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When did St. Ignatius of Loyola begin writing The Spiritual Exercises?

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Engraving by Lucas Vorsterman after Peter Paul Rubens showing St. Ignatius of Loyola with a halo, hands clasped in prayer before a crucifix and open book. — St. Ignatius of Loyola Ignatius of Loyola was a Spanish theologian who founded the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in 1534. The Jesuit order received official papal approval in 1540 and became a key player in the Counter-Reformation of the 16th and 17th centuries.

St. Ignatius of Loyola began sketching the meditations that would become The Spiritual Exercises in 1522, during his time in Manresa, Spain. He continued to develop and add to the text until he finished his studies in Paris in 1535.12