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Chiseled Ep 102 - Cannonball Moments - Eric Clayton
Eric A. Clayton is a born storyteller. Writing fiction as a child, his grandmother would edit Eric's fantastical stories about elves and dragons, teaching him the skills of imaginary world-building.
It is no wonder, then, that as an adult, Eric loves borrowing from the colorful St. Ignatius, who helped Eric find his spirituality as a writer, first for Catholic Relief Services and now as the deputy director of communications at the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States, here in Baltimore.
As Eric explains in this week's podcast, St. Ignatius of Loyola was a soldier and minor noble who "was all about winning wars and wooing women" until he was hit by a cannonball during the Battle of Pamplona. The ordeal led him to put down his sword, become a pilgrim, and found the Jesuit order of priests.
"We're talking about these trajectory-changing instances in our lives," he said. "And they can be pretty brutal, pretty tragic and traumatic."
Eric draws from the inspirational type of prayer that Ignatius taught the Jesuits to pursue — imaginative, contemplative, and most of all experiential.
"He's really big on getting out into the world," Eric said. "The Jesuits, founded in the mid 1500s, were different than other religious orders because they lived in the world. They didn't live in monasteries."
The story of St. Ignatius' self-discovery is where the phrase Cannonball Moments, the title of Eric's second book, comes from.
"It's kind of a flippant term that folks use in the wider Ignatian community," he said.
Aside from Cannonball Moments: Telling Your Story, Deepening Your Faith, Eric also has written My Life With the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars. His third book, Finding Peace Here and Now: How Ignatian Spirituality Leads Us to Healing and Wholeness, is due out in 2025.
Meanwhile, he also writes the award-winning weekly column, "Now Discern This," and has a Substack channel with some very entertaining headlines. It may be trite, Eric says, but for him writing is a form of prayer.
Eric is not only a gifted writer — and you can learn more about his work on his website — but he is also an engaging conversationalist who will have you instantly tuned in when you listen to this week's episode of Chiseled. Enjoy.
It is no wonder, then, that as an adult, Eric loves borrowing from the colorful St. Ignatius, who helped Eric find his spirituality as a writer, first for Catholic Relief Services and now as the deputy director of communications at the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States, here in Baltimore.
As Eric explains in this week's podcast, St. Ignatius of Loyola was a soldier and minor noble who "was all about winning wars and wooing women" until he was hit by a cannonball during the Battle of Pamplona. The ordeal led him to put down his sword, become a pilgrim, and found the Jesuit order of priests.
"We're talking about these trajectory-changing instances in our lives," he said. "And they can be pretty brutal, pretty tragic and traumatic."
Eric draws from the inspirational type of prayer that Ignatius taught the Jesuits to pursue — imaginative, contemplative, and most of all experiential.
"He's really big on getting out into the world," Eric said. "The Jesuits, founded in the mid 1500s, were different than other religious orders because they lived in the world. They didn't live in monasteries."
The story of St. Ignatius' self-discovery is where the phrase Cannonball Moments, the title of Eric's second book, comes from.
"It's kind of a flippant term that folks use in the wider Ignatian community," he said.
Aside from Cannonball Moments: Telling Your Story, Deepening Your Faith, Eric also has written My Life With the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars. His third book, Finding Peace Here and Now: How Ignatian Spirituality Leads Us to Healing and Wholeness, is due out in 2025.
Meanwhile, he also writes the award-winning weekly column, "Now Discern This," and has a Substack channel with some very entertaining headlines. It may be trite, Eric says, but for him writing is a form of prayer.
Eric is not only a gifted writer — and you can learn more about his work on his website — but he is also an engaging conversationalist who will have you instantly tuned in when you listen to this week's episode of Chiseled. Enjoy.
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By Robert CommodariEric A. Clayton is a born storyteller. Writing fiction as a child, his grandmother would edit Eric's fantastical stories about elves and dragons, teaching him the skills of imaginary world-building.
It is no wonder, then, that as an adult, Eric loves borrowing from the colorful St. Ignatius, who helped Eric find his spirituality as a writer, first for Catholic Relief Services and now as the deputy director of communications at the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States, here in Baltimore.
As Eric explains in this week's podcast, St. Ignatius of Loyola was a soldier and minor noble who "was all about winning wars and wooing women" until he was hit by a cannonball during the Battle of Pamplona. The ordeal led him to put down his sword, become a pilgrim, and found the Jesuit order of priests.
"We're talking about these trajectory-changing instances in our lives," he said. "And they can be pretty brutal, pretty tragic and traumatic."
Eric draws from the inspirational type of prayer that Ignatius taught the Jesuits to pursue — imaginative, contemplative, and most of all experiential.
"He's really big on getting out into the world," Eric said. "The Jesuits, founded in the mid 1500s, were different than other religious orders because they lived in the world. They didn't live in monasteries."
The story of St. Ignatius' self-discovery is where the phrase Cannonball Moments, the title of Eric's second book, comes from.
"It's kind of a flippant term that folks use in the wider Ignatian community," he said.
Aside from Cannonball Moments: Telling Your Story, Deepening Your Faith, Eric also has written My Life With the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars. His third book, Finding Peace Here and Now: How Ignatian Spirituality Leads Us to Healing and Wholeness, is due out in 2025.
Meanwhile, he also writes the award-winning weekly column, "Now Discern This," and has a Substack channel with some very entertaining headlines. It may be trite, Eric says, but for him writing is a form of prayer.
Eric is not only a gifted writer — and you can learn more about his work on his website — but he is also an engaging conversationalist who will have you instantly tuned in when you listen to this week's episode of Chiseled. Enjoy.
It is no wonder, then, that as an adult, Eric loves borrowing from the colorful St. Ignatius, who helped Eric find his spirituality as a writer, first for Catholic Relief Services and now as the deputy director of communications at the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States, here in Baltimore.
As Eric explains in this week's podcast, St. Ignatius of Loyola was a soldier and minor noble who "was all about winning wars and wooing women" until he was hit by a cannonball during the Battle of Pamplona. The ordeal led him to put down his sword, become a pilgrim, and found the Jesuit order of priests.
"We're talking about these trajectory-changing instances in our lives," he said. "And they can be pretty brutal, pretty tragic and traumatic."
Eric draws from the inspirational type of prayer that Ignatius taught the Jesuits to pursue — imaginative, contemplative, and most of all experiential.
"He's really big on getting out into the world," Eric said. "The Jesuits, founded in the mid 1500s, were different than other religious orders because they lived in the world. They didn't live in monasteries."
The story of St. Ignatius' self-discovery is where the phrase Cannonball Moments, the title of Eric's second book, comes from.
"It's kind of a flippant term that folks use in the wider Ignatian community," he said.
Aside from Cannonball Moments: Telling Your Story, Deepening Your Faith, Eric also has written My Life With the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars. His third book, Finding Peace Here and Now: How Ignatian Spirituality Leads Us to Healing and Wholeness, is due out in 2025.
Meanwhile, he also writes the award-winning weekly column, "Now Discern This," and has a Substack channel with some very entertaining headlines. It may be trite, Eric says, but for him writing is a form of prayer.
Eric is not only a gifted writer — and you can learn more about his work on his website — but he is also an engaging conversationalist who will have you instantly tuned in when you listen to this week's episode of Chiseled. Enjoy.