About Sacred Space
Sacred Space is inspired by the spirituality of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, a sixteenth-century Basque native, whose insights into God’s working with the human heart have been of great assistance to countless people over the centuries and are found more helpful than ever today.
Sacred Space is a ministry of the Irish Jesuits. The site originated in the offices of the Jesuit Communication Centre in Ireland in 1999. It has grown into a global online apostolate for daily prayer since that time, and now offers prayer in approximately 15 other languages.
It might seem strange to pray at your computer, in front of a screen or using your smartphone, especially if there are other people around you, or distracting noises. But God is everywhere, all around us, constantly reaching out to us, even in the most unlikely situations. When we know this, and with a bit of practice, we can pray anywhere!
We offer daily prayer on our site to guide you through a session of prayer, in six stages, including preparing your body and mind, and culminating in reflection on the Gospel of the day according to the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar. The stages are:
The Presence of God
Freedom
Consciousness
The Word
Conversation
Conclusion
It is worth noting that we follow the Irish liturgical calendar which may at times differ from liturgical calendars used in other countries. We hope in the future to provide a choice of liturgical calendars depending on your location and preference.
Another resource that you may like to use is our Living Space page. Here you will find commentaries on both the daily readings and the Sunday readings throughout the Church year. Originally, this was the work of Fr. Frank Doyle, SJ who passed away in 2011. The existing commentaries continue to be edited and updated, but new commentaries are not currently being posted, and every once in a while, there is a day with no commentary available. It is possible to search the Living Space collection for commentaries on particular scripture readings and saints. The collection is also searchable by Gospel (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John), by Sunday of the Year or by Saint by Month. Please note that the site is undergoing updating and revisions for functionality.
Each month the Pope entrusts a prayer intention to his Worldwide Prayer Network, the Apostleship of Prayer. These intentions, which express the Pope’s concern for humanity and the mission of the Church, are made available along with a morning and evening prayer. Please visit the Apostleship of Prayer page if you would like to join many others in praying for the Pope’s intention.
Each week we include Something to Think and Pray About This Week on our home page. This is normally an excerpt taken from a book on Ignatian spirituality, published by Messengers Publications. We hope you will find this a source of encouragement and inspiration.
Speaking of books, every year we publish the Sacred Space Prayer Book, which includes all the daily Gospel readings along with the Inspiration Points that accompany them. This has always been a great success and some people find this a more accessible format to use in prayer. We also produce two smaller books, one for Lent & Easter and the other for Advent & Christmas, and these make lovely gifts and are very light and easy to carry around. All of our books can be found on our Sacred Space books page.
Apps
If you would rather use Sacred Space on your phone or when you are on the go, download the app by following this link: Sacred Space Apps
St. Ignatius of Loyola
Saint Ignatius, a 15th Century Basque native, is considered the founder of the Jesuits and the father of Ignatian spirituality, on which this website is based. Read more about him here: St Ignatius of Loyola
Novenas & Retreats
We offer retreats from time to time, particularly during the seasons of Lent and Advent, and when available, these can be found here: Retreats
We also occasionally offer novenas to support you in your prayer life, and you can access these when available on this page: Novenas
A novena is a form of prayer prayed over 9 days, for special intentions and petitions.
How You Can Help Us
If you feel you have benefited from using the site and would like to show your appreciation, then you can make a financial contribution towards our running costs. Your help is very welcome. Donations make a huge difference to us in maintaining the quality and consistency of our service. Although we rely heavily on the work of volunteers, donations help us cover the ongoing cost of IT development, translation, editing, administration and promotion of Sacred Space. We accept donations in a variety of ways and currencies. You can donate by credit card/PayPal. You also have the option of sending us a cheque or making a bank transfer.
Not all the help we need is financial – there are other valuable ways you can help and support our work:
Tell your friends about Sacred Space
Word of mouth remains the most effective way to spread the news about Sacred Space. Recommendation from a trusted friend still carries great weight today so why not tell your friends about Sacred Space, so they too can join us online. Please feel free to mention us in parish newsletters, in blogs, on community notice boards and in local newspapers.
We write a newsletter called Latest Space which you can subscribe to here to be kept up to date with what is happening at Sacred Space. This is sent out 4 times a year: Lent, Easter, Summer (Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola) and Advent. Feel free to forward this newsletter to others who you think might find it of interest.
If you use Social Media then it’s even easier to get the word out and let your friends know about Sacred Space. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest and share your personal experience of Sacred Space with your friends.
Pray!
One of the most overlooked but important ways of supporting us is through the power of your own daily prayer. Sacred Space exists to facilitate people in coming to have a personal encounter with Jesus through a daily moment of prayer. Let us pray that more and more people come to know God’s love and presence in their lives, whether through Sacred Space or by some other means. We pray to let God use us to bring His love in Christ to those around us.