After yesterday's heart-pounding, back and forth battle between upstart Lucy and favorite John the Baptist, you might have welcomed a weekend off to regroup. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your perspective), today is the one and only Saturday match-up in Lent Madness. If your name is Ignatius or if you've ever fantasized about naming your first-born son after one of these revered gentlemen, you won't want to miss this epic, long-anticipated Battle of the Iggys.
In the end Lucy defeated John the Baptist by the slimmest of margins in a bruising, bracket-busting battle. In addition to a record number of votes cast (5,200), we also saw a record number of comments (240) as passions were running high on both sides. Such is the "madness" of Lent Madness!
We even had our first mini-controversy that didn't involve a mug. Please know that when it comes to voter irregularities, the Supreme Executive Committee, like Big Brother, is watching. We had to zap 35 votes from John the Baptist last night after we noticed multiple votes from several ISP addresses. Again, please, one vote per person. If you have more than one family member voting -- that's fine. We're big fans of universal suffrage. If you're, say, a teacher logging multiple votes on behalf of your students -- just let us know. But voter fraud makes the saints weep so don't risk being cast into the outer darkness of life without Lent Madness (it's a miserable place that would make even the most hideous medieval gargoyle blush).
In the meantime, back to the task at hand. The great challenge of this battle? Voting for the correct Ignatius!
Ignatius of Antioch
Ignatius of Antioch (1st century CE) was Bishop of Antioch, located in modern Turkey, near its border with Syria. He is most known for the seven letters he wrote during his journey to martyrdom at Rome. These letters are among the earliest pieces of Christian theology outside of the New Testament, and give Ignatius a place among the “Apostolic Fathers” – those leaders of the church who served as the “bridge” between the Jesus and apostles themselves, and the rest of the early church.
We actually know very little about Ignatius outside of his journey to martyrdom. One pious legend holds that he was among the children blessed by Jesus and taken into his arms. It is certain, however, that around AD 68, Ignatius was chosen to serve as Bishop of Antioch, a see originally held by St. Peter himself. Sources disagree as to whether Ignatius was Antioch’s second or third bishop.
During the rule of the Emperor Trajan, Ignatius was condemned to death for being a Christian. He was led under a guard of ten soldiers to his martyrdom at Rome. It was during this journey that Ignatius wrote his letters. He was received en route to Rome at Smyrna, and there wrote letters encouraging the churches in Ephesus, Magnesia, and Tralles, and, most poignantly, a letter to the church in Rome commanding them not to intervene with authorities in order to prevent his martyrdom. He went from Smyrna to Troas, and there wrote letters to churches in Philadelphia and Smyrna, and to Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna.
Ignatius letters’ portray a man devoted to Christ and Christ’s church. He tirelessly defended the humanity, divinity, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Ignatius is an especially tireless advocate for the unity of the church through the community’s participation in the Eucharist – which he saw to be the continuing life of Jesus Christ in the church -- “breaking one bread, which is the medicine of immortality, the antidote we take in order not to die but to live forever in Jesus Christ.” Ignatius’ theology of episcopal ministry – most especially his tireless advocacy for the Bishop to serve as a locus of unity for the church – lies at the foundation of our understanding of episcopacy in our church today, where bishops are charged at their ordination to be guardians of the faith and unity of the church.
Ignatius’ letter to the Romans expressed his firm desire to be led to his martyrdom, begging the church in Rome to let him be “food for the wild beasts… God’s wheat… ground by the teeth of wild beasts, so that I may prove to be pure bread” (Rom 4:1). Around AD 115, Ignatius was granted his wish, as he was martyred in the coliseum, given over to the teeth of lions. Contemporary iconography of St. Ignatius of Antioch represents him as a bearded man, vested in bishop’s regalia, attacked by two lions, one making for his head, the other for his feet.
Collect for Ignatius of Antioch
Almighty God, we praise your Name for your bishop and martyr Ignatius of Antioch, who offered himself as grain to be ground by the teeth of wild beasts that he might present to you the pure bread of sacrifice. Accept, we pray, the willing tribute of our lives and give us a share in the pure and spotless offering of your Son Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
-- David Sibley
Ignatius of Loyola
Born in 1491 to a noble Basque family, Ignatius of Loyola was an exact contemporary of Archbishop Thomas Cranmer. (TC was two years older but they both died in 1556.)
As a mover and shaker in the Counter-Reformation and the founder of the Society of Jesus, a.k.a. the Jesuits, Ignatius lived during a period of great change in the Christian Church. His written legacy Spiritual Exercises, a set of meditations, prayers, and practices designed to help discern the presence of Jesus and the will of God in one’s life, continues to be valued by Christians to the present day.
