Praising God and Others

In the previous post we looked at three attitudes that Ignatius suggested as guiding posts walking in this life with a sense of purpose and direction. Rather than giving rigid rules Ignatius Proposes three attitudes relating to God: Praise, Reverence and Service. In the previous post we looked at what those meant in our relationship with God. We will now look at what an attitude of genuine praise may look like in our relationships with our fellow human beings. 

We said that Praise towards God has to do with living in constant recognition of God’s gifts, a life of gratitude. Praising God might look different than praising our brothers and sisters, since they sin and are imperfect. However, if we praise God and God created these imperfect human beings I must also find some goodness in them. Actually, being able to find what is good in others might be one of the best things we can do in order to have a positive experience of conflict with others and thriving relationships. It must be noted that when we offer a word of praise to others is different from adulation or flirtation in that true praise doesn’t try to get anything in return (a benefit, or romantic attention) other than acknowledging the good in the other. An attitude of praise towards others is an open offer of relationship without any strings attached. Of course, we need to live in truth, and also catch what’s wrong and sinful so that we are also safe, but to start every relationship with this attitude will lead to a happy life and most likely great relationships.