Our home

Loyola House is a retreat house of the English speaking Jesuits of Canada. We are the retreat component of the Ignatius Jesuit Center of Guelph and are located on the outskirts of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, about an hour from the Toronto Airport.

Our past

The history of Loyola house dates back to 1964. It started as a Diocesan weekend retreat house but quickly developed into a center of spirituality. During the early days there was a burst of creative energy released through retreat work because of the vision of the Vatican II. The personally directed retreat was being developed and John English, S.J., and John Veltri, S.J., were central in exploring the meaning and the dynamic of the spiritual exercises. By helping the team of directors here, they turned Loyola house into a world renowned retreat for spiritual training and the house became an international training centre for spiritual directors from around the world. However, there is more to our story.

Our present

We are still living the spiritual exercises of Saint Ignatius and are training spiritual directors in Ignatian spirituality. Today, however, we are again in a time of the new creative energy. The world is changing; values are changing; awareness is changing. People are becoming conscious of themselves as connected to and dependent on others. Seeing the planet from space has radically altered our understanding of ourselves and our place in the universe. Something old is dying and something new is being born. It truly is an exciting era to be living in. Our present calendar lists many different types of experiences that offer hope to people living in today's world.

Our assumptions

Everyone has assumptions and we have ours. They come from our understanding and experience of Ignatian spirituality and how these teachings have affected the lives of the thousands of people who have come here over the years. All of our programs are based on the vision of St. Ignatius and the tools he gives us for discernment.

• God is always present
• God has created and is still creating
• God is inviting us to share in the act of creating by means of our choices
• We are called to seek and find god in all things
• We need to be people who are discerning
• Discernment is both the grace and a skill
• Discernment is learned by practice
• God is healer
• God is compassionate
• God is gentle
• God is comforter
• God is counselor

Our role

We know God alone is the guide. We are called to give people a safe place where they can tell their story, be listened to and come to recognize how god was present in their past and present with them now. We are privileged to be companions on the journey.

Our hope

All of our programs are meant to help people discover their deepest desires so that they might discover the path God is showing them. Saint Iraeneus said ‘the glory of god is the person fully alive’. Our desire is to help people learn how to hear god's voice, and encourage them to follow it as they continue to live their lives. It is this that brings us joy.