S4E7: “The Examen” with Fr. James Martin, S.J., best-selling author and editor-at-large of the Jesuit magazine America

The Jesuit Border Podcast

For our final episode of Season 4, we are thrilled to welcome Fr. James Martin, SJ, a Jesuit priest who is a best-selling author and editor-at-large at America Magazine, along with hosting a podcast on the Ignatian Examen. The Examen is a contemplative prayer of reflecting on the moments of your day, noticing how God has been at work, and considering how you responded.

For this episode, Louie and Brian turn the interview around, and invite Fr. Martin to interview them and lead them on a guided Examen of their nearly two years of ministry on the U.S.-Mexico border. They reflect on moments of growth and grace, of challenge and failure. They share stories that have meant so much to them, like when children carried the cross around the Reynosa plaza on Good Friday, or when Louie went looking for displaced migrant friends at local Reynosa shelters the day after the plaza was forcibly cleared out. They highlight two people who inspire them (that’s you Rafael and Sr. Rose!), and even spend a few minutes saying nice things about each other. They conclude the episode (and the season) with a prayer, for all the migrants that they have encountered carrying their crosses and in gratitude for this ministry that reveals the face of Christ daily.