Chapter Eight, The Fourth Image: The Fourth Picture Summary and Analysis

The chapter opens with Ricci writing a letter to his friend Girolamo Costa in August 1599; they enter the Jesuit order within a year of each other and have been friends a long time. Ricci reports to Costa that the Chinese marvel when he tells stories of the shrine to Mary at Loreto. Ignatius attributes special significance to the shrine, which makes it even more popular. Macerata is a stop on a pilgrim route from Rome to Loreto; this gives his town something of a focus on Mary. The author speculates that Ricci is drawn to Mary since he receives little attention from his mother, being one of seven children. Ricci has been attacked recently and has lost partial use of one of his feet, giving him a...