He described himself as a young man as a vainglorious soldier. Badly wounded at the Battle of Pamplona in 1521, Ignatius was kindly carried by the French on a litter to his family’s castle of Loyola. There, after having his leg re-broken, (with a stub sawn off - ouch!), re-set, and stretched by weights, he had some extended time for reading to take his mind from the pain. The chivalrous romances he requested were unavailable so he read deeply of the life of Christ, particularly De Vita Christi, and the lives of saints. After months of recuperation and reflection, his conversion from a soldier of the realm to a knight of Christ was profound and adamant.
Ignatius resolved to live a life of poverty and self-denial and committed himself to doing heroic deeds and winning converts in the Holy Land. First he made his confession at the sanctuary of Monserrat where, after giving away his fine clothes to the poor and donning sackcloth, he suspended his sword and dagger on the altar. Then, after spending months in a cave in prayer and mastering the ascetic life, he journeyed to Jerusalem where his pilgrimage quickly turned to deep disappointment. After being received by the Franciscans for a few weeks, he was told he must return to Spain. The pope (one of those who, by the way, didn’t resign) had given the Franciscans the authority to send pilgrims home because of the hot trade in kidnapping visiting Christians and holding them for ransom was too costly.
In Spain -- with a heart full of earnest desire to serve God -- Ignatius turned to study, eventually spending many years studying and preaching in Paris. His fervor drew the attention of various inquisitors during that period, and he was their special guest on several brief occasions. In 1534 he gathered six particular friends who shared his vision, and they founded the Society of Jesus with Ignatius as its first Superior General. They were ordained in Rome in 1537, and the order was recognized by the Vatican three years later. Ultimately the Society of Jesus, with its motto -- ad maiorem Dei gloriam -- for the greater glory of God, sent missionaries around the world and founded many schools, universities, and seminaries. Ignatius and the many Jesuits were prime players in Counter-Reformation efforts across Europe, including England where they nettled the nascent Anglicans.
Ignatius died of Roman fever, or malaria, in a simple cell in Rome in 1556. He was canonized by Pope Gregory XV, who also didn’t resign, in 1622.
Collect for Ignatius of Loyola
Almighty God, from whom all good things come: You called Ignatius of Loyola to the service of your Divine Majesty and to find you in all things. Inspired by his example and strengthened by his companionship, may we labor without counting the cost and seek no reward other than knowing that we do your will; through Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.
-- Heidi Shott
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201 comments on “Ignatius of Antioch vs. Ignatius of Loyola”
OK, normally I would vote for a Patristic saint over a Counter-Reformation saint. However, the Jesuits were the first missionaries to Japan and made a faithful and courageous Christian witness there, along with many Japanese converts. For two hundred years Christianity went underground in Japan after that persecution, but faith continued until Japan was opened again to the West. Given my sojourn in Japan, I am voting for Ignatius of Loyola.
This is the first year I have participated and find I am enjoying this Monty Pythonesque Lenten study immensely. As a veteran, I had anticipated voting for I. L., but am now wavering towards I.A. I think I will eventually vote for L., but at this point….
Welcome to the madness! You plan to vote one way, but then you read blogs and comments and think maybe the other, and...yup. Me too.
I suspect the "celebrity blogger" is trying to throw this one for Ignatius of Antioch. To use the archaic and tendentious term "Counter Reformation" and to draw a direct connection between Ignatius of Loyola and the recatholicization efforts in Elizabethan England seems to me like waving a red flag in front of bulls. It's pretty clear from Ignatius' own biography and writings from the early Jesuits that he wasn't particularly concerned with Protestantism. In fact, he himself was arrested and interrogated by Spanish Inquisitors on more than one occasion. And early on, he advised his order not to engage in anti-Protestant polemic or activity. Perhaps the SEC needs historical consultants.
Tough call!
I am a proud product of Loyola University Chicago and a big fan of the Jesuits... But that whole Inquisition thing is troubling to me.
Ignatius of Antioch wrote some of my favorite letters from the second century... And glorified martyrdom to an unhealthy degree.
What to do, what to do.
Although I attended a Jesuit university for a business degree, I also attended an Episcopal university (YSR) and have voted for Ignatius of Antioch. Voting in Lent Madness is made easier when there is a connection. One just has to find the connection or be good at making one up.
I'm just hoping my vote for Loyola brings me good luck as I wait to hear back from a Jesuit university!
What tipped the vote for Ignatius of Antioch for me was this, " ... an especially tireless advocate for the unity of the church through the community’s participation in the Eucharist – which he saw to be the continuing life of Jesus Christ in the church — “breaking one bread, which is the medicine of immortality, the antidote we take in order not to die but to live forever in Jesus Christ.”"
exactly!
