Ignatius of Loyola

Lore & Background

Ignatius envisioned the purpose of the Society of Jesus to be missionary work and teaching. In addition to the vows of chastity, obedience and poverty of other religious orders in the church, Loyola instituted a fourth vow for Jesuits of obedience to the Pope, to engage in projects ordained by the pontiff. Jesuits were instrumental in leading the Counter-Reformation.

As a former soldier, Ignatius paid particular attention to the spiritual formation of his recruits and recorded his method in the Spiritual Exercises (1548). In time, the method has become known as Ignatian spirituality. He was beatified in 1609 and was canonized as a saint on 12 March 1622.

His feast day is celebrated on 31 July. He is the patron saint of the Basque provinces of Gipuzkoa and Biscay as well as of the Society of Jesus. He was declared the patron saint of all spiritual retreats by Pope Pius XI in 1922.

The Soldier's End at Pamplona

Ignatius's early life was shaped by Basque minor nobility and a household marked by loss. His mother died shortly after his birth, and his father, Don Beltrán, had him tonsured in anticipation of an ecclesiastical path. Yet the young Íñigo gravitated toward the world of chivalry, patterned his life after romances like Amadís de Gaula, and joined the army at seventeen. For years he fought in numerous engagements without sustaining a wound.

A cannonball, ricocheting off a nearby wall, shattered his right leg. Back at the Loyola castle, he endured multiple surgical procedures in an age without anesthesia—his bones were set, then deliberately broken again. The operations left his right leg permanently shorter, condemning him to a lifelong limp and extinguishing any further military ambition.

The Wound That Became a Door

During his long convalescence, Íñigo requested his beloved romances of chivalry to pass the hours, but none were available in the castle. Instead, his sister-in-law Magdalena de Araoz brought him the lives of Christ and the saints. The work that seized him most was Ludolph of Saxony's De Vita Christi, which proposed that the reader mentally place himself within Gospel scenes—visualizing the Nativity crib, for instance.

This technique of Simple Contemplation would become the foundation of his later Spiritual Exercises. Even as he dreamed of imitating the saints, his mind still wandered to romantic heroism and a royal lady. But he noticed something: the chivalric dreams left him in desolation, while the saintly ones ended in deep joy and peace.

This was, he would later recognize, his first encounter with discernment. Once he could walk again, he resolved to pilgrimage to the Holy Land to "kiss the earth where our Lord had walked" and perform stricter penances. A vision of the Virgin Mary holding the infant Jesus, which he experienced one night, seemed to confirm his new direction.

Building the Society of Jesus

The order's mission, as he envisioned it, centered on two pillars: missionary work and teaching. Beyond the standard religious vows of chastity, obedience, and poverty, Loyola instituted a distinctive fourth vow—obedience specifically to the Pope—so that Jesuits would be available to undertake whatever projects the pontiff ordained.

This structural commitment made the order uniquely responsive to papal direction. The Jesuits went on to play an instrumental role in leading the Counter-Reformation, deploying their educational and missionary focus across the globe. As a former soldier, he paid particular attention to the formation of his recruits, and the method he recorded would come to be known worldwide as Ignatian spirituality.

From Basque Castle to Universal Patron

His name, a medieval Basque diminutive meaning "my little one," was later rendered in the Latin form "Ignatius," which he adopted for use in France and Italy where it was more readily understood. His mother died shortly after his birth, and maternal care passed to the local blacksmith's wife.

His father had him tonsured, hoping for a clerical future, but the boy's heart belonged to the sword. After his conversion, military career, and founding of the Jesuits, his legacy grew posthumously. His feast day falls on 31 July.

Reader's Guide

Ignatius of Loyola was born Iñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola in the castle at Loyola, in the municipality of Azpeitia, Gipuzkoa, in the Basque entities of the Crown of Castile. His parents, Don Beltrán Ibáñez de Oñaz y Loyola and Doña María (or Marina) Sáenz de Licona y Balda, who were of the minor nobility, from the clan of Loyola, were involved in the Basque war of the bands. Their manor house was demolished on the orders of the King of Castile in 1456 for their depredations in Gipuzkoa, with Iñigo's paternal grandfather being expelled to Andalusia by Henry IV. Íñigo was the youngest of their thirteen children with seven brothers and five sisters. Their eldest son, Juan Pérez, had soldiered in forces commanded by Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, but died fighting in the Italian Wars (1494–1559).

He was baptized 'Íñigo' on honour of Íñigo of Oña, Abbot of Oña; the name also is a medieval Basque diminutive for 'My little one'. It is not clear when he began using the Latin name 'Ignatius' instead of his baptismal name 'Íñigo'. Historian Gabriel María Verd says that Íñigo did not intend to change his name, but rather adopted a name which he believed was a simple variant of his own, for use in France and Italy where it was better understood. Íñigo adopted the surname 'de Loyola' in reference to the Basque village of Loyola where he was born. Soon after the birth of Íñigo, his mother died.

Maternal care fell to María de Garín, the wife of the local blacksmith. In 1498, his second eldest brother, Martin, heir to the estate, took his new wife to live in the castle, and she became mistress of the household. Later, the seven-year-old boy Íñigo returned to Casa Loyola. Anticipating his possible ecclesiastic career, Don Beltrán had Íñigo tonsured.

Military career

Instead, Íñigo became a page in the service of a relative, Juan Velázquez de Cuéllar, treasurer (contador mayor) of the kingdom of Castile. During his time in the household of Don Velázquez, Íñigo took up dancing, fencing, gambling, the pursuit of the young ladies, and duelling. Íñigo was keen on military exercises and was driven by a desire for fame. He patterned his life after stories of knights and chivalry, such as Amadís de Gaula. He joined the army at seventeen, and according to one biographer, he strutted about 'with his cape flying open to reveal his tight-fitting hose and boots; a sword and dagger at his waist'.