St Ignatius of Loyola

Birth

Dec 24, 1491

St Ignatius of Loyola (or Inigo de Loyola) was born in the town of Azpeitia situated in Basque, Northern Spain into a rich Catholic noble family consisting of thirteen children (five sisters, seven brothers) in whom he was the youngest and was named Inigo.

Family

Dec 24, 1491

He lived in his family's castle.
His family took pride in their armed forces and were very loyal to the king.

Ignatius the Person

Dec 24, 1491

Ignatius was an extremely proud person who had pleasures and desires of earthly things. He was willing to achieve his goals and was interested and motivated by violence. He suffered from a gambling addiction as well as daydreaming constantly about women, love, fame and glory.

Family

Jan 1, 1498

His mother died.

His Name

Jan 1, 1506

Took up the surname 'de Loyola' after his place of birth.

Service with Juan Velazquez

Jan 1, 1507

He was sent to a woman named Juan Velazquez (finance manager in the kingdom of Castile) whom he served and worked with. He observed what happened in court, understood the wealthy lifestyle and learnt to be a courtier. He was involved in swordplay, grew up obedient and disciplined and had a good sense of right and wrong.

Taken to Court

Jan 1, 1515

Ignatius along with his brother named Pedro Lopez were caught in shocking violent misbehaviour during the night and were taken to court.

Joining the Army

Jan 1, 1517

Juan Velasqueza died and Ignatius became part of the army which was lead by the ruler of Najera.

Battle of Pamplona

Mar 20, 1521

He became part of the army protecting the town Pamplona from the French.
During battle he was attacked by a cannon ball which broke and wounded his legs. The only way he could reset his leg was to break it again so he undergone surgery with no anaesthesia and left with a leg smaller than the other. He also suffered from continuous fever and was alerted of his near death.

Recovery

Jun 29, 1521

While his leg was still recovering he wanted to read romance novels but the castle didn't have, so he read a copy on Jesus Christ’ life called ‘De Vita Christi’. After he completed it, he believed how great the saints were and decided to become a soldier of the Catholic Faith. He also wrote his ‘Spiritual Exercises’ and on the day of the feast of St Peter and Paul, he remarkably recovered.

Conversion

Mar 1, 1522

He left the castle and moved to Jerusalem.
He became a hermit and went to barcelona continuing to the Shrine of Our Lady of Montserrat where he confessed, prayed, gave up his sword and knife placing them on the alter and provided the poor with clothes while clothing himself in sandals, a staff and uncomfortable clothes.

Conversion

Mar 1, 1522

After the Shrine of our Lady, he went to River Cardoner in Manresa where he stayed in a cave for ten months and wrote his 'Spiritual Exercises'. He also had many visions which he did not reveal about, but it was assumed to be an encounter with God that enlightened Ignatius.

Pilgrimage

Feb 1, 1523

He went to the Holy Land where he aimed to pass on his love and understanding to the people. He also went to observe the scenes from Jesus life but was ordered to return to Italy by the Franciscan Guardian out of fear as the Muslim Turks took over the place that time,

Education

Mar 1, 1524

After the pilgrimage to the Holy land Ignatius went to the university of Barcelona to learn Theology and Latin.

Education

Mar 1, 1524

After University he entered a boys class where he learnt Latin for another two years.

Education and Hardship

Jan 1, 1526

After 42 days in prison Ignatius assisted adults with his 'Spiritual Exercises' and preached the gospel to children but since he didn't have the skill and authority he was blamed for teaching the wrong thing. He stayed in prison for about two months and was banned from teaching anything religious.

Education and Hardship

Jan 1, 1526

After learning Latin he was able to enter University of Alcala close to Madrid where he preached the gospel and taught about prayer. The Spanish Inquisition heard about this and forced him to stay in prison for 42 days.

Education and Hardship

Dec 1, 1527

He joined University of Salamanca and began to preach there but after two weeks the dominicans sent him to prison and warned him to preach to no one except children and only the right teachings.

Francis Xavier and Peter Faber

Feb 1, 1528

He travelled to Paris and studied Latin grammar, literature, theology and philosophy at University of Paris where he encouraged people to read his book 'Spiritual Exercises' attracting many folowers including Francis Xavier and Peter Faber whom he shared rooms with. They all formed one group, there was six of them.

Gallstones

Period: Feb 1, 1528 to Jul 31, 1556

He suffered from a painful stomach ache which was discovered to be Gallstones

Preaching

Period: Mar 1, 1534 to Dec 1, 1547

He taught and preached about Christianity

Vow and Priesthood

Aug 15, 1534

When Ignatius was still in Paris, him and five of his followers made a vow at Montmartre chapel in France to be obedient, pure and live under poverty. They planned to travel to the Holy Land providing the Popes' approval.
Ignatius finally became an official priest, assisting those who were ill and less fortunate, and developing the work of the Jesuit Order.

Education

Mar 1, 1535

Ignatius completed his education earning an M.A degree in Paris and then when he became sick travelled back to his original place Guipuzcoa. However he did not live in his family's castle but rather kept a place next to a hospital and began to spread the teachings of Christianity.

Meeting at Venice

Jan 1, 1537

He met his followers at Venice and planned to travel to the Holy land to preach and convert people but because at the time the Muslims and Christians were fighting, there were no ships available.