I've made a number of retreats to the Jesuit Spirituality Center in Grand Coteau, LA. Each one has brought me into focus and enabled me to make a significant change in my life. In thanksgiving to Ignatius of Loyola for making possible the eventual establishment of that holy place, I've voted for him.
Loyola! Eternally grateful for my son's education at Strake Jesuit College Prep in Houston, TX.
I'm voting for the Ignatius who wrote letters once considered for inclusion in the New Testament and died for the faith. There are other sickly intellectuals up for consideration further down the line and they didn't think the only choice was to be Catholic or dead.
Jesuits are too crafty and sophisticated in a real brainy way...too smart for MY own good! MAPLE ANGLICAN, your commentators are a hoot with those accents as if we don't recognize them. Jeez Luize! Onward and upward with Antioch...so far, so good. Can't resist...have the JtheB aficiandos recovered yet and sorry they felt the urge to cheat..Holy Moly !!! Give it up guys! Lucy won fair and square!!!
I worked for the Jesuits at one of their high schools. I have a deep respect for them and their founder. They truly raise up "men and women for others". I love the way that the Jesuits are sharing the riches of their tradition with their secular faculty. Go, Loyola!
Diane doesn't mention that she was an Episcopal nun at the time; we used to call her the world's only Anglican Jesuit nun. I share her respect for the order an its founder; but Antioch really belongs to the whole church, and provides a basis for our ecclesiology and sacramentalism, that wins my vote.
[...] readers: help me decide who to vote for, and don’t forget to head on over to Lent Madness and vote for Ignatius (one or the other) [...]
Regarding the "vote fraud" issue, you should look up Network Address Translation (NAT). Many people access the Internet through a school or other shared connection. This means that even if they are on separate computers/smartphones, a web server will log them as all having the same IP Address. It might be hard to figure out a way to distinguish between a multiple-voter and a bunch of people voting from the same network. You could ask people to make individuals accounts and log in. You could encourage people on smartphones to turn off wifi and use their phone's data connection while voting.
Or, perhaps you know all this and are on top of it. I just posted this in case you weren't aware that this might not have been attempted vote fraud.
Dan,
Thanks, we're all over it. For the most part, we're pretty adept at spotting the difference between a family who all vote on separate devices and a house where someone tries to game the system. As I've said elsewhere, we sometimes see upwards of 20 (and last year, a couple of notable cases in the hundreds) votes from a single residential house. In our effort to keep things fair for all, we close down addresses where suspicious voting is found. While the SEC is not infallible, our percentage of mistakes on this is pretty low.
Those who are honest -- who vote once, even in families -- should not have to worry about being cast into the outer darkness of Lent Madness.
God bless the SEC for its omniscient and just administration of the voting process. Please know that if any multiple votes come in from my IP that'll be the cats logging in after we're asleep to vote for Ignatius of Antioch (or "Cat Food", as they like to call him).
Ignatius of Loyola all the way! He gave us the spiritual exercises still widely used (at least in my circles) by Spiritual Directors today. Countless seekers have discovered their deep relationship with God through his writings and witness. I am all for a "soldier of the realm" turned "Knight for Christ."
LOYOLA!!! Is there anyone who thinks the Jesuits are one of the most important, enlightening groups with in the Catholic Church? I mean seriously!! Christians are always making each other angry but that doesn't mean there isn't something to learn from the other side. Plus I go to USF Law School, across the street from St. Ignatius (of Loyola) Catholic Church. . . .
Nice. Glad to hear you've got it covered, oh most wise SEC! 🙂
While I can't deny the historical (and ecclesial) importance of Iggy A, I think it's Iggy L who is the more likely to be able to reach today's world with its focus on the subjective. As a fanatic of the New Evangelization, it's Ignatius of Loyola for me!
As a Catholic and grad of a Jesuit Univeristy, I have to go with Loyola. Tough one though, since I teach Sunday School to 2nd graders, and Antioch believed so strongly in the Eucharist...
Silly reason to vote for Ig of A - My dad worked at Antioch College, and I went there very briefly.
Real reason - not fond of Jesuits.
Ignatius of Loyola was a Spaniard and my blood is Spanish. In addition, I have a good friend who is a Jesuits Priest. I think I have to vote for him, even if the Jesuits were the one who educated the Dictator from my motherland (Cuba). However, their missions in South America were fabulous and they protected Indians and that is the reason why today they still speak Guarani in Paraguay.
