Ignatius of Loyola : the psychology of a saint

Author(s)

Bibliographic Information

Ignatius of Loyola : the psychology of a saint

W.W. Meissner

Yale University Press, c1992

  • : pbk

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Note

Includes bibliographical references and index

Description and Table of Contents

Volume

ISBN 9780300051568

Description

Ignatius of Loyola - knight and saint, mystic and ascetic, founder of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) - was one of the great figures in Western Christianity. This book, written by a psychiatrist-psychoanalyst who is also a Jesuit, looks behind the events, accounts and documents of Ignatius' life and religious experience in order to enter and understand his inner world. Meissner writes about Ignatius' origins, early development, conversion, years of prayer and penance, mystical teaching and career and finally his effors to found and direct the Society of Jesus. Dr Meissner not only places Iganatius' life against the background of the radical religious, social, and political upheaval of the 16th century but goes beyond this to explore the psychic and psychodynamic inner processes that transformed the man into the saint. Dr Meissner discusses, for exmaple, Ignatius' ordeals of body and spirit during his career as a soldier, his conversion experience, the evolution of his personality after conversion, his relationships with women, his lifelong struggles to overcome his aggressive, narcissisttic and libidinal impulses, and the psychology and pathology of his mysticism. The book brings into focus questions about the interplay between human motivations and needs on the one hand and religious experience and spiritual motivation on the other.

Table of Contents

  • Introduction - psychohistory, psychobiography, and psychoanalysis
  • Inigo de Loyola
  • the pilgrim years
  • the student years
  • mystical and spiritual life. Appendices: letter of Ignatius to Archbishop Gian Pietro Carafa (1536)
  • writings of Ignatius concerning Holy Obedience
  • letter of Ignatius to Sister Teresa Rejadella (18 June 1536).
Volume

: pbk ISBN 9780300060799

Description

Ignatius of Loyola-knight and saint, mystic and ascetic, founder of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits)-was one of the greatest figures in Western Christianity. This book, written by a psychiatrist-psychoanalyst who is also a Jesuit, is the first work to look behind the events, accounts, and documents of Ignatius' life and religious experience in order to enter and understand his inner world. W. W. Meissner writes compassionately about Ignatius' origins, early development, conversion, years of prayer and penance, mystical teaching and career, and finally his efforts to found and direct the Society of Jesus. Dr. Meissner not only places Ignatius' life against the background of the radical religious, social, and political upheaval of the sixteenth century but goes beyond this to explore the psychic and psychodynamic inner processes that transformed the man into the saint. Dr. Meissner discusses, for example, Ignatius' ordeals of body and spirit during his career as a soldier, his conversion experience, the evolution of his personality after conversion, his relationships with women, his lifelong struggles to overcome his aggressive, narcissistic, and libidinal impulses, and the psychology and pathology of his mysticism. The complex personality of this great saint and the profundity of his personal and spiritual struggles bring into focus significant questions about the complex interplay between human motivations and needs on the one hand and religious experience and spiritual motivation on the other. The book is not only a biography of a much-revered figure of the Roman Catholic Church but a unique contribution to both psychoanalysis and religious history.

Table of Contents

  • Introduction - psychohistory, psychobiography, and psychoanalysis
  • Inigo de Loyola
  • the pilgrim years
  • the student years
  • mystical and spiritual life. Appendices: letter of Ignatius to Archbishop Gian Pietro Carafa (1536)
  • writings of Ignatius concerning Holy Obedience
  • letter of Ignatius to Sister Teresa Rejadella (18 June 1536).

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