Hipona Courses: looking inward to discover the authentic truth that God loves me

The Pastoral Commission of the Province of San Juan de Sahagún has been offering an online training program, with an in-person component, for the past three years, which serves as a tool to strengthen faith. It is called “Formación Hipona” (Hippo Formation). Their courses, although they contain a pedagogical, catechetical, and pastoral orientation, are based on a vision centered on the inner life, theology, and Augustinian spirituality. Because, without looking inward, outward proclamation is not possible. From the course, it is assumed that faith is communicated constantly, in all areas, in all possible circumstances: from family and friendship interactions to media publications or discussions. Without the need for it to be something calculated in advance, but rather something that arises from one's own identity, from an authentic personality. That's why these courses help deepen personal and religious convictions.

People from all walks of life participate, with varied topics that change from one course to another: from sessions on faith, the Bible, the sacraments, and the family to the social doctrine of the Church, bioethics, prayer, the relationship between faith and reason, and Saint Augustine's perspective on peace, justice, friendship, and the relationship with Jesus Christ. Each course begins in January and ends in December; and it consists of approximately a dozen modules taught via videoconference, along with notes and questionnaires provided by the teaching staff. The sessions are recorded so they can be consulted at any time, and they last just under half an hour. The training is complemented with some in-person meetings, such as a weekend in Guadarrama (Madrid). One of the coordinators is Father Jesús Baños OSA, a member of the Pastoral Commission, who is part of the faculty along with other Augustinian fathers, Manuel García, Tomás Marcos, Isaac Estévez, or Javier Antolín, along with several lay people — Marisa Puente, Rosa Martín Barcala, Amparo Latre, or Gema Hidalgo — and also Augustinian sister Carolina Blázquez.

Within the training sessions, some related to prayer stand out, such as the one given by Father Manuel Sánchez Tapia, OSA, who defines prayer as communication between the Trinitarian God and the person, within a dialogue that includes Holy Scriptures. Because the Bible is "replete with invitations to prayer." As Sánchez says, prayer requires both external and internal silence. Within Augustinian spirituality, a recommended tool is lectio divina, which is divided into: reading, meditation, prayer, contemplation. Therefore, this "method is a school of contemplation." We also pray through the sacraments, thanks to which prayer also carries a communal seal.

Prayer, explains Father Manuel, requires "an open mind," having a docile mind to grasp God's plan in our lives. It also requires a prior disposition of humility, precisely because it entails docility to that divine action. Another advisable point is to maintain a daily schedule and be faithful to that schedule, reserving a time to communicate with the Lord. According to Father Manuel, God, through prayer, gives the light of His Spirit for discernment, and for this purpose, "tools" such as Christian spirituality books, and even some applications like the Daily Gospel or Rezandovoy (a prayer App available in English) are useful. They are means, not ends, and do not replace prayer. Vocal prayer is, according to Father Manuel Sánchez, another "valuable aid" for encountering the Lord.

Saint Augustine says that prayer is an encounter and conversation with God, and therefore one speaks and listens. "When you read, God speaks to you," insists Sánchez Tapia, who advises using the reading of the Holy Scriptures, because Augustinian prayer has "biblical foundations." At the same time, constancy is important and "to pray with all your being". For this reason, we have the iconographic representation of the saint of Hippo "with his heart in his hand." Which translates to the fact that prayer must contain "piety and not mere words," so that it leads to "attention and valuing the forgiveness that God gives us" and that we must give to others. Among the different types of prayer, the following stand out: petition, thanksgiving, contemplation. Father Manuel, following Saint Augustine, says that the desire and fervor of affection are essential to achieve effect.

In this course on Augustinian spirituality, the obstacles that prayer encounters are discussed, such as "a life mired in sin," which makes "prayer difficult." Or like "Pharisaism, half-truths, the dispersion of the mind and heart," as well as resentment, and also thinking that, since God knows us,one can conclude that there is no need to pray.

On the other hand, prayer is not merely a personal activity, but a search for God, a search for Jesus Christ. It is the encounter with God’s search for us. And God acts as the healer of our souls and hearts through this prayer. This enables us to be in communion with others, which is not just about being together, but being in communion; being, in Augustine's words, "one soul and one heart directed towards God." Prayer must lead to life, virtue, and grateful love. Following Saint Augustine, one of the fruits of prayer consists in recognizing that everything comes from God, and for this reason, we present our thanks to the Lord. Prayer allows the light of God to illuminate our conscience and helps to achieve salvation.

For her part, Sister Carolina Blázquez, OSA comments that interiority is an "evangelical call," a "call to the heart, a religious experience within, apart from rituals," as she defines the difference between Christianity and Judaism in the times of Christ. As Augustinians, Sister Carolina says, "interiority is one of the fundamental pillars." Specifically, and referring to the "formula of Saint Augustine" expressed in De vera religione, "do not go outside; enter within; in the inner man dwells the truth; and, if you find yourself erratic, transcend yourself." It is something that "breaks with today's world, which lives in exteriority, in being outward," especially through new technologies and the overabundance of stimuli, which only aims to "control us from the outside."

Sometimes these processes of interiority occur due to a crisis, the experience of emptiness, as happens to the prodigal son in the Parable. Or the opposite, a feeling of overflowing grace, an event of human fulfillment that points towards absolute happiness. In any case, it is a "call to conversion." It is an inner journey that requires staying, not just peeking. This requires cultivating attention, raising one's gaze, and contemplating a deeper horizon. Which means recognizing "the presence and dignity of the Other." That leads us to a deeper look at ourselves, the world, others and God. Stop living as if asleep, and understand "where I am."

Sister Carolina reiterates the importance of silence, which is a method, a path, not an end in itself. "It is necessary to practice inner and outer silence," to speak more calmly, avoiding vain words. She gives as an example, to gain in interiority, the spiritual use of time in the car, or in "intermediate spaces," to turn them into "spaces of interiority and silence." It's about taking advantage of the fact that we are alone, instead of listening to music. Or rather "walking while silencing ourselves inside, calming the heart." Because "silence creates a space we can inhabit." Then comes listening, understanding that what is valuable and salvation itself, do not depend solely on us. We open ourselves to the Word of the Other. Receive the Word just like Mary. Listen, pay attention. This leads us to wonder and admiration.

Sister Carolina explains that this Augustinian way of praying leads us to discover a truth more intimate than my intimacy, which is God dwelling within us. "The false self is not the truth," Blázquez says, for there are "masks and disguises," and only within the heart "am I who I am." And that pristine identity is the awareness of being loved by God. The authentic truth is that God loves me. This implies a universal call, not just for a few or some mystics, because He becomes close to everyone through Jesus Christ.