July 31 is the memorial feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (AMDG)! For the greater glory of God!
This phrase is the motto of the Jesuits and captures
the zestful nature of the heart of St. Ignatius of Loyola, who was filled with
the Holy Spirit and founded the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits. The motto, Ad
Majorem Dei Gloriam, means that all of being and all actions are solely for
the greater glory of God.
The spirit of “Ad
Majorem Dei Gloriam” is reflected
in the passage, 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1, read for Ignatius’ memorial feast Mass as
the First Reading or the Second Reading in the Jesuits supplement form of
Lectionary, to reflect Ignatius’ passionate devotion to the greater glory of
God:
Whether
you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God
(1 Corinthians 10:31).
This means, Ignatius lived and acted solely for God’s
greater glory with unceasing passion.
Living and acting for God’s greater glory means
seeking nothing for himself. This is reflected in these words of St. Paul:
Avoid
giving offense, whether to Jews or Greeks for the Church of God, just as I try
to please everyone in every way, not seeking my own benefit but that of the
many, that they may be saved
(1 Corinthians 10:32-33).
Ignatius came to realize that seeking nothing for
himself but being and acting for the greater glory of God means to pour out his
entire being and to put all of his actions for the salvific benefits of many. In
other words, to live a life according to the Ignatian motto of “Ad Majorem
Dei Gloriam” means to dedicate a life for the salvation of many people.
This is also echoed in these words of Fr. Pedro Arrupe, the 28th
Superior General of the Jesuits:
Hombres para los demás - People for others.
And living in the Ignatian spirit of “Ad Majorem Dei
Gloriam”, as exemplified by St. Ignatius of Loyola, means, as reflected in
1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1, to live and act for the benefits of others, for the
salvation of their souls, by being persons for others. After all, this means to
be like Christ by imitating him (1 Corinthians 11:1), who gave himself for our
salvation (Titus 2:13-14), holding nothing for himself. This is know as Christ’s
kenosis. So, we should also dedicate our total being and all our actions,
like Christ, for the salvific benefits of others, even giving up our own lives,
as the living sacrifices (Romans 12:1), to live and act in the Ignatian spirit
of “Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam”.
But in order to live and act for selfless service for
others, imitating Christ, in the Ignatian spirit of “Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam”,
we first must empty ourselves and let us be filled with nothing but God’s
grace. For this, Ignatius wrote this prayer in his Spiritual Exercises, #234:
Scipe,
Domine, universam meam libertatem. Accipe memoriam, intellectum, atque
voluntatem omnem. Quidquid habeo vel possideo mihi largitus es; id tibi totum
restituo, ac tuae prorsus voluntati trado gubernandum. Amorem tui solum cum
gratia tua mihi dones, et dives sum satis, hec aliud quidquam ultra posco.
Receive,
O Lord, all my liberty. Take my memory, my understanding, and my entire will.
Whatsoever I have or possess Thou hast bestowed upon me; I give it all back to
Thee and surrender it wholly to be governed by Thy Will. Give me love for Thee
alone along with Thy grace, and I am rich enough and ask for nothing more.
This Ignatian prayer to be selfless in order to serve
others in the spirit of “Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam” is also reflected in
this passage of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC):
By faith, man
completely submits his intellect and his will to God. With his whole being man
gives his assent to God the revealer. Sacred Scripture calls this human
response to God, the author of revelation, the obedience of faith. CCC 143. cf. Romans1:5;
16:26.
But Ignatius did not start his life this way of
obedience to God and to put his life solely in the spirit of “Ad Majorem Dei
Gloriam” by way of selfless service for others. Rather, it was quite
opposite. All he did was for his own ego and geared to his self-edification when
he was growing up and as a young Spanish soldier. As a Jesuit psychoanalyst, Fr. William Meissner
puts it, Ignatius was rather narcissistic. At the same time, he was known for his
extraordinary valor.
But, at the Battle of Pamplona, May 20, 1521,
defending the city of Pamplona against French army, Ignatius was hit by a cannon
ball shot by the French, smashing his right leg, also damaging his right leg.
It was near-fatal. But what the cannon ball really shattered was his narcissistic
ego.
Ignatius sustained his war injuries and began a long
recouping process. It was when Blessed
Virgin Mary appeared to him with baby Jesus and prompted his conversion, from
his lustful and narcissistic heart to the new heart of eros and agape
to equip himself with passion and self-giving love.
But the journey of Ignatius’ conversion was extremely
difficult, with many twists and turns.
