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Which books did St. Ignatius of Loyola read while recovering from his wounds?
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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.
While recovering from his wounds at Loyola following the Battle of Pamplona in 1521, St. Ignatius of Loyola read two specific works, which were the only reading materials available at the castle:
The version of the lives of the saints he read included prologues by a Cistercian monk, which framed the service of God as a form of holy chivalry. This perspective deeply influenced Ignatius, leading him to resolve to imitate the austerities of the saints as penance for his sins.1