Saint Ignatius of Loyola

Iñigo Lopez de Loyola was born in 1491, in Spain, into a noble, rich and Christian family. He was the youngest of thirteen children and grew up focused on the luxuries of the court.

King's Knight

Iñigo chose a military career and was an excellent knight: from a very early age he was committed to defending what he believed in and he didn't even mind losing his own life that way.

Final battle

In a fight to defend Pamplona, the saint of Loyola was injured by a cannonball which forced him to convalesce to recover.

Why not me?

This was the question that Ignatius asked himself when, while he was resting and not having any books he liked to pass the time, he came across the books they gave him, which narrated the lives of saints who gave their all for the cause they believed in: the Kingdom of Christ.

Knight of the King of Kings

From then on, he lived to defend the Kingdom. And he exchanged the things of this earth for those on high. Cured, he went to the chapel of the sanctuary of Our Lady of Montserrat, hung his sword on the altar and turned his back on the world of the court.

Pilgrim of Christ

Saint Ignatius was a great pilgrim in this land. He experienced begging and great spiritual battles, but he lived holy indifference: “on our part, let us not want health rather than illness, riches rather than poverty, honor rather than dishonor, a long life rather than a short life, and so on in everything else, desiring and choosing only that which most leads us to the end for which we were created.”

Founder

In Paris, in 1534, together with Francisco Xavier and other companions, he founded the Society of Jesus. Some members were sent to evangelize Brazil. He prepared and sent Jesuit missionaries around the world to spread Christianity.

Easter

He died on July 31, 1556, in Rome, Italy. He was canonized in 1622.

Patron Saint of Spiritual Retreats

His incessant inner search and his revelations made him write the Spiritual Exercises and be considered the saint of the discernment of spirits. He was declared Patron Saint of All Spiritual Retreats by Pope Pius XI in 1922.

Source: Canção Nova