Recently when I was in Dublin, my friend Pat Coyle of the Jesuit Communication Centre grabbed a video camera, pointed it at me and said, “In one minute, tell me your favorite story about St. Ignatius.” This is not, to say the least, a request that one gets every day but, nonetheless, I was ready because there is one anecdote about Inigo more than any other that has seized my imagination.
Shortly after his conversion, Ignatius was riding on a mule towards Montserrat when another rider came alongside him. Learning where Ignatius was headed, the other – a Moor – talked about the Blessed Mother in a way that seemed disrespectful to Inigo and then moved on in front of him. Still very much a cavalier at heart, Inigo’s blood was stirred by this perceived slight against the Virgin’s honor. The path ahead diverged and Ignatius decided to allow the donkey to choose which way it went. If the mule followed the Moor then Inigo would kill the Moor, if the mule chose the other path he would continue on to Montserrat. Happily, the mule chose the path that led to Inigo becoming a saint rather than a murderer…
It has always amazed me that this journey of Inigo’s could have had such dramatically different conclusions – murderer vs. mystic – and that the choice was left up to a mule. There are those, of course, who say that an ass made the first decsion that led to the Society of Jesus and that nothing has changed in the last 500 years!
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
O'Mahoney 02.10.09 at 7:31 am
That’s a remarkable story. It’s also astounding that Ignatius told it. It’s in his Autobiography. Ignatius didn’t tell us many things that we’d like to know about him, but he thought this story was important enough to preserve.
Why? He was a great man but a humble one too. He may have told this somewhat embarrassing story to keep himself in perspective — and to help future generations do that too. The story also shows how far Ignatius came in his spiritual journey. It took him years to understand how discernment worked. He wandered down many blind alleys as he tried to find the work God had for him to do. That’s a saint I can identify with.
Paul 02.10.09 at 5:39 pm
O’Mahoney,
Keeping oneself in perspective… what a wonderful gift to have (and to be able to share with others.) I love perspective – my problem is that perspective is the first thing to go out the window when it is most needed.
Paul
Eric 02.10.09 at 6:09 pm
Paul,
As you know Loyola Marymount University (once simply Loyola University) in Los Angeles sits on a plateau overlooking Marina Del Rey, Santa Monica Bay, and (if there isn’t too much smog) much of West L. A. When you were there did you ever hear the quip that Loyola was built on a bluff and has been run on one ever since? I heard it from a Jesuit who was having a less than reverent moment.
Despite my insolence in the previous paragraph, I thank you for sharing this story about Ignatius.
Eric
Denise 02.11.09 at 1:16 am
Hi Paul,
Great story! If only we were as lucky as St. Ignatius to have a mule make our choices for us on the journey . I recently purchased a GPS and when I am driving I allow my electronic navigator to completely control my journey. I sometimes wonder why I am not that trusting of the Lord as my navigator?
Blessings,
Denise
Paul 02.11.09 at 11:04 am
Denise,
I have absolutely no sense of direction and so rely totally on my GPS to get places. I tease my female friends by telling them that Hilda (my nickname for the robot voice) is the only woman I obay totally and without question.
It never struck me, however, to ponder why I don’t trust the Lord as a navigator as much I do my GPS. You have given me something new to mull over.
Paul
LW 02.14.09 at 11:46 am
Paul;
this topic created a great conversation with some LMU students this past week. After reading Denise’s comments about the GPS and your own thoughts on Hilda, why is it that we allow that electronic voice to guide us without question (often) and are not so willing to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Is that the Holy Spirit is not as forceful as Hilda… she tells you to make a U Turn if you go the wrong way.
Paul 02.17.09 at 8:31 am
LW,
I’m delighted to know that the post was the basis for a good conversation. You are, of course, correct when you suggest that the Spirit’s prompting are not as forceful as Hilda’s but, on the other hand, they are probably more important than those offered by a GPS…
Paul
P.S. Truth compells me to tell you that Hilda is short for Brunhilda, a Frankish queen known for her cruely and greed!
mary kujawa 10.13.09 at 11:00 am
i joined my parish the old st. marys in lowertowm st. paul on a christmas eve 6 years ago. i told father i came with the stable i was the donkey and it only took a scond for him to hand me the forms to join1