The Autobiography of St. Ignatius Loyola | #12: Finally in Rome

From Rome, the pilgrim went to Monte Cassino to give the exercises to Dr. Ortiz.

He was there forty days, and on one of them he saw the bachelor Joses as he entered heaven.

This brought him many tears and great spiritual consolation.

He saw this so clearly that if he had said the contrary, he would feel he was lying.

From Monte Cassino he brought with him Francis d'Estrada, and returning to Rome he busied himself helping souls.

They were still living at the vineyard.

He gave the spiritual exercises to various people at the same time, one of whom lived at St. Mary Major, the other at Ponte Sesto.

Then the persecutions began.

Miguel began to give trouble and to speak badly of the pilgrim, who caused him to be summoned before the governor.

He first showed the governor a letter of Miguel's in which he praised the pilgrim very much.

The governor examined Miguel and ended by banishing him from Rome.

Mudara and Bareda then began their persecution, saying that the pilgrim and his companions were fugitives from Spain, from Paris, and from Venice.

In the end, both of them confessed in the presence of the governor and the legate, who was then in Rome, that they had nothing bad to say about them, neither regarding their ways nor regarding their teaching.

The legate ordered silence to be imposed on the whole affair, but the pilgrim did not accept that, saying he wanted a definite sentence.

This did not please the legate, nor the governor, nor even those who at first favored the pilgrim, but at last, after some months, the pope came to Rome.

The pilgrim went to speak to him at Frascati and gave him several reasons.

Thus informed, the pope ordered the sentence to be given, and it was given in his favor, etc.

With the help of the pilgrim and his companions, some pious works such as the catechumens, Saint Martha, the orphans, etc., were begun in Rome.

Master Nadal can recount the rest.

After these things had been recounted, I asked the pilgrim on October twenty about the exercises and the constitutions, as I wanted to know how he had drawn them up.

He told me that he had not composed the exercises all at once, but that when he noticed some things in his soul and found them useful, he thought they might also be useful to others, and so he put them in writing.

For example, the examination of conscience with that arrangement of lines, etc.

He told me that he derived the elections in particular from the diversity of spirit and thoughts which he had at Loyola when he was still suffering in the leg.

He told me he would speak to me about the constitutions in the evening.

That same day he summoned me before supper with the air of a person who was more recollected than usual and made a sort of protestation to me, the sum of which was to show the intention, the sincerity with which he had related these things.

From Rome, the pilgrim went to Monte Cassino to give the exercises to Dr. Ortiz.

He was there forty days, and on one of them he saw the bachelor Joses as he entered heaven.

This brought him many tears and great spiritual consolation.

He saw this so clearly that if he had said the contrary, he would feel he was lying.

From Monte Cassino he brought with him Francis d'Estrada, and returning to Rome he busied himself helping souls.

They were still living at the vineyard.

He gave the spiritual exercises to various people at the same time, one of whom lived at St. Mary Major, the other at Ponte Sesto.

Then the persecutions began.

Miguel began to give trouble and to speak badly of the pilgrim, who caused him to be summoned before the governor.

He first showed the governor a letter of Miguel's in which he praised the pilgrim very much.

The governor examined Miguel and ended by banishing him from Rome.

Mudara and Bareda then began their persecution, saying that the pilgrim and his companions were fugitives from Spain, from Paris, and from Venice.

In the end, both of them confessed in the presence of the governor and the legate, who was then in Rome, that they had nothing bad to say about them, neither regarding their ways nor regarding their teaching.

The legate ordered silence to be imposed on the whole affair, but the pilgrim did not accept that, saying he wanted a definite sentence.

This did not please the legate, nor the governor, nor even those who at first favored the pilgrim, but at last, after some months, the pope came to Rome.

The pilgrim went to speak to him at Frascati and gave him several reasons.

Thus informed, the pope ordered the sentence to be given, and it was given in his favor, etc.

With the help of the pilgrim and his companions, some pious works such as the catechumens, Saint Martha, the orphans, etc., were begun in Rome.

Master Nadal can recount the rest.

After these things had been recounted, I asked the pilgrim on October twenty about the exercises and the constitutions, as I wanted to know how he had drawn them up.

He told me that he had not composed the exercises all at once, but that when he noticed some things in his soul and found them useful, he thought they might also be useful to others, and so he put them in writing.

For example, the examination of conscience with that arrangement of lines, etc.

He told me that he derived the elections in particular from the diversity of spirit and thoughts which he had at Loyola when he was still suffering in the leg.

He told me he would speak to me about the constitutions in the evening.

That same day he summoned me before supper with the air of a person who was more recollected than usual and made a sort of protestation to me, the sum of which was to show the intention, the sincerity with which he had related these things.