Ignatius of Loyola (or Iñigo Lopez de Oñaz y Loyola) wrote at least 7,000 letters during his lifetime. This voluminous correspondence includes his first extant letter, dated in 1518, and the last, dated the day before his death in 1556.
The following are just a selection of the letters and instructions taken from Ignatius’s service as the first father general of the Society of Jesus. Use the interactive chart below to filter results by year or date range, by title, by recipients, or by contributor. You can also search those three categories.
The full contents of all these letters, as well as the other Essential Documents, are searchable available through the Portal.
For additional correspondence and for further historical context for the letters, please consult Ignatius of Loyola: Letters and Instructions, ed. John W. Padberg, et al. St. Louis, Mo.: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1996.
| wdt_ID | Year | Title | Recipients | Contributor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1541 | … on Dealing with Others | Alfonso Salmerón and Paschase Broët | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 5 | 1542 | ... on Reconciliation | Simão Rodrigues | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 6 | 1542 | ... on Obedience | Giovanni Battista Viola | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 9 | 1542 | ... on Writing | Pierre Favre | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 10 | 1543 | … on Fraternal Connection | Nicolás Bobadilla | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 12 | 1543 | ... on Charity | Bernardino Ochino | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 13 | 1546 | ... on Trent | Diego Laínez, Alfonso Salmerón, and Claude Jay | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 14 | 1547 | ... on Perfection | Jesuit Scholastics in Coimbra | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 15 | 1547 | ... on Poverty | Jesuits in Padua | Institute of Jesuit Sources |
| 16 | 1548 | ... on Prayer | Francis Borgia | Institute of Jesuit Sources |