Much has been written about the vanities of the young Ignatius of Loyola, prior to his conversion. Less talked about and of greater use for our days are the wonders that God worked in and through him.
Newsroom(July 31, 2021 10:18, Gaudium Press) Born in 1491, a time when the great navigations extended the frontiers of the world, Ignatius’ restless and turbulent spirit preferred the risks of war to an idle life at court.
While fighting in the defense of Pamplona, one of his legs was fractured by a cannon ball. He underwent painful treatment, at the end of which he noticed that his leg was deformed. He then ordered the doctors to break it and fix it. He was not satisfied with the results of this surgery, so he had another surgery performed, because he did not want to appear lame before the ladies of the court.
This temperament of character and strength of will, his insatiable spirit of greatness, all must be seen in the perspective of the great mission that Providence had reserved for him as Founder of the Society of Jesus.
During his convalescence, he occupied himself in reading the only two books existing in the castle: the Life of Christ and the Lives of the Saints. Touched by divine grace, he asked himself: “Why can’t I do what St. Francis and St. Dominic did? If they accomplished such great deeds, why can’t I accomplish them too?”
Change of life
Once recovered, the young warrior was determined to do penance for his sins, put himself at God’s service and do great things for Him, following the examples of the saints.
One night he prostrated himself before an image of the Virgin Mary and offered himself to Jesus as her faithful soldier. At the conclusion of this “consecration” the castle of Loyola was shaken to its foundations and a great thunderous noise was heard inside.
Ignatius’ room was the most violently hit. A large crack was produced in its high walls, which still exists today. It was the devil manifesting his fury, foreseeing the terrible blows that his evil work would receive from the Society of Jesus.
Faced with this extraordinary manifestation of the spirit of darkness, he made a definitive resolution: “What the saints have done, I promise, with the grace of God, to do it too.” It was no longer the exploits of profane chivalry that attracted him now, but this holy emulation with the saints, in the eagerness to perform great deeds, “for the greater glory of God.”
That night, the Holy Virgin appeared to him with the Child Jesus, for a remarkable amount of time. After this vision, he felt that all the images of his past life were erased from his soul. Since then he never consented to any temptation against the virtue of purity.
Beginning his new life, he went on pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Montserrat, where he made a general confession, after which he exchanged his precious garments for those of a beggar and placed his sword on the altar of Our Lady. From then on he would occupy himself only with the service of God.
Divine Communications
The Divine Redeemer Himself was involved, by extraordinary means, in his religious formation.
One day, St. Ignatius was on the steps of the Dominican church, and was reciting the office of the Blessed Virgin. Suddenly his spirit was caught up into the bosom of God, and he was given to understand the incomprehensible mystery of one God in three distinct persons.
As he left the church, he spoke to the religious about this mystery in sublime language. No one doubted that he had received supernatural lights. “Never has any doctor of the Church spoken so eloquently and with such clarity about this mystery!” – they exclaimed in amazement.
During an ecstasy, God had infused in him such a knowledge of the Sacred Scriptures that, even if they disappeared, he would not hesitate to uphold them at the cost of his blood!
Coming to his senses from another ecstasy – which lasted eight days, during which he neither took any food nor changed his position – he exclaimed in rapture, “Oh Jesus! Oh Jesus!” To those who asked him about this colloquy with God, he would simply reply, “It is inexpressible!” His biographers are of the opinion that in this ecstasy God revealed to the Saint the Spiritual Exercises and the plan of the Society of Jesus.
The Society of Jesus is born
He knew that God intended him to found a Society of Apostles. For this, he wanted to recruit disciples among young and worthy students. He then began to study the human sciences, attending the Universities of Barcelona, Alcalá, Salamanca and Paris.
Soon the saint gathered around him a group of scholars: Pedro Fabro, Francisco Xavier, Diogo Laynes, Afonso Salmerón, Simão Rodrigues and Nicolau Bobadilha. After the Spiritual Exercises, all were willing to sacrifice everything for God’s glory.
On August 15, 1534, they pronounced their religious vows in the church of Montmartre. After this solemn act, the new apostles were so happy that they could no longer separate themselves. This was the first outline of the Society of Jesus.
On January 8, 1537, St. Ignatius was in Venice with his disciples, from where he sent them to Rome. Pedro Ortiz, a former professor in Paris, was Emperor Charles V’s ambassador to the Pope.
Knowing that the young professors from the University of Paris came to ask the Sovereign Pontiff for an apostolic blessing, he took it upon himself to obtain an audience with them, praising their unusual virtues and knowledge. The Pope soon wanted to see them over dinner, on which occasion they were invited to take part in a discussion.
They dealt with the proposed questions with such great science and talent, and presented the arguments with such humility, that Paul III, unable to contain his admiration, embraced them, saying: “I rejoice to see such modesty united to such science”.
He then blessed them and gave those who were not yet priests permission to receive Holy Orders.
Apostolic activity based on holiness of life
They decided, from then on, to do apostolate in cities where the universities attracted young people. Francis Xavier and Bobadilla went to Bologna, Simon Rodrigues and Lejay to Ferrara, Broet and Salmeron to Siena, Codure and Hoces to Padua. St. Ignatius went to Rome with Fabro and Laynez.
