Ignatius of Loyola & the Jesuits

By Jack Lobley and Paul Kallanese

Ignatius of Loyola personal life

• Born October 23, 1491• Died July 31, 1556• Born in in Azpeitia in the Basque province of Guipuzcoa in Spain• Had dreams of conquering the world and marrying a noble lady• Had gambling problems

At age 30 Ignatius fought against the French and was hit in the leg with a cannon ball and was crippled. He had to have his leg set and reset

many times. Even when it had fully healed his leg was shorter than the other and he asked for it to be broken again and reset and made longer

again by stretching (this may seem irrelevant now but trust me it’s important).

The Incident

Discovering Jesus

During his very long recuperation, Ignatius was incredibly bored by not being able to move so he wasn’t able to go out and gamble. But then Ignatius found something to entertain him during his recovery, a book

about Jesus and the Saints. Ignatius also daydreamed a lot and when he dreamed about Jesus he felt at peace and when he thought about his

dreams of world conquest he always felt unsatisfied and restless.

The Journey

By the time that Ignatius recovered he was a full on worshipper of Christ. He decided to travel to Jerusalem and make several religious

stops along the way. His first stop was to the Benedictine shrine of Our Lady of Montserrat. He left at the shrine his sword and other worldly

possessions and traveled in robes. Next he stopped outside the town of Moansera and lived in a cave praying for ten months. While he was

doing this he had a vision and even though he never revealed exactly what that vision was we do know that it was of enlightenment from

God. This vision made him see God in all things.

The Journey (cont.)

He finally ended up in Barcelona and took a boat to Italy and went to Rome. He then requested a pilgrimage to the holy and land. When he arrived he wanted to stay forever but couldn’t because the Turks ruled

the land at the time.

Back to School

Ignatius resumed his studies at the age of thirty three and he was studying for his priesthood. Latin was spoken in of the churches, and Ignatius was not educated in Latin. Therefore, he would require it to

begin his priesthood. He studied briefly in a school in Barcelona. He was forced to beg for the essential things to live. Such as food and shelter.

After two years he moved on to the university of Alcala. He tried to preach and teach gospel to people, and because of this he was put in

jail for 42 days.

Back to School (cont.)

After he was released the Spanish Inquisition. Ignatius was a kind heart that needed to help people, and because he wasn't allowed to he

decided to move to the university of Salamanca. At the University of Paris he resumed his studies such as Latin grammar and literature,

philosophy, etc. He met Francis Xavier and Peter Faber and he shared a room with them.

The Education of the Jesuits

Ignatius, Peter Faber and James Lainez, decided to live in Rome and be a servant of the Pope. He felt happy, as St. Paul wrote, to be with Jesus even in persecution was success. After meeting the Pope, they began to do work for him teaching scripture and theology and preaching. It was on a Christmas morning, that Ignatius celebrated his first Mass in this

church.

The Final Years

Ignatius loved to active in in teaching children and adults alike in Spiritual Exercises, and working in hospitals and giving to the poor. he

did this for over fifteen years until his death . he composed the Constitutions of the Society and would write thousands of letters sent

all over the world. At first Ignatius wrote his own letters, but in order to maximize the spread of his message he appointed a secretary, Fr.

Polanco, was appointed in 1547 to help him. Ignatius wrote almost 7,000 letters in his lifetime. Ignatius considered the communication

between members of the Jesuits one of the most important things in growing his society.

The Final Years (cont.)

Separation was one of the biggest problems he faced. He wrote to Lainez through his secretary Polanco: "He, (Ignatius) has told me to

write to you and tell you to attend to your own office, which if you do well, you will be doing more than a little. You are not to trouble yourself

in giving your view of his affairs, as he does not want anything of the kind from you unless he asks for it, and much less now than before you

took office, since your administration of your own province has not done much to increase your credit in his eyes. Examine your mistakes in

the presence of God our Lord, and for three days take some time for prayer to this end.".

The Final Years (cont.)

Lainez was going to succeed Ignatius as the second Superior General of the Jesuits. With the help of Polanco, Ignatius told him how to deal

with people without showing disrespect.. "Our father (Ignatius) made another remark as to how to free oneself from one whom there was no

hope of helping. He suggests talking to him rather pointedly of hell, judgment and such things. In that case he would not return, or, if he did, the chances are that he would feel himself touched in our Lord."

Ignatius’s emotions

Ignatius is shown in many paintings as a very stern person , but he was very emotional he was notorious for crying during church and stopped

talking for a period of time. He feared that tears would cause him to lose eyesight. Goncalves de Camara said, "When he did not weep three

times during Mass, he considered himself deprived of consolation."

Ignatius’s illness

Ignatius was always a very sick person who had numerous stomach issues. It didn’t help that he tried to fast all the time to be like other saints. His health was increasingly unstable, but his doctor was still

optimistic. He asked for the popes blessing because of his dire situation. The doctor and Polanco both told him that he would be fine

however he died on July 31, 1556.

Works cited

http://norprov.org/spirituality/lifeofignatius.htm http://cache4.asset-cache.net/xt/88318447.jpg?v=1&g=fs1%7C0%7CLIQ%7C18%7C447&s=1