Here is a special interview we had with Fr. James Martin, SJ discussing St. Ignatius of Loyola

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ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
TO THE FATHERS AND BROTHERS OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS

Vatican Basilica
Saturday, 22 April 2006  from vatican.va

Dear Fathers and Brothers of the Society of Jesus,

I meet you with great joy in this historical Basilica of St Peter’s after the Holy Mass celebrated for you by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, my Secretary of State, on the occasion of combined jubilees of the Ignatian Family. I address my cordial greeting to you all.

I greet in the first place the Superior General, Fr Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, and thank him for his courteous words expressing your common sentiments to me. I greet the Cardinals with the Bishops and priests and all those who have desired to participate in this event.

Together with the Fathers and Brothers, I also greet the friends of the Society of Jesus present here, and among them, the many men and women religious, members of the Communities of Christian Life and of the Apostolate of Prayer, the students and alumnae with their families from Rome, from Italy and from Stonyhurst in England, the teachers and students of the academic institutions and the many collaborators.

Your visit today gives me the opportunity to thank the Lord with you for having granted your Society the gift of men of extraordinary holiness and exceptional apostolic zeal, such as St Ignatius of Loyola, St Francis Xavier and Bl. Peter Faber. For you they are the Fathers and Founders: it is therefore appropriate that in this centenary year you commemorate them with gratitude and look to them as enlightened and reliable guides on your spiritual journey and in your apostolic activities.

St Ignatius of Loyola was first and foremost a man of God who in his life put God, his greatest glory and his greatest service, first. He was a profoundly prayerful man for whom the daily celebration of the Eucharist was the heart and crowning point of his day.

Thus, he left his followers a precious spiritual legacy that must not be lost or forgotten. Precisely because he was a man of God, St Ignatius was a faithful servant of the Church, in which he saw and venerated the Bride of the Lord and the Mother of Christians. And the special vow of obedience to the Pope, which he himself describes as “our first and principal foundation” (MI, Series III, I., p. 162), was born from his desire to serve the Church in the most beneficial way possible. (more…)

Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu – (pronounced [aɡˈnÉ›s ˈɡɔndÊ’e bÉ”jaˈdÊ’iu]   uuuhhh, I don’t think that helps?), (Gonxhe meaning “rosebud” in Albanian) was born August 26, 1910.  

She was the youngest of the children of a family from Shkodër, Albania, born to Nikollë and Drana Bojaxhiu.^   Her father, who was involved in Albanian politics, died in 1919 when she was eight years old.^  After her father’s death, her mother raised her as a Roman Catholic. Her father’s origin was possibly from Prizren, Kosovo while her mother’s origin was possibly from a village near Gjakova, Kosovo.

According to a biography by Joan Graff Clucas, in her early years Agnes was fascinated by stories of the lives of missionaries and their service, and by age 12 was convinced that she should commit herself to a religious life.  She left home at age 18 to join the Sisters of Loreto as a missionary. She never again saw her mother or sister.^{  – Wikipedia}

And so begins the 100 year celebration of the life of one the 20th centuries greatest saints, Mother Teresa.   We will have more on her teachings and her life over the coming days and months. 

Check out the movie I just love on her life, “Mother Teresa” starring the wonderful Olivia Hussy.  Bruce and I had a chance to talk with Olivia…what a blessing.  Bruce, kind of, sort of, had a crush on her since he was a teenage boy (Romeo and Juliet days for Olivia) and I, of course, loved her as Mary in “Jesus of Nazareth”.  We both thought she was fantastic in this film, and a delight to speak with.  Olivia had much to share about Mother Teresa and the making of the film…it’s one of our favorite interviews!

 You can find it on Amazon.com