On July 31, 2017, feast of Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556), Founder of the Society of Jesus, Pope Francis had lunch at the Jesuits’ General Curia in Rome, reported Paloma G. Ovejero, Vice-Director of the Holy See Press Office, on her Twitter account, publishing a photo of the private visit in the afternoon.
Yesterday’s lunch marked the Jesuit Pope’s sixth informal visit in the establishment located not far from the Vatican. The last time was on February 12 of this year, on the occasion of the departure of the former Superior General of the Society of Jesus, Adolfo Nicolas.
Ignatius of Loyola was born in the Spanish Basque country, at Azpeitia in 1491. He founded the Society of Jesus on August 15, 1534 in Paris, France. Pope Paul II approved it in 1540. Ignatius died in Rome on July 31, 1556. He rests in the church of “Gesu” – in honor of the Name of Jesus – the first church of the Jesuits in the world.
