Children\u2019s Commissioner for England Dame Rachel de Souza chooses Ignatius of Loyola as a history hero <\/p>
Ignatius of Loyola was a Spanish Catholic priest and theologian who co-founded the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) and became its first Superior General in 1541. After being injured in battle in his youth, he underwent a spiritual conversion and devoted his life to the church, missionary work and teaching. He was beatified after his death and later canonised. In 1922 he was declared the patron saint of spiritual retreats, soldiers and education.<\/p>\n
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I went to a Catholic school and as a little girl I had to recite St Ignatius\u2019s prayer. Later, as a
There were three Ignatiuses. As a young man he was a soldier, womaniser and rebel. After being hit by a cannonball, which shattered his right leg, he lay down his sword and embraced the Christian faith<\/a>. But the man I really admire is the third Ignatius, the educationalist who reformed the Catholic church and sent out missionaries all over the world.<\/p>\n He had terrible luck in his life \u2013 for instance, he was imprisoned for 42 days during the Spanish Inquisition<\/a> \u2013 but he never gave up and would battle on until he achieved his objective, or persuaded the pope to his way of thinking about a particular issue: he called his approach \u201cstorming heaven\u201d. It\u2019s that determination and ability to persuade, influence and get stuff done that I so admire.<\/p>\n For me, it was the moment when he decided to change his life. He walked to Montserrat in Spain, climbed the mountain, lay down his sword and dagger at the Virgin\u2019s altar at the Benedictine monastery, and vowed to devote his life to rebuilding the church. He then went to live in a cave by the banks of the river Cardoner where he prayed and meditated. It was here that he went through a spiritual experience, changing him as a person, which enabled him to do all the good work he later did as a Jesuit.<\/p>\n I suspect that he may have been a bit of a nightmare to work with and I\u2019m sure he was a hard taskmaster \u2013 but the good far outweighs the bad. However, I doubt we\u2019d be sending out missionaries these days, would we?<\/p>\n Like him, my path hasn\u2019t been easy, and many of the things he said during his life have inspired me. Like him, I\u2019ve also had to battle to get my ideas taken seriously.<\/p>\n I\u2019d ask him what we could do to ensure that the UK is the best place in the world to grow up.<\/p>\n Dame Rachel is an educationalist and former head teacher. She was made a DBE in <\/strong>2014 and became Children\u2019s Commissioner in 2021.<\/strong><\/p>\n This article was first published in the October 2023 issue of BBC History Magazine<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\nWhat made Ignatius a hero?<\/h3>\n
What was his finest hour?<\/h3>\n
Is there anything that you don\u2019t particularly admire about him?<\/h3>\n
Can you see any parallels between Ignatius\u2019s life and your own?<\/h3>\n
What would you ask Ignatius if you could meet him?<\/h3>\n