Back to Rome

Jan 1, 1537

Ignatius travelled back to Rome with his followers. He stopped at the La Storta chapel and there he saw the heavenly father with his son who said to him that he would be successful and pleased in Rome.
In Rome Ignatius and all of the followers were accepted by Pope Paul III and began to preach and educate everyone on theology and the Gospel.

Mass at St Mary Major Church

Dec 25, 1538

For the first time Ignatius lead the mass in St Mary Major Church. Ignatius wanted to do mass in Jerusalem but St Mary Major chapel was a good replacement since the manger there was believed to be the real one from Bethlahem.

The New Order

Jan 1, 1539

Ignatius requested his friends to meet him at Rome. There they spoke about upcoming events and from then they didnt consider forming a new order but have recently called themselves "company of Jesus". Few weeks later, they decided to form a community with permission from the Pope. Along with vows of obedience, chastity and poverty they also had to promise to travel wherever the Pope says to go.

Society of Jesus

Sep 27, 1540

The Jesuit order was accepted by Pope Paul III and named ‘society of Jesus’. Some were against the Society as they disagreed with Ignatius’ idea of getting rid of the divine office in church and accused him of following the rule of praying at a particular time when really he believed that when we see God in everything, we realise that any time is suitable for prayer.

The Jesuits

Sep 27, 1540

Jesuits Australia The Jesuit Order, also refered to as the "shock troops of the Counter-Reformation" was a powerful community which stood out to people in the 16th century. At the centre was Education and teaching and their motto was "To the greater glory of God." They were attached with the Pope, and among the members and followers there was unity.

Powerful Jesuit Members

Jan 1, 1541

Francis Xavier, an obedient member of the Jesuit and a follower of Ignatius suffered greatly as he journeyed around from place to place. He spread Catholicism and converted thousands of people. Other members such as Peter Faber (master of Spiritual Exercises) and Diego Laynez (Theologian at Council of Trent) were also very powerful in the counter-reformation as they too preached and educated people.

Jesuit Superior Election

Apr 7, 1541

Ignatius was selected twice as the superior of the Jesuit order. The society was tough to train in as you would remain in stage one for two years doing duty in hospitals.
It was necessary to beg, go on pilgrimage, and learn theology, philosophy, humanities and teaching.

Vows for the New Order

Apr 22, 1541

Ignatius along with his followers said their vows for the order outside St Paul's Church. Some travelled ouside the country but Ignatius stayed in the same place leading the communities and missions around the world including "the society of Jesus" (which he established).

Establishment of School and Suspicion in France

Jan 1, 1547

Before 1548 Ignatius opened schools and colleges mainly to teach those who were young and new to the Jesuits in areas such as Italy, Portugal, Netherlands, Spain, Germany, and India.
In some catholic cities of France, people were suspicious of the Jesuits especially when they planned to establish their own college in Paris. The french would assume they were not real catholics who taught the true faith.

Father Palaneo and the Jesuit Constitution

Jan 1, 1547

Father Palaneo assisted Ignatius to write the Jesuits constitution.

The book 'Spiritual Exercises'

Jan 1, 1548

Read for free 'The Spiritual Exercises' by St Ignatius of Loyola (translated from autograph) He released his book called 'Spiritual Exercises' which consisted of prayers, meditations and reflections. The aim of the book was to guide people back to God and to strengthen their relationship with him.

Establishment of School

Jan 1, 1548

A school was opened for the Jesuits and lay people under the call of Messina, the court judge from Sicily. This was seen as successful as it made a huge impact on the society, it changed people’s attitudes and prevented them from turning away from the church.

Establishing Organisations

Jan 1, 1548

Ignatius also begun organisations for those who wanted to convert and become catholics (e.g. the Jewish and the women who wished to return to the church).

Jesuit Constitution

Mar 3, 1552

The Laws for the Jesuits (written by Ignatius with the help of Father Palaneo) were finished, accepted and released.

Perpetual Fever

Period: Jun 1, 1556 to Jul 31, 1556

During the summer, Ignatius suffered from a harsh fever. He sensed a near death

Papal blessing

Jul 30, 1556

Ignatius told his secretary Polanco to get him the last sacrament and the blessing from the Pope. However his Physician assumed he wouldn’t die and because Polanco believed the physician, he told Ignatius he would go the next day as he was busy writing letters.

Death of Ignatius

Jul 31, 1556

Ignatius became weak and died suddenly from a natural cause. Unfortunately he did not get the Pope’s blessing or the holy oil as Polanco was too late.

Feastday

Jul 31, 1556

His feast day is celebrated on the day and month of his death by the church and Jesuits.

Growth of Jesuits

Jul 31, 1556

By now the Jesuits had developed and grown with approximately a thousand members arranged in units with nine in Europe, one in Brazil and another in the Far East.

Beatification

Jul 27, 1609

Pope Paul V beatified Ignatius.

Canonization

Mar 12, 1622

Video by Real Catholic Tv from Youtube explaining St Ignatius' life and who he was as a person Pope Gregory XV canonized Ignatius along with St. Francis Xavier.
Ignatius is the patron of soldiers, religious retreats and the Jesuits.