Father Tom OHara SJ, who spent much of his Jesuit life giving the Spiritual Exercises, explores in depth St Ignatius invitation to contemplate the events of Christs life in the Second Week of the Exercises. He asks whether Ignatian prayer is contemplative in the sense developed by John of the Cross and others. He argues cogently against many commentators that Ignatius understanding of contemplation was open to wordless prayer, although it did not demand it.