The Last Supper

Introduction: We now begin the 3th week of the Spiritual Exercises. It is a time to share with Christ; stand by Him.

Preparatory Prayer [46]: I will beg God our Lord for grace that all my intentions, actions, and operations may be directed purely to the praise and service of His Divine Majesty.

Preludes: 3

First, is the history. Here it will be to recall that Christ our Lord sent two of His disciples from Bethany to Jerusalem to prepare the Supper, and afterwards, He himself went there with His disciples. After they had eaten the Paschal Lamb and supped, He washed their feet, and gave His most Sacred Body and Precious Blood to His disciples. When Judas had gone out to sell his Lord, Christ addressed His disciples.

Mental Representation: Here it will be to consider the way from Bethany to Jerusalem, whether narrow or broad, whether level, ect.; also the place of the Supper, whether great or small, whether of this or that appearance.

Grace:  I will ask God for what I desire: Here it will be to ask for sorrow, compassion, and shame because the Lord is going to His suffering for my sins.

Points [194]: 6

1. This is to see the persons at the Supper, and to reflect upon myself, and strive to draw some profit from them.
2. This is to listen to their conversation, and likewise seek to draw fruit from it.
3. This is to see what they are doing, and to seek to draw some fruit from it.
4. This will be to consider what Christ our Lord suffers in His human nature, or according to the passage contemplated, what he desires to suffer. Then I will begin with great effort to strive to grieve, be sad, and weep. In this way i will labor through all the points that follow.
5. This is to consider how the divinity hides itself; for example, it could destroy its enemies and does not do so, but leaves the most sacred humanity to suffer so cruelly.
6. This is to consider that Christ suffers all this for my sins, and what I ought to do and suffer for Him.

Colloquy.  Close with a colloquy to Christ our Lord, and at the end, say the Our Father.

Note: In the colloquy, one should talk over motives and present petitions according to circumstances. Thus, one may be tempted or may enjoy consolation, may desire to have this virtue or another, may want to dispose himself in this or that way, may seek to grieve or rejoice according to the matter that he is contemplating. Finally, one should ask what he more earnestly desires with regard to some particular interests.

Following this advice, he may engage in only one colloquy with Christ or Lord, or, if the matter and his devotion prompt him to do so, he may use three colloquies…if this is the case, he should follow the same format used before (Two Standards).

Additional Points to Consider:

Your desire should be to enter into the scene, wanting to know the disposition of Christ when He was at the Last Supper. What was he feeling inside? Was he scared? Did he think of those times that led up to this moment: at the wedding of Cana when he told Mary, “My hour has not yet come.” – and now it has arrived.

What would it have been like to have been one of the Apostles? How surprised were they when Jesus told them that one of them would betray Him? They looked around or within themselves, with sadness or disbelief that it was possible.

Now he is going to His passion. Jesus felt physical pain to the body and pain in the soul — sadness of being abandoned, fear of being hit.  Permit yourself to consider such truths.