On Prophecies and Revelations (Appendix 6, No.3: XII 632-652 : Spanish): Francis Borgia, S.J., Duke of Gandia in Gandia July (?) 1549 from Rome

Abstract

This complex document, called an 'Instruction' but really a 'report' drawn up after a committee meeting, was added to the previous letter to Borgia. The crisis that both are dealing with sprang from the chance conjunction in Gandia of four persons : the Duke himself, clearly inclined initially (as Letter 27 testifies) to excessive prayer and penance; the superior of the Jesuit community, Fr Andres de Oviedo, a saintly but hardly normal personality '; a young French scholastic, FranҪois Onfroy, a tragic (almost operatic) figure, the prey to religious exaltation and tuberculosis; and the Franciscan friar, Fray Juan de Tejeda, whom Ignatius most mistrusted, one of Borgia's earliest spiritual directors, a visionary prophet while still a student of theology. The last three were convinced that the new Society of Jesus needed 'reform',with men and time devoted much more to prayer (Oviedo wanted some eight hours a day), and its ideals directed to Church reform under the leadership of an angelic Pope. Ignatius acted in two ways : he assured himself of the support of Borgia (Letter 28) and he had a committee investigate teaching current in Gandia so that a full judgement could be sent to those concerned. This document was written by his secretary, Polanco, but can justifiably be attributed to Ignatius himself, both because he supported whole-heartedly the findings of his committee and because he went carefully through Polanco's text, toning down the harshness of some phrases and adding phrases of his own invention. More fundamentally, his 'Rules for the discernment of spirits' 2 underlie the discernment process illustrated here. Thus his condemnation of the tendency beginning to develop in Gandia is as trenchant as his personal kindness for the actors involved is gentle. He was helped by circumstances - both Onfroy and Tejeda dying in 7550 - but also by the exemplary cooperation of Borgia and Oviedo. The crisis was diffused in 72 months, even if its traumatic effects, especially on Borgia, and through him on the Society, were more lasting.3