1491–1556

Catholic reformer

Early Life.

Christened as Inigo, this founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) was born into a Basque noble family in Northern Spain. Like other children of his class he was trained in the arts of war and groomed for a military career. In 1521 he was wounded in battle and spent over a year recovering from a crushed leg. During this recovery he had several religious experiences and he realized that he wanted to help other Christians. He entered into a year of isolation, during which he kept a spiritual notebook. This collection of his prayers and spiritual observations would later become the basis from which he wrote his Spiritual Exercises, a great classic of devotional literature.

Education.

Once his recovery was complete, Loyola went on pilgrimage to the Holy Land and realized that he needed a better education if he was going to...