Ideals for Newcomers (No. 769 : I 495-570 : Spanish): Students [of the Society of Jesus] in Coimbra 7 May 1547 from Rome

Abstract

Since 1545 reports had begun to reach Ignatius of weird penitential practices adopted by the young Jesuit students in Coimbra, partly at the instigation of their superior (Fr Rodrigues). These seemed to threaten the very promising beginnings of the Society in that key country, the gateway to India, Africa and America. The following letter, with all its rhetorical phrasing, its elaborate quotations, and its search for explanatory images (probably much indebted to the newly appointed secretary, Polanco), only hints at the historical context, which is nevertheless a necessary backdrop if one is to appreciate its nuances : by avoiding condemnations, and by stressing, perhaps to excess, the privilege of the Jesuit vocation and the role of obedience as the way to excel, Ignatius attempts (but with only mixed success, as Letters 25 and 45 testify) to canalize an enthusiasm run riot.