I'm loyal to Loyola; despite (or perhaps, because of) their relationship with the persecution of the Reformation, the Jesuits have brought much good and more education into the RC world than many give them credit for. As a total non-believer back in the day. I was quite keen on my daughter going to Fordham. I wasn't so much interested that she be inculcated as a Catholic, but with Social Responsibility, and the Jesuits were and are preaching that well beyond the choir. I will agree there are a lot of things to hold against the Jesuits, but I think, far more goes to their credit. They have sometimes been used as an instrument of Papal conformity, but much more often they have been a light shining onto what they perceive as the wrongs of faith and society. They were also the only place in my lifetime where questioning and education were not heretical. In that respect, I'd say they have more in common with the Reformers than not. Learning to defend one's beliefs by forcing critical examination of same isn't a bad way to operate. And that is what Jesuits do in their educational forum- they encourage thought, they uphold service to the marginalized, and they believe in a mature commitment to faith. Not too shabby!
Ignatius of Loyola understood humanity's deep yearning for God and how to help them to recognize, embrace, and defend that yearning in a lifelong quest to fire both the brain through education and to fire the spirit through finding "God in all things."
Wow! This one is really a toughie. My saintly knowledge is limited and I am using Lent Madness to improve it - so I have no prior knowledge to base my vote on. Both Iggys give me hope and inspiration as well as turn offs - the quest for martyrdom from Ig A and the anti reformation inclinations from Ig L. I loved reading the comments today. Thank you all. Still can't decide though.
After reading the collects for each again I voted for Ignatius of Loyola.
It was the collect that decided me.
I read about this website in our local newspaper and thought it was a wonderful idea. Even though I'm Catholic, I've been reading along and truly enjoying what has been written so far. I was very interested to read about Jonathan Daniels, not a saint that the Catholics recognize, but a truly holy man who I was happy to learn about.
That being said, I was a little insulted at the jab at the pope in today's writing. While he may not be your Holy Father, the disrespect for a decision that had to be extremely difficult and has been a serious matter for a lot of people seemed unnecessary to me.
Also, I'm not defending Catholics in the Reformation, but many Catholics have died at the hands of Anglicans in England as well.
All that being said, I will be back on Monday to read about Absalom Jones and Luke.
As an unfortunate expert of "open mouth insert foot" communication, I also spotted what seemed to quickly pass from a tacky comment to tasteless attempt at humor with the repeat mention of a pope who did not resign.
Everything I've read about Lent Madness indicates levity and quirkiness, so deliberate hurting I cannot imagine was meant, but I am very sorry for your hurt, De, and for anyone else who cannot entirely enjoy today's posts.
I too was surprised at the references to papal resignations. But at least the second one, referring to Gregory XV, can be seen as "informational" because it's hard to keep the names and numbers all straight; it was Gregory XII who resigned, in 1417. I did not know that Benedict XVI is actually the eighth to be counted as resigning. http://atheism.about.com/od/popesandthepapacy/a/resignations_2.htm
Thank you for staying with the Madness, De. The Lads (one of whom is my Rector) do get a little boyish now and then, but overlooking their occasional excesses is a small price to pay for the fun and enlightenment they bring us.
My guess is that they and most Anglicans join the consensus that in resigning Benedict has shown unprecedented courage and exceptional wisdom and wish him, and his and your Church, every blessing.
Oops, Heidi, I should have read the byline first. Didn't mean to call you a lad.
I really doubt it was any kind of jab at the Pope! Don't forget that the Archbishop of Canterbury also resigned last year, so I don't think Anglicans find a resignation to be a negative thing. Nobody once criticized him, that I can recall.
I took it as merely "being topical" in a sort of whimsical way - and maybe even a jab at the modern media, if anything, who couldn't get enough of the "first Pope to resign in 600 years!" angle.
You know who else was a Jesuit? Gerard Manley Hopkins, he of "Divinely Superfluous Beauty".
Who?
IggyA v IggyL -- a tough call; but IggyA defends the full humanity/divinity of JC, & promotes the fullness of church unity in Holy Eucharist. He's everything you could want in a saint, and he gets eaten by lions to boot. Hard to top martydom by wild beast, I always say. My father, brothers, and nephew, receiving good Jesuit education via an apparently hereditary association with Their School (which doesn't admit women btw) would probably think me disloyola (get it???) for not voting the family party line, but they certainly outnumber me and if they think IggyL should win, they can go ahead and vote for him from their own ISP addresses. Mine's for IggyA.
I do like Iggy L, however I feel more inclined to vote for Iggy A, who seemed to be less about himself and more about unification of the faithful.
I'm assuming the references to popes who did not resign were meant to be funny. I can read them that way. I can also read them as jibes, which could be anywhere on a continuum of meant-to-be-funny (definitely falling flat) to disapproval of someone else's decision (definitely rude and not necessary). Just all around, they are words that could have been left out.
Information on the saints, I appreciate. A chance to read the names of people long gone, thus bringing them to "life" again for a time, I do love. Please, please leave things at that.
I am thinking also of the present day martyrs i am honoring and voting for Ignatius of Antioch