Rome, 1554. Dismissed from the society of Jesus, the young novice rides his donkey through the streets of Rome. Reflecting on Father Ignatius' story, he decides to follow a similar path, but falls into the same traps as the brazen young Inigo. Will he ever learn? The Saints. Adventures of faith and courage. Ignatius of Loyola. Episode 5. The End of the Beginning. Listen to all the episodes and discover new shows at thesaintspodcast.com. No, I'm not lost. Just to my wit's end. I walk to do God's will, nothing else. But what even is that? What would Father Ignatius do? What would Father Ignatius do? He would be obedient. He would... Ah-ha! Oh, Mary, Mother of God, please show me the way to Santa Maria Maggiore. I want to become your knight and consecrate myself to you. I will guard your altar all night. Just like Father Ignatius. After that, then I will... Perhaps I will go on a pilgrimage or find a cave. Wherever the spirit leads, I will obey. Now, where are we? It's no use. We're lost. Great. I wish Father Ignatius were here. He would know where to go. That's it. Okay, Beast. I'm going to let go of the reins now. Lead me to Santa Maria Maggiore. This was a bad idea. I have no idea where we are. No. Don't eat. Don't! It's useless. I need a teacher. I tried to become great, and I became a failure. I need Father Ignatius to help me. He really is great. I don't need to be great. I just need to be obedient. I'll go and I'll tell him that I've learned my lesson. Come on! Okay? You stay here, then