minor nobility in northern Spain. As a young man Ignatius Loyola was inflamed by
the ideals of courtly love and knighthood and dreamed of doing great
deeds.
recuperating, Ignatius Loyola experienced a conversion. Reading the lives of
Jesus and the saints made Ignatius happy and aroused desires to do great things.
Ignatius realized that these feelings were clues to God's direction for
him.
He collected his insights, prayers, and suggestions in his book The
Spiritual Exercises, one of the most influential books on the spiritual
life ever written. With a small group of friends, Ignatius Loyola founded the
Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits. Ignatius conceived the Jesuits as
"contemplatives in action." This also describes the many Christians who have
been touched by Ignatian spirituality.