About Us
Our Mission

The Ignatius Jesuit Centre of Guelph is a place of peace grounded in Ignatian spirituality, a pattern of Christian discipleship that has its origins in the life of Ignatius Loyola (c. 1491 - 1556). Fundamental to Ignatian spirituality, the mystery of God is to be embraced not only in the Scriptures and the Church, but also in our personal, day-by-day engagement with family, community and Creation. The “Ignatian way” is a path of reflective discipleship in that our reflection on encounters with God form the basis from which personal and communal choices are made.

Finding God in all things, our mission is to share the sacredness of Creation through the spiritual development and education of people, the fostering of community, and the practice of ecologically-sensitive care for the land.

A welcoming place in nature, the Ignatius Jesuit Centre is ideally suited for individual and communal discernment and education. Our spiritual and ecology programs nurture in people a deeper spirituality leading to clarity, equanimity and inner freedom. Community projects and environmental initiatives promote and foster an ecological way of life that brings healing to social-injustice and God's creation.

Our land and farm, the heart of our Ecology Ministry, is overseen by our Land Use Committee which includes representatives from each sector of Ignatius Jesuit Centre of Guelph. All important matters concerning the farm and the land should be referred to our Farm Manager or Land Manager.

Maintenance and cropping of our land has shifted to natural methods certified “organic” by ECOCERT, a global agency whose certification exceeds the Canadian National Organic Standard. You will see this reflected in many of the practices we use in caring for the land, the crops and our livestock. No synthetic or petroleum-based fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides, treated seeds, cattle de-wormers, hormones or genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are used on the property. In an effort to be more ecologically minded and to lessen our dependency on fossil fuels, we have also cut back on the amount of grass that we cut. We are allowing some parts of the lawns to be naturalized.

Loyola House Retreat

Since 1964, people have been coming to Loyola House Retreat to experience the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Ignatius's book of prayer exercises comes out of his own experience of retreating from the world to a cave in Manresa, Spain, to try and understand what was happening to his life. In this handbook, Ignatius offers a method of prayer by which people come to a closer following of Christ through seeking God's will in any circumstances, from the most mundane activity to the most moving experiences. Ignatius wanted people to discover that God is in all things, in their life experiences, their history, their desires, their decisions, the pain of the world, and the beauty of creation.

People come to Loyola House to reflect upon important decisions about their life, to come closer to God, to take more seriously their relationship with God and their commitment to the Christian life. Experiencing Loyola House, our natural surroundings, allows one the state of grace to reflect upon the path that their lives have taken, to meditate on a change in career, or to simply unwind from the stress of life in the 21st century.

Each person has a particular reason for experiencing a retreat at Loyola House. Over 60,000 people from all backgrounds and faith have benefited from its simplicity, enduring serenity and compassionate and qualified directors.

Visit Web Site

Consider a retreat experience that includes (or is informed by) the land at Ignatius Jesuit Centre of Guelph. For more information about Loyola House retreats, or to inquire about using our retreat centre to hold a conference, meeting or retreat, contact the Loyola House   

Download Program of Events.