daily lives. Forgiveness: A Guide for Prayer have now been repackaged and reprinted by Loyola Press.Hailed as a classic in the Ignatian prayer tradition, this book by Jacqueline Syrup Bergan and Sister Marie Schwan provides a topic-based opportunity for people to grow deeper in their relationship with God through prayer. The topic of forgiveness directly correlates with a segment of the Spiritual Exercises, though no previous experience with the Exercises is needed to benefit from the book.Covering 36 days over a six-week period, each day offers scriptural passages with commentary, followed by a suggested approach to prayer for that day. Especially helpful is a section at the beginning of the book that explains the different types of solitary prayer that readers will be asked to engage in throughout the six weeks, such as meditation, contemplation, and centering prayer.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780829436631
Publisher:	Loyola Press
Publication date:	12/01/2011
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	192
File size:	2 MB
Age Range:	3 Months to 18 Years

About the Author

Jacqueline Syrup Bergan is connected with the Franciscan Renewal Center in Phoenix, Arizona, and teaches Ignatian spirituality for the Arizona Ecumenical Institute.
Sister Marie Schwan, CSJ, is in ministry for the Diocese of Rapid City, South Dakota.  She offers spiritual direction, conducts retreats, and is on staff for the Jesuit-directed Commissioned Lay Ministry Program and the deaconate formation program.

Marie Schwan, CSJ, was a member of the Congregation of St. Joseph. She spent a number of years focused on post-Vatican II and biblical renewal within her community and beyond, including 14 years as associate director of the Jesuit Retreat House in Oshkosh, WI. Marie Schwan passed away on December 30, 2014. 

Table of Contents

Contents
Introduction xi
Getting Started: How to Pray 1
Section I – Called Out of Darkness 15
Week One
Day 1 | Romans 5:6–11: Love Changes Everything 16Part One – The Choice for Darkness 21
Day 2 | 2 Peter 2:1–22: The Rebellion of the Angels 22
Day 3 | Genesis 3:1–7: The Choice: Living for  
Ourselves or for God 27
Day 4 | Romans 5:12–21: The Ratification of Sin 31
Day 5 | Luke 16:19–31: One Person’s Fall 34
Day 6 | Repetition 38
Part Two – The Consequences of Sin 39
Week Two
Day 1 | Ezekiel 16:1–22; 59–63: A Warning from History 40
Day 2 | Ezekiel 16:1–22, 59–63: Remembering 45
Day 3 | Ezekiel 16:1–22, 59–63: Remembering, 
Part 2 49
Day 4 | 2 Samuel 11:1–21, 27; 12:1, 7–10, 13–25: You Are the One 51
Day 5 | Psalm 130: Out of the Depths 57
Day 6 | Job 42:1–6: God Is God 62
Week Three
Day 1 | Ezekiel 36:25–29: Homelessness 66
Day 2 | Psalm 51: A Cry for Mercy 71
Day 3 | Repetition 77
Part Three – The Roots of Personal Sinfulness 79
Day 4 | Matthew 25:31–46: The Decision to Love 80
Day 5 | Romans 7:14–25: The Struggle 86
Day 6 | 1 John 2:12–17: You Must Choose! 90
Week Four
Day 1 | James 1:13–18: Seduction 96
Day 2 | James 3:2–12: Blessing or Curse? 101
Day 3 | James 4:1–10: Self-Encounter 107
Day 4 | Luke 12:16–21: False Treasure 112
Day 5 | Mark 7:1–23: The Masks of Hypocrisy 116
Day 6 | Luke 18:9–14: Pharisee or Tax Collector? 124
Week Five
Day 1 | Repetition 129
Part Four – God’s Merciful Forgiveness 131
Day 2 | Luke 15:11–32: The Forgiving Father 132
Day 3 | Luke 15:11–32: Coming Home 138
Part Five – A Glimpse of Hell 143
Day 4 | Hebrews 10:26–29: The Final Loss 144
Day 5 | Hebrews 10:26–29: The Final Loss, Part 2 149
Day 6 | Revelation 18:2, 21–23: The Ultimate Collapse 151
Section II – The Call of Christ and Our Response 159
Week Six
Day 1 | John 20:22–23: Reconciliation . . . A Time of Forgiveness 160
Day 2 | Luke 7:36–50: Tears of Gratitude 165
Day 3 | The Prayer of the Call of Christ and Our Response 170
Day 4 | Philippians 3:7–10: The Call of Paul 174
Day 5 | Luke 5:1–11: The Call of Peter 178
Day 6 | Repetition: My Response 182 Appendix: For Spiritual Directors 183
Bibliography 185
About the Authors 193