(First here is a refreshing photo of the snowy Mt. McKinley for this hot summer day)

The Rules of the First Week are not just for the first week - and not just for beginners, but everybody needs them, even the most "advanced" in spiritual life. To state it that they do not need these rules would amount for spiritual pride...

 I would distinguish the two sets of Rules Ignatius gave as one set for the desolations (First Week) and one for the consolations (Second Week).  We said it so in "Finding Our Way Together" (we call the "Weeks" "Phases" in this work, to underline that we don't deal necessarily with exact weeks here): "St. Ignatius says of the second set of guidelines that these are for “a more accurate discernment” and more suitable for the Second Phase. While in the First Phase temptations were typically desolations, as the companions now proceed in the Exercises they are tempted “under appearance of good” [10], in the form of consolations. It happens because once the companions learned how to deal with desolations the devil changes tactics, disguises himself and produces false consolations in order to lead them away from God . However, desolations will happen also later in life, mostly when the companions face new challenges, and the evil spirit tries to find vulnerable points to tests the limits of their perseverance and commitment. With desolations or with false consolations the evil spirit will try to bring the companions under his “Standard”, to accept his value-system and settle down in mediocrity or worse, and so he could block their growth toward God ".  ("Finding Our Way Together" pp. 391-392 in the printed book; or [328-336] Guidelines for Discernment for the Second Phase", [328] Introduction )

Such times for example, when the first set of Rules for the desolation play again important role are in the Third Week (we call it Third Phase): "The Third Phase requires steadfastness on the part of the companions in the decision recognized earlier as the right one resisting all the arguments against it, and this is a somewhat similar situation to the First Phase when perseverance was necessary against temptations to abandon the Exercises process. The “Guidelines for Discernment for the First Phase” [313-327] dealing with the recognition of the power of evil are useful also here". ("Finding Our Way Together”, pp. 206-207 in the printed book; or Third Phase [190-217], Introduction

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