A 2026 Reflection for the Feast of Saint Ignatius
This year, as the Ignatian family prepares to celebrate the Feast of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, it does so at a time when the Franciscan family, together with the larger Church, is observing a Jubilee year of St. Francis of Assisi; 2026 marks the 800th year since St. Francis’ death and his transitus, or transition, to eternal life with God. What do these two Christian saints, living almost 300 years apart, have in common, and how might we consider a shared spiritual vision between them?
As a member of the Society of Jesus for 30 years, I never cease to be grateful for the gift of St. Ignatius’ spirituality, grounded in his Spiritual Exercises, which inspires me to deepen my love of God and to live my life in and through a personal relationship with Jesus.
In March I had the opportunity to join an LMU professor and 13 undergraduate students on a two-day pilgrimage to Assisi, Italy, as part of a longer study-abroad program I co-taught in Rome. Prior to the pilgrimage to Assisi, we all read St. Bonaventure’s 13th-century classic, The Life of St. Francis, and prayerfully reflected on this holy man’s love for Jesus and his desire to be in union with him through prayer, a life devoted to evangelical poverty, and a Gospel-centered way of living that offered God praise and honor through his active and intentional love of God’s people and creation. St. Francis recognized that all creation shares a common origin and life-source and thus chose to honor his relationship to all living things by referring to one and all in familial terms. All elements of creation and all people were sister and brother to Francis, no matter how small.
As I journeyed with St. Francis on pilgrimage, I also invited St. Ignatius to accompany me. I asked God for the grace to learn from these two great saints, one from the 13th and the other from the 16th centuries. In doing so, their shared love of Christ inspired me.
While recovering at Loyola, Spain, after the Battle of Pamplona—where a cannonball shattered his right leg and kept him bedridden for a year—St. Ignatius devoted himself to prayer and reading the lives of various saints. For the 30-year-old Ignatius, the life of St. Francis must have been especially meaningful as he prayerfully considered his future and recorded his spiritual reflections, which would later become part of his Spiritual Exercises.
As I imagined St. Ignatius walking beside me during my pilgrimage to Assisi and praying at the Franciscan shrines, he guided me to understand what must have deeply inspired him about St. Francis. St. Ignatius desired to receive as gift what St. Francis had, namely, how St. Francis came to understand himself to be loved by Jesus and chosen by him. In response to receiving such a great gift, St. Francis sought to live in such a way as to love Jesus in return. When one prays with St. Francis, one recognizes that he enjoyed a passionate, heart-centered relationship with his Lord. He desired to preach the gospel always, mostly by sharing the joy of the Gospel with everyone and every creature he met. Through his lived example and spirituality, Francis led countless women and men to Christ.
St. Ignatius drew inspiration from St. Francis’ example and left the Ignatian family and the Church with a profound gift in his Spiritual Exercises. These inspire and shape Ignatian spirituality and prayer practices that have guided me and continue to bring me closer to God.
As the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola this year within the Jubilee Year of St. Francis, I’m grateful for the spiritual influence St. Francis must have had on him and for how St. Francis inspired Ignatius to deepen his love of God and to help others down through the centuries discover and live into their own lives of deep faith as companions of Jesus. Both of these saints wanted nothing more than to be imitators of Christ, which led them into a more perfect union with the God who loves them.
I’m grateful to the God of Surprises who invited me to encounter both Saints Francis and Ignatius on pilgrimage to Assisi this summer. St. Francis of Assisi is an inspiring model of the Gospel way of life, a life centered in Christ. St. Ignatius was certainly inspired to follow Christ just as intimately, and he leaves behind something just as valuable. St. Ignatius offers his spiritual tools to help guide Christians into living lives of love and service (en todo, amar y servir) centered on Christ.
Saints Francis of Assisi and Ignatius of Loyola, pray for us!
—Fr. Marc Reeves, S.J., Associate Vice President for Mission and Ministry and Director of Catholic Studies.