In Discovering Ignatius, Jim Kennedy, SJ will explore the life of Saint Ignatius, Catholic saint and founder of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits). 500 years ago, Inigo de Loyola was struck in the legs by a cannonball, which began his journey from swashbuckling man of the world to the pilgrim mystic who composed the Spiritual Exercises, a classic work of Christian Spirituality.

The third episode explores what happened to Inigo after he left his recovery bed at Loyola. He became a pilgrim, a wanderer guided by God. Although Inigo wanted to travel to the Holy Land, he instead remained in Spain, spending roughly a year in a town called Manresa. While in Manresa, Inigo struggled with scrupulosity and despair. Eventually, through the grace of God, Inigo emerged from his difficulties and his insights Ignatius later turned into the First Principle and Foundation, a major component of the Spiritual Exercises. Jim Kennedy also talks with Chris Williams, SJ, a fellow Jesuit and theology teacher about how we should understand Inigo's experience at Manresa, what Ignatius has to tell us, and how the First Principle and Foundation can help us think about God.

Music:

"Thaxted" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/