Villanova University: Center for Spirituality & Discernment

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Resource of the Month

Rev. Joseph Loya, OSA, PhD.
In this talk, Rev. Joseph Loya, OSA, PhD., offers a thoughtful retreat on the theme "A Season for Clearing: Attending to the Pasture of Your Soul" for Villanova University Faculty and Staff on Holy Thursday, 2012. Fr. Loya, an Augustinian priest who teaches in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Villanova University, applies the principles of organizational psychology to the spiritual life. Drawing from his expertise in Eastern Christian anthropology and spirituality, Loya suggests that we separate the essential from everything else in order to clearly prioritize what is essential in our daily life.

In an accessible and inviting article, theologian and Augustinian priest, Joseph Loya, considers the inter-relations of tears, repentance, and forgiveness from the perspective of Eastern Christian spirituality. Here, sin has more to do with spiritual pathology, injury, and brokenness; accordingly, salvation is more therapeutic than juridical. Mourning over both our sins and our inability to endure their ill effects expresses the sincerity of our repentance and the intensity of our desire for forgiveness. “Tears—a concomitant and culmination of repentance—are also a turning point in homecoming, a pledge of return, and a first fruit of its joy.” Loya concludes with an examination of Lent as the liturgical season which uniquely expresses the blurring of sadness and consolation, repentance and joy.

The linked article is to be found in FORGIVENESS, a publication comprising papers from the 2008 Villanova Theology Institute Conference. This volume can be obtained through the Theology Institute at Villanova University: http://www1.villanova.edu/villanova/mission/theoinstitute.html

Loya, Repenance, Divine Forgiveness, and the Gift of Tears.pdf
Loya, Repenance, Divine Forgiveness, and the Gift of Tears

Further Resources for Restless Hearts

Mission Statement

St. Augustine urged his followers to search for God together, one in mind and heart. In that same spirit, the Center for Spirituality and Discernment at Villanova University provides opportunities for individuals to encounter God in their relationships with self, others and the world community.

The Center for Spirituality and Discernment:

Reverences the spiritual journey of all peoples;
Supports individuals to accept and channel their restlessness into positive and constructive expressions of community;
Accompanies restless hearts as they encounter, alone and with others, someone greater than self;
Fosters the Augustinian understanding of interiority as a discovery of self and the ever present God within whose image and likeness the human person has been made;
Invites all to experience the Gospel of Jesus Christ and share stories of faith through conversation, worship, prayer, and service.

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