The Society of Jesus and Teresa of Avila
During the Protestant Reformation, many concerned Catholics worked to revive the spiritual nature of the Church, reform the abuses of the clergy, and counter the growth of Protestantism. Paul III, pope from 1534-1549, realized the need for reform and renewal in his Church. Spurred on by his leadership and the arrival of several dynamic new Catholic thinkers, the Church experienced a resurgence of energy and growth that led to reform and stemmed the spread of Protestantism. Alarmed by the spread of Protestantism, the Church initiated a number of reforms and other actions to strengthen and spread the Catholic religion. These efforts are called the Counter Reformation, or Catholic Reformation. Many Catholics had realized long before Martin Luther that change was needed, but true widespread reform was not undertaken by the Church until Protestants had gained many followers in Northern Europe.
Several reform movements had begun in the Catholic Church before Luther led his protest in Wittenberg. In 1495, a pious and educated Spanish monk named Francisco Jimenez was appointed Archbishop of Toledo by Queen Isabella I, who was intensely interested in reforming those members of the Spanish clergy who were uneducated or immoral. Jimenez cleansed monasteries of corruption, exiled immoral monks, and forced all Spanish priests to learn to read and write. He established the University of Alcala to encourage religious studies in Spain, and reformed the finances of the Spanish Church. In Italy a number of new orders were formed as a response to monastic corruption. In 1517, the Oratory of Divine Love opened its first monastery in Rome. Its monks dedicated their life to prayer and service to the poor. They inspired the formation of an order of nuns called the Ursilines, who committed their lives to teaching young women and caring for the poor. Another order called the Capuchins broke off from the Franciscans, rededicating themselves to the strict monastic rule of their founder, St. Francis of Asissi.
Several reform movements had begun in the Catholic Church before Luther led his protest in Wittenberg. In 1495, a pious and educated Spanish monk named Francisco Jimenez was appointed Archbishop of Toledo by Queen Isabella I, who was intensely interested in reforming those members of the Spanish clergy who were uneducated or immoral. Jimenez cleansed monasteries of corruption, exiled immoral monks, and forced all Spanish priests to learn to read and write. He established the University of Alcala to encourage religious studies in Spain, and reformed the finances of the Spanish Church. In Italy a number of new orders were formed as a response to monastic corruption. In 1517, the Oratory of Divine Love opened its first monastery in Rome. Its monks dedicated their life to prayer and service to the poor. They inspired the formation of an order of nuns called the Ursilines, who committed their lives to teaching young women and caring for the poor. Another order called the Capuchins broke off from the Franciscans, rededicating themselves to the strict monastic rule of their founder, St. Francis of Asissi.
One of the early efforts of the Counter Reformation took place in 1540, when Pope Paul III approved a new order of Catholic priests called the Society of Jesus. The Jesuits, as they are commonly known, became the most dynamic force in the Church's effort to rebuild its following. The founder of the Jesuits was a Spanish nobleman named Ignatius Loyola. As a young man, Ignatius had been a playboy and a soldier. In 1521, his leg was shattered by a cannonball while he was defending the Spanish town of Pamplona. While convalescing, he read and reread the only two books in the house: a life of Christ and a collection of stories about the lives of Christian saints. This led Ignatius to experience a conversion, and he decided to dedicate his life to service to the Church. He returned to school at the University of Paris and studied Latin, Greek, philosophy, and theology, all the time preaching and collecting a company of followers. In 1540 this group presented Pope Paul III with a constitution of their ideas; the pope sensed their special dedication and blessed the formation of a new order.
The Jesuits became analogous with discipline, education, and the vitality of a reformed Catholic Church. Influenced by Humanism, the Jesuits required their prospective priests to receive three academic degrees - a Bachelor of Arts, a Masters in Philosophy, and a Doctorate in Theology - before ordination as priests. Jesuits built schools, counseled monarchs, sailed with explorers, wrote treatises on theology, science, philosophy, and history, and fought the spread of Protestantism. St. Peter Canisius was responsible for winning back most of Southern Germany to the Catholic faith through tireless scholarship and preaching. Other Jesuits were equally successful in Eastern and Central Europe, and some historians feel that the establishment of the Jesuits marked the end of the spread of Protestantism. Clearly, St. Ignatius' new order formed an army of scholars and teachers who helped revitalize the Church in Europe and spread the Christian message across Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
The Jesuits became analogous with discipline, education, and the vitality of a reformed Catholic Church. Influenced by Humanism, the Jesuits required their prospective priests to receive three academic degrees - a Bachelor of Arts, a Masters in Philosophy, and a Doctorate in Theology - before ordination as priests. Jesuits built schools, counseled monarchs, sailed with explorers, wrote treatises on theology, science, philosophy, and history, and fought the spread of Protestantism. St. Peter Canisius was responsible for winning back most of Southern Germany to the Catholic faith through tireless scholarship and preaching. Other Jesuits were equally successful in Eastern and Central Europe, and some historians feel that the establishment of the Jesuits marked the end of the spread of Protestantism. Clearly, St. Ignatius' new order formed an army of scholars and teachers who helped revitalize the Church in Europe and spread the Christian message across Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
