St. Ignatius
Ignatius, whose real name is Inigo de Loyola y Onaz, was born in 1491 in the village of Azpeitia in Northern Spain, to the noble family of the region. He was the youngest of several children.
Since he would inherit nothing of the family fortune, he was hired out to the court of Navarre to serve the king as a soldier and courtier. Hence he was trained in the art of war and in courtly chivalry.
In 1521, the forces of France crossed into Spain. The region of Navarre was the frontier region of Spain and was the first defence against the invasion. While he was fighting in the king's forces defending the citadel at Pamplona, Inigo's leg was smashed by a cannonball. First attempts to set the leg were clumsy and inefficient. Inigo, motivated by vanity, chose to have the leg re-broken and set again twice. But even then he continued to walk with a pronounced limp his whole life.
During his lengthy convalesence at his family home, Inigo had little to distract him. All they could find were a few romantic novels and two religious books, "The Imitation of Christ", and "The Golden Legend of the Saints". Inigo observed an interesting difference in his interior state as he read these various books. While reading the romantic tales of chivalry and courtly life, he was filled with excitement. But afterwards he found no lasting satisfaction or interest. On the other hand, when he read the religious books, not only did he find himself charged with energy while considering the exploits of the saints, but afterwards he realized that the feeling persisted for long periods. In this experience he discoved the basis for his later reflections on the Discernment of Spirits.
Having recovered from his injury, Inigo set out on a pilgrimmage to the monestary at Montserrat, near Barcelona, a trek of several weeks. During his stay at the monestary he gave himself to prayer and fasting and other works of piety. Finally, he made up his mind to pursue a new life of service to God, which he symbolized by placing his sword at the feet of the famous statue of Our Lady of Montserrat.
From here, Inigo moved up the road to Manresa, where he lived in a cave by the river for two years, praying and begging for alms. During this time he experienced many spiritual movements and received extraordinary insights into the nature of God. He recorded these experiences and shaped them in such a way that others could share in them. This collection of spiritual activities became known as the Spiritual Exercises and are still used today as a major guide to growth in the spiritual life.
In his desire to serve God, Inigo realized that he needed more education, especially in Theology and Philosophy. This required him to return to elementary school to learn Latin. Eventually, he reached the University of Paris, where he made friends with a fellow Basque named Francis Xavier and a Frenchman named Peter Fabre. These men became interested in Inigo's spiritual experience and in due course followed the Spiritual Exercises under his guidance, along with several other students from the university. Many of the these other students, including Francis and Peter, decided to join Inigo in the formation of a band of priests dedicated to the service of the Church. It was during his time in Paris that Inigo changed his name to Ignatius, incorrectly believing it to be the Latin equivalent.
This group decided to go to Rome to place themselves at the disposal of the Pope, which was Paul III at that time. Paul received this young group of companions who became known as the Companions of Jesus (Societas Jesu - Society of Jesus). Paul confirmed the Society as a religious order of the Catholic Church in 1542.
After that, Ignatius spent his time directing the work of the Society, composing the Constitutions that would govern the life of the fledgling order, and putting the finishing touches on the Spiritual Exercises. At the time of his death in 1556, the Society of Jesus had grown to over 1000 members, operating in 20 different countries in the Old and New Worlds.