Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) and the Jesuits

Ignatius was born Inigo Lopez to a noble and wealthy Basque family. He went to the Spanish court to become a page. He joined the army. In the battle with the Frehch for the town of Pamplona, Spain, he was hit by a cannon ball the size of a fist. The 5 feet 2 inch Inigo five was helped back to Loyola by French soldiers. he underwent surgery but he was left with a limp in his right leg.

During the 7 weeks of recovery he began reading spiritual books and visions. By the time he had recuperated he had resolved to live a life of austerity to do penance for his sins.

In February 1522 he left for Montserrat, a pilgrim site in N.E. Spain. He confessed his sins and hung up his sword and dagger, donned sack cloth and lived like a beggar. He attend mass daily and spent 7 hours in prayer, often in a cave near Manresa. There he sketched the fundamentals for Spiritual Exercises - a guide to convert the heart and mind to a closer following of Jesus Christ

After a pilgrim a to the Holy Land he headed for Europe. He went to Alcala (now Barcelona) to study for 12 years where he acquired followers. Still not ordained he became distrusted by the church hierarchy.

1534 Ignatuis and his followers took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.
1537, in Venice, they were ordained.
1540, gained Pope’s approval and named Society of Jesus.
1541 Ignatius, aged 50, elected superior general of his new order.

The vision and disciplines of the * Jesuits* caught the imagination of Europe.
These zealous monks were successful in checking the forces of Protestantism in parts of Europe. They gained a wide spread reputation for their fanatical willingness to do almost anything to advance the cause of the Roman Catholic church.

Ignatius’s Spiritual Exercises have been in constant use for nearly 500 years.
The Constitution of the Society of Jesus was probably the most important work of his later years.

There is no doubt that friend and foe alike saw Ignatius and the Jesuits as a key factor in reviving and strengthening the Roman church after 1550.

In 2013 Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina became Pope Francis, the first Jesuit to be elected pope.

Sources used
Christianity Today
Great Leaders of the Christian Church Woodbridge
contribution from Robert D. Linder
Britannica Online Encyclopedia
wikipedia