Eric Clayton is the deputy director of communications at the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. In his role, he manages the award-winning weekly column “Now Discern This,” a series on Ignatian spirituality and everyday living, as well produces video, audio and other digital content to share the riches of Ignatian spirituality with a general audience. Eric is also the author of two books on Ignatian spirituality: “My Life with the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars” and “Cannonball Moments: Telling Your Story, Deepening Your Faith”, both from Loyola Press. A third book on Ignatian spirituality and peace is forthcoming from Brazos Press in 2025. Learn more: ericclaytonwrites.com.
Eric Clayton is the deputy director of communications at the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States. In his role, he manages the award-winning weekly column “Now Discern This,” a series on Ignatian spirituality and everyday living, as well produces video, audio and other digital content to share the riches of Ignatian spirituality with a general audience. Eric is also the author of two books on Ignatian spirituality: “My Life with the Jedi: The Spirituality of Star Wars” and “Cannonball Moments: Telling Your Story, Deepening Your Faith”, both from Loyola Press. A third book on Ignatian spirituality and peace is forthcoming from Brazos Press in 2025.
In addition to his books and weekly column, Eric writes frequently for a variety of outlets, including National Catholic Reporter, Busted Halo, U.S. Catholic, America Magazine and more, on topics ranging from pop culture and parenting to Star Wars and Disney LEGO. He is a regular contributor at IgnatianSpirituality.com and for the daily prayer book Give Us This Day. In addition to his spiritual writing, his fiction has been published by Black Hare Press, Air and Nothingness Press, Small Wonders Magazine and more. He is a sought after speaker, retreat leader and workshop facilitator.
Eric has previously worked with and for a variety of faith-based organizations, including Catholic Relief Services, Maryknoll Lay Missioners and the Sisters of Bon Secours. He was an adjunct professor in the Mass Communication department at Towson University.
Eric has a BA in creative writing and international studies from Fairfield University, an MA in international media from American University and a graduate certificate in the Ignatian tradition from Creighton University. He lives in Towson, MD with his wife, two daughters and their cat.
Learn more about Eric at his personal website (ericclaytonwrites.com) and subscribe to his Substack (ericclayton.substack.com) .
I spent a week in Belize earlier this year. I was there, in part, to offer a spiritual writing workshop….
We recently adopted a second cat: a 10-month old grayish male Manx, wiry and bright-eyed, with legs that belong on…
It’s a funny thing to sit and write these words on a Monday knowing they won’t be read until the…
I haven’t yet finished reading Pope Francis’ encyclical on the Sacred Heart of Jesus, “Dilexit nos” (translated: “He Loved Us”)….
Today we celebrate the birth of St. Ignatius of Loyola. And so, some questions to mark the occasion: Who is…
“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.”[i] That’s the opening line from J.R.R. Tolkien’s beloved work, aptly…
In the corner of museums where the most precious artifacts are held and in the quietest places of the archives…
The bingo caller had a deep voice. It resonated in the small space, bouncing off the now-empty bowls of chili…
This Sunday, September 29, is the 110th World Day of Migrants and Refugees. Since 1914, Catholics around the world have…
Here’s a theory: Coaching soccer for girls under six is 90% tying shoes and 10% everything else. “Coach — my…
There is a road near our house — residential, winding and lined with trees — that seems to lead to…
A hummingbird feeder hangs outside our kitchen window, dangling above the wooden boards of our little deck. The feeder is…
