small rooms, his bedroom and next to it his office, directing this new society throughout the world. He would spend years composing the Constitutions of the Society and would write thousands of letters to all corners of the globe to his fellow Jesuits dealing with the affairs of the Society and to lay men and women directing them in the spiritual life In his letters to members of the Society, he treated each one as an individual. He was overly kind and gentle with those who gave him the most problems. On the other hand, with those who were the holiest and humblest, he seemed at times to be too harsh, obviously because he knew they were able to take his corrections without rancor, knowing that Ignatius loved them and was looking only to their greater spiritual good. A bishop had a great animosity to the Society. He refused to have this new Order in his diocese, and he excommunicated anyone who made the Spiritual Exercises. The Jesuits knew him as Bishop “Cilicio”. Ignatius told the Jesuits who were worried about his attitude to relax. “Bishop Cilicio is an old man. The Society is young. We can wait.”Perhaps the work of the Society of Jesus began by Ignatius that is best known by his love of education. I think it is interesting that he did not intend to include teaching among the Jesuits' works at the beginning. The purpose of the first members was to be at the disposal of the Pope to go where they would be most needed. Before 1548, Ignatius had opened schools in Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, and India, but they were intended primarily for the education of the new young Jesuit recruits. However, in 1548 at the request of the magistrates of Messina in Sicily, Ignatius sent five men to open a school for lay as well as Jesuit students. It soon became clear by requests from the rulers and bishops for more of these schools. They felt that these schools were truly one of the most effect...