Even though he was forced to fold his original
aspiration to become a heroic figure in the military forces of the greatest
empire on earth at that time, the Castilian Spanish empire, Ignatius could
still enjoy his family fame and wealth. With these, Ignatius could have invested
his family wealth in a trading business to earn a lot for himself, because
Spain was rapidly expanding its colonial territories in Americas, as well as,
in the Philippines. But Ignatius abandoned all of these options and made
himself a penniless beggar-wonder, his family castile in Loyola of the Basque
region, northern Spain. The only possession he took with him in leaving his
family castle was his prized sword, which symbolized his past life as a proud
soldier.
With his sword, he set himself to Jerusalem in order
to dedicate himself for the greater glory of God, as prompted by Blessed
Virgin. His plan was to sail to the Holy Land from Barcelona.
On his way to Barcelona, Ignatius surrendered his last
possession, his prized sword, in front of the Black Madonna at Montserrat. And
this is reflected in the Gospel Reading of his memorial feast Mass, Luke
14:25-33.
By leaving his family in Loyola, Ignatius showed that
his love for Christ is far greater than his love for his family (Luke 14:26).
He no longer carried his sword. He began to carry his cross, instead, resolved
to offer his whole life for the greater glory of Go(d (Luke 14:27). Because he
began to carry his cross, his journey of conversion began to turn increasing
difficult. He faced series of challenges and obstacles. Then, he retreated
himself to a save in Manresa and stayed there for 11 months, living an
extremely ascetic life. Ignatius must felt that he just could not move forward
any more. Being exhausted and withdrawn, he was in darkness, which can be compatible
to what St. John of the Cross describes as La noche oscura del alma (the
dark night of the soul). But for Ignatius, it only became darker and darker, putting
himself in despair. In this spiritual pit, Ignatius must have cried out to God,
for whom he resolved himself to serve, for His greater glory. Perhaps, his cry
in the Manresa cave, was like the cry of Prophet Jeremiah during his interior
crisis, as reflected in Jeremiah 20:7-9, which is read as the First Reading in
the Jesuits supplement of Lectionary for Ignatius’ feast.
But this crisis of Ignatius did not mean God had
abandoned him on his journey to Jerusalem and on his conversion journey, which
began at the moment of the cannon ball smashing his leg. God was with Ignatius during
his interior crisis, And this was evident from his Spiritual Exercises, which
he composed its draft during that time of soul crushing difficulties.
As we can see in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius
of Loyola, during his “dark night of the soul”, God aided him to grow in the
spiritual strengths and in necessary wisdom to open his eyes and heart to the
truth. And the truth is that enduring such trials sure made him drawn closer to
God, aligning the desire of his heart to God’s desire on him.
Coming to realize this truth, Ignatius came out of the
cave, being further grown on his conversion journey, as he came much closer to
God. So he finally reached Jerusalem. However, this turned out to be the beginning
of another set of trials for him. Having no credential to live a religious life,
Ignatius was not welcomed in a religious community there. In dismay, he
returned to Spain and tried another way to live a religious life, as he began
preaching. But, because of having no credential, he was put in inquisition.
Ignatius really had to pause for a while and examine
himself to find out why he always faced obstacles in every way he tried to go.
It was a time for him to grow further on his continuing journey of conversion.
Through more thoughtful discernment, Ignatius decided
to seek necessary education to earn the credential to serve God through a religious
life. So, further humbling himself, he enrolled himself to a basic Latin class
with a bunch of students who were about half of his age. At that time, Ignatius
was already past 30. Then, after several universities in Spain, Ignatius
studied at the University of Paris, earning masters degree. It was also where
he met St. Peter Faber and St. Francis Xavier. And with them, Ignatius formed
the Society of Jesus in 1534, and this religious society was approved by Pope
Paul III on September 27, 1540. For this nascent religious society, dedicated for
the greater glory of God, Ignatius drafted its constitution in 1530, necessary
for Papal approval.
Ignatius had to learn as he had faces obstacles after obstacles, even coming out of despair in the cave of Manresa, that he had to have a solid strategy to pursue his goals for the greater glory of God. Passion and detachment per se did not work without careful strategic planning, upon discernment. And this aspect of Ignatius’ conversion journey for his further growth is reflected in Luke 14:28-33.
In founding the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits, St.
Ignatius of Loyola became the first Superior General to lead this nascent
religious society like a well-organized and well-disciplined army. But he was
no longer a soldier for Spain. Rather, he became a skilled and valorous general
of the Ignatian army for the sole purpose of “Ad Majorem Gloriam”, denouncing
all earthly things and letting God empty themselves and fill them only with His
grace through the Holy Spirit.
AMDG!
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