For the greater glory of God” was the credo of St. Ignatius of Loyola. When choosing between two good and holy options in life, St. Ignatius would always choose that which gave the greatest glory to God. He was born in Spain in 1491 to a military family. He was the youngest of 13 children. Over time he gravitated towards military service. He was very arrogant and short tempered. He was known as a charming person to the King’s Court and he chased after the young ladies of his day. He would have continued his courtly ambitions, if he were not severely injured when a cannonball shattered his leg in battle. It took many “surgeries” (without modern medicine or anesthesia) to knit the bones together. While he was convalescing he read about Jesus and the lives of the saints. He decided over time, and with much prayer, to serve the one true king—Jesus Christ. He set about going to school to study Latin to enter into college in Paris. There he met several companions and formed “The Society of Jesus” known today as the Jesuits. He was ordained a priest. He wrote down a spiritual diary of his many meditations and shared them with all his companions then, and throughout the following years. They came to be known as the “Spiritual Exercises.” His religious order grew in size and his missionaries went throughout the entire world creating universities and sharing the powerful spirituality that formed his priests and religious brothers. He died July 31,1556. We celebrate his feast this month. I write about him not only because he was a key historical figure helping the Catholic Church reform itself under the criticism of the Protestants who split from her around this time; I write about him because it was 50 years ago that I entered the Society of Jesus having met them as my professors when I studied philosophy at Fordham University in preparations to enter a seminary to study to become a priest. What struck me most was how smart they were and how they had a vast understanding of the world and it’s various cultures. My time with the Jesuits was short, because I was more use to a close knit-family, I decided to go to a local seminary and become a priest in The Diocese of Brooklyn. I served there for 32 years. However, St. Ignatius’ influence, through The Spiritual Exercises, had a profound impact on my priesthood: I worked in wealthy parishes and poor ones. I was a chaplain for 16 years in an art college working with the youth, and I built a retreat property just 10 minutes from our church. I even came out of retirement with two broken ankles to be your priest and bring you Jesus! Why? For the greater glory of God! And for the love of you!