Pedro Ortiz obtained for St. Ignatius an audience with the Supreme Pontiff, who welcomed with joy the proposal of the new apostles, whose zeal and knowledge had already acquired so much reputation. The Pope wanted to launch them into activity without delay.
Laynez was entrusted with the chair of Scholastics at the Sapientia College, and Fabro with that of Sacred Scripture. Ignatius, he entrusted him with the apostolic ministry in Rome, where customs were in great need of reform.
St. Ignatius preached the Spiritual Exercises in public, achieving in a short time a general reform of customs. The new apostles were esteemed and sought after by great and small, thanks to the anointing of their word and the holiness of their lives.
Virtues proper of a Founder and Superior General
During Lent of 1538, St. Ignatius summoned his sons to Rome for the definitive erection of the Society as a religious order. They all hurried to obey him.
Having presented the Constitutions to Paul III, the Pope welcomed them with these words: “The finger of God is there”. The new Order was erected by a bull of September 27, 1540. On April 19, 1541, St. Ignatius was acclaimed Superior General of the Society.
He watched over everything and directed everything. He was aware of everything that concerned each of the houses of the Order. He was even informed about the progress of the students in all the colleges of the Society. The teachers reported to him every week. The students’ works were seen by him. He read everything and had these writings examined by others.
He directed the house in Rome, corresponded with the superiors of the houses spread throughout the world, took care of the colleges, treated the Church’s business with the Pope and the Cardinals, maintained correspondence with the sovereigns of Europe, directed new foundations, all this without interrupting his works of mercy in the Eternal City, of which he always gave example to his disciples.
In St. Ignatius, flexibility and firmness, sensitivity and discipline, boldness and prudence were combined; humility was not opposed to fearlessness in the defense of the Holy Church; self-denial was a brother to love of neighbor.
All these apparent antagonisms shone in the life of the Founder. Requirements, moreover, indispensable to a young institution that was developing with great vigor in opposition to the libertarian wave that tried to drag everything in the opposite direction.
One of his disciples recounts that any sad or anguished person, when approaching him, immediately regained peace of mind and true joy.
He knew when one of his disciples was going through a difficulty or a trial, and comforted him. He had the sharpest judgment in the selection of candidates to become members of the Company. He was adamant about discipline. On a Pentecost day, he even expelled twelve novices.
But he was far from being an impulsive person. On the contrary, he had everything measured, weighed and counted. Sometimes he postponed the execution of a penalty, pondering: “It is convenient to sleep on it. At other times, he said, “We have to accommodate ourselves to business that cannot accommodate ourselves; we have to know how to enter through certain people’s doors in order to get them to leave through ours.
A personal method of captivating and leading souls
A Japanese novice, sent to Rome by St. Francis Xavier, was treated with extreme indulgence by St. Ignatius. He gave him the gentlest of burdens, recommending him to let him know when he was very tired.
To an Italian novice, with a very lively and open look in his eyes, the Saint said, “Brother Domenico, why don’t you try to make read in your eyes the modesty with which God has adorned your soul?” With these few words, Domenico corrected himself.
Sometimes the Saint was of an amazing severity with some veteran priests, whom he esteemed with all his heart, wanting to improve them even more by the exercise of humility.
One day he met, in the corridor of the College, a smiling and cheerful young man. The saint asked him:
– Why are you always smiling?
– I am happy to be in your company! – he answered.
– Keep it up, because sadness has no place in the service of God,” said the Saint, after blessing him.
This Ignatian way of captivating and attracting people to Christ’s Church was an effective instrument used by divine grace to reheat in God’s love the souls that the Protestant heresy had cooled in the Faith.
It is perhaps for this reason that, only 16 years after its foundation, the Society of Jesus already had more than 1000 members, occupying 100 houses in 10 provinces.
He pronounced the Holy Name of Jesus for the last time and flew to God
The year 1556 arrived. The great combatant had fought the glorious fight in defense of the Faith with admirable shrewdness and energy on this earth.
In Europe, his spiritual sons were winning back for the Church millions of souls lost to heresy. In the other continents, the Jesuit missionaries, always tireless and insatiable for souls to save, brought the light of the Faith to millions of unfortunate pagans.
His work was consolidated, God decided to call him to Himself, to give him the “reward too great”.
On July 30th, Saint Ignatius called Father Polanco and told him:
– The time has come to send word to His Holiness that I am about to die, and I humbly ask your blessing, for myself and for one of our Fathers, who will soon pass away as well. Also tell His Holiness that after having prayed a lot for him in this world, I will continue to do so in Heaven, if Divine Goodness deigns to receive me there.
– The doctors don’t judge you as badly as you think… Can I postpone the task until tomorrow? – asked Father Polanco.
– Do as you wish, I abandon myself to your will – replied the saint.
On the 31st, after receiving the apostolic blessing, Saint Ignatius pronounced the Holy Name of Jesus for the last time and his soul flew to God. He was canonized on March 12, 1622.
The canonization bull mentions two hundred miracles worked through his intercession.
This is St. Ignatius of Loyola!
Text excerpted, with adaptations, from the magazine Heralds of the Gospel n. 31, July 2004.
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Much has been written about the vanities of the young Ignatius of Loyola, prior to his conversion. Less talked about and of greater use for our times are the wonders that God worked in and through him. Redaction (31/07/2021 10:18, Gaudium Press) Born in 1491, at a time when the great navigations extended the frontiers of the world, Ignatius… View article
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