The First Jesuits [Paperback]

O'Malley limits the time-span of this book to the first quarter century of the life of the Society of Jesus - 1540 to 1565. He admits that "the terminal date of 1565 is somewhat arbitrary" [p4] though is does allow for insights to be gleaned from beyond the death of Ignatius, and takes in decisions from the Council of Trent (ended 1563).

O'Malley has structured the book so that it is not a simple chronology of the early followers of Ignatius.

The first chapters deal with the development of the "Company of Jesus", under Ignatius' guidance.

In chapters 3 to 5, he has reflected on the various aspects of Jesuit life: "Ministries of the Word of God" - covering preaching and teaching and the development of schools and colleges; "Sacraments, Worship, Prayer" - which includes information about the development of the ministries of confession and communion, music and prayer; "Works of Mercy" - looking at the various Jesuit ministries to the destitute.

Chapters 6 to 8 provide information on the specific contributions made through the Jesuit movement in those early years - particularly reflections on how Jesuit schooling contributed to the church's development and renewal, on the way in which the "Religious and Theological Culture" of the Jesuit movement shaped the development of learning, and on the relationship between the Jesuits and others within the life of the church struggling through the troubled times of the Reformation.

Chapter 9 looks at the way in which the Jesuits of those early days developed their understandings of their ministry to be better able to fulfil their mission in future years "to the greater glory of God".

O'Malley has brought his extensive knowledge of the Jesuit movement to bear in this excellent account. He has woven together the various strands of information, from Ignatius first insights to the structural developments necessary in later years, from the excitement of the "Spiritual Exerecises" to the ecclesiatical formulations of "The Formula" and "The Constitutions". And the result is an account of the work of God through the people inspired by Ignatius' example which itself encourages others to preceive the presence of God in their own experiences.

Writing the history of the Society of Jesus would be a daunting task for any historian. Luckily, John O'Malley has some advantages. First and foremost, Father O'Malley is himself a Jesuit. Because of his membership in the order, he wrote this book with access to the Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu, the one hundred and twenty-five volume collection of letters and manuscripts associated with the history of the Society. In addition to the use of this and other excellent primary sources, O'Malley wisely sets strict limits on the scope of his project. His book focuses only on the first twenty-five years of the Jesuits, from its foundation in 1540 to 1565, an end date that the author admits is rather arbitrary but allows him to draw an organic and complete picture of the early goals, achievements, and frustrations of the Jesuits. The presence behind the entire work is Ignatius, the first general of the order and, to O'Malley's mind, the single causative element of the Society's foundation and success. It was Ignatius who not only developed the vision of the Society, but dictated their "way of proceeding," the uniquely Jesuit modus operandi. O'Malley's main argument, stated succinctly in both his introduction and conclusion, is that without Ignatius there would have been no Society of Jesus.

The book's logical structure helps O'Malley support his thesis. A fusion of narrative and thematic exploration, the first half of the book examines how the Jesuits pursued the responsibilities they assigned to themselves as their consueta ministeria, or "customary ministries." These were the tasks the first group of confreres set down for themselves as the very reason for being for the Society of Jesus - they included public preaching, education of children and adults in the Word of God, and a myriad of other charitable works. O'Malley devotes chapters to Jesuit work with orphanages, hospitals, street preaching, and the schools. The last half of the book deals with less corporeal topics, and discusses the place of the Jesuits within the Catholic Church, their expressions of piety, relation to the Protestant Reformation, and calcification of the rules of the Society. O'Malley studies all of these themes through three motifs: the writings of the Jesuits, especially Ignatius's Spiritual Exercises; the Jesuit sense of their mission being "to help souls"; and the ultimate expression of the many threads of their existence in the foundation and promulgation of their colleges. Ignatius was the source of most of the early prescriptive documents of the Society, and it was his vision and zeal that imprinted the sense of mission on his confreres. Finally, as the man responsible for the creation and administration of the early educational system set up by the Jesuits, Ignatius is justified as being the primus inter pares of O'Malley argument.

Besides constructing a thoughtful and accessible history, O'Malley also succeeds by making his book an example of fine craftsmanship. Using primary sources in Latin, Spanish, and other languages, his writing has copious support and documentation. This accomplished scholarship should be no surprise, since O'Malley received his doctorate from Harvard, has taught there as well as Fordham and Oxford, and has served as the president of both the Catholic Historical Society and the Renaissance Society of America. He does mention that some of his sources, especially the correspondence of Ignatius, may be clouded due to the customary use of secretaries - the example here is that the preponderance of Ignatius's letters were written only once he had appointed Polanco to act as his secretary, and so Polanco doubtless served as a filter for the general's expression. Despite these minor quibbles (and perhaps because of the academic integrity displayed by mentioning them), O'Malley's book is eminently useful as a cultural history of the Society of Jesus and the role it assumed in the sixteenth century Church.

How can you even have an opinion about the world around you without possessing a solid understanding of the history of the Christian faith? The expansion of Christianity is maybe the single most important event in the history of human existence. I'm not speaking as a believer- I'm not. I do believe that the world look the way it does today largely because of Christianity. It's a big subject. You've got: pre origins, origins, expansion, foundation of the Roman church, conversion of Europe, Christianity in the Middle Ages, the Reformation, the Counter Reformation, the world wide expansion and Christianity in the modern era. Phew!

The First Jesuits is a fair handed account of the creation of the Jesuit order in the 16th century. The Jesuits was a religious order started by St. Ignatius. He was raised a Spanish nobleman in the Basque region of the Iberian peninsula. He fought for the King of Spain, was wounded and experienced a religious conversion (which means he wasn't that religious, and then he became religious.) Spent some time begging n preaching in Spain, then went to France, where he studied at the University of Paris. While he was there he was exposed to the humanism of Erasmus. Erasmus, a Catholic himself, was someone who influenced reformers like Martin Luther with his argument that people should, you know, actually be able to understand scripture and read books and stuff like that. You know: Humanism.

Influenced by this perspective, Ignatius and some of his buddies moved down to Italy- splitting time between Venice and Rome. Here, Ignatius and his bros decided to start a new order that would be different then monastic orders like the Benedictines and the Dominicans. Specifically, he imagined a traveling group of brothers that would move from place to place, teaching and preaching. It was a bold move in it's time, and it aroused a fair amount of controversy. Jesuits were hauled before the Inquisition on several occasions and accused of practicing Protestantism. Hilarious!

Eventually of course, the Jesuits would fan out and start schools all over the world. In fact, it's fair to say that modern education sort of started with the Jesuits. They really were revolutionary, and there is a lot to recommend about their thought and their methods. After all: The Jesuits delivered results. No misery and hand wringing here. It's something that practitioners of modern day DIY should stop and think about. If you have the true faith, doubt doesn't enter into the analysis.