Our saint of the week is Saint Ignatius of Loyola. He is, of course, the founding father of the Society of Jesus — that is, the Jesuits. But that is only a part of who he is and what makes him a truly great saint. He was born in Loyola, Spain, in 1491, in a time in Spanish history when Spain was arguably the foremost superpower in the entire world. As a youth, Ignatius wanted to be a part of Spain’s military greatness, and he served his king as a courtier and a soldier until, at the age of 30, he was wounded in battle and required a long time to recover. During that time of healing, he experienced a call of divine grace to leave the world, which effectively inspired him to a profound conversion of heart. Thereafter, he embraced poverty and humiliation so as to become more like Jesus. He began a religious movement that inspired others to join him in service to God. They pledged their allegiance to the Pope and placed themselves under his holy obedience, thus marking the beginning of the Society of Jesus. Having led a holy life of many hardships as a zealous spiritual soldier for Christ, including false accusations of heresy that led to imprisonment, Ignatius died and entered into eternal rest on July 31, 1556, and July 31st is his feast day.

The Jesuits, of course, have enjoyed tremendous success in their service to Christ and His Church through the centuries, most notably in the areas of mission work and evangelization, and in recent years, in the area of higher education. Many Catholic universities in the United States, for example, are Jesuit in their foundation, including Spokane’s own Gonzaga University. May the prayers and holy example of Saint Ignatius continue to come to the aid of Jesuits everywhere and to all people of faith.