Overview

• Catholic communities around the world observe the feast day with special liturgies and reflections on Ignatius’s transformative journey.
• A 1521 cannonball wound at Pamplona catalyzed his reading of saints’ lives and led to a profound religious conversion.
• In 1534 Ignatius and a small group in Paris established the Society of Jesus, receiving formal papal approval six years later.
• His Spiritual Exercises remain a cornerstone of Jesuit retreats and a guide for interior reflection and decision-making.
• Jesuit institutions inspired by his humanist ideals continue to shape education and culture through schools, universities and missions worldwide.