Cannonball Moments

Inspired by Saint Ignatius of Loyola

What is your cannonball moment? Sometimes, even the smallest of conversations can be moments of God communicating to us and then there are louder moments that catch us off guard, that making us stand still.In those moments are we ready to listen, are you ready to dare to follow his invitation?

Saint Ingatius of Loyola had a cannonbal moment which moved him from proud courtier to companion of Jesus. Ignatius was born in the year 1491, into a noble family in the Basque country of Spain. And like all noble families at the time, he was formed in a courtly manner. He had dreams of success as a soldier and of courtly power. Untill he was 26, his entire life was aimed at having superficial fun and winning fame. Though he was baptized Catholic as everyone was at the time, Ignatius was not exactly living his faith. Infact it seemed rather irrelevant to him. But then in 1521, Ignatius was leading the Spanish troops in defense of Pamplona agaisnt the French who were attacking the army. The Spanish were outnumbered but the stubborn and proud Ignatius would not surrender. That's when it happened.

After a six-hour bombardment, a cannonball severely wounded Ignatius as it struck his legs. Pamplona was lost and Ignatius worldly dreams shattered. During his recovery, the only thing he had to pass the time away was a book on the lives of the saints and a book on the life of Christ. He found them extremely boring at first, but after awhile, he began to imagine what it would be like to follow in the footsteps of Christ like the saints did. He soon realized , God had bigger dreams for him. And almost 20 years later, together with aome close friends, he founded the Society of Jesus also known as the Companions of Jesus which we now know as the Jesuits. The cannonball experience may have shattered the dreams Ignatius had for his own life but it was the pivotal moment that began his conversion, from seeing himself as the center of his own life to "seeing all things new in Christ", the true center and source of life.

So what about you? We have all lived through moments of change, moments when discover bigger dreams and possiblities for our lives, moments that shifted our perspective on life and the world in the way that the cannon moment had for Ignatius.

We invite you to spend the next nine days with us listening to stories of cannonball moments from people like you and me that changed the course of their lives.

Our hope is this storytelling opportunity is an invtation to see all things new in Christ; to gaze upon maybe something that seems familiar with new eyes, to allow the Holy Spirit to show us something new about our faith life and relationship with God and the world around us. To remind us- We -you and I are a people of Hope, finding joy in all things.

May the love of Christ be with you always,

God bless you, Susan Sabahi