Ignacio de Loyola y el Concilio de Trento

Ignatius de Loyola’s relationship with the Council of Trent has never been studied in detail. This is perhaps because the instructions issued by the General of the Society of Jesus and given to his representatives at the council, the Jesuits Jayo, Laínez and Salmerón in 1546. This paper is based upon these orders, which are reproduced in an appendix. It is important to underline that Loyola’s instructions to his envoys stated that they should act as mediators, and in this way the General limited his own personal involvement or commitment. No concrete theological position was to be held or argued for.This paper then proceeds to analyse three important moments in Loyola’s involvement in the council: from 1537 to 1541; from 1546 to 1547 and from 1551 to 1552. His death in 1556 meant that he would never participate in the third gathering of the Council of Trent, although it should be underlined that his principal objective – the recognition of the Society of Jesus during the council – was achieved. In this light it is clear that Ignatius played a fairly important role: in the first place he sought the approval of the Society as an institution; but he also collaborated in the council and had his own opinions with regards to dogmata and managed to present these ideas and arguments in favour of reform via his intermediaries, thus strengthening the party in favour of the renewal of the Church. His positioning in Trent reveals the Society as an ambiguous body, made up of neither regular clergy nor secular priests, and thus slightly at odds with both groups of churchmen. Furthermore, the Jesuits’ profession before ordination was a custom that sat uneasily in the minds of those attending the council. The delegates at Trent had to respect this and other prerogatives of the Society. In the end, Ignatius won a battle after his death.Peer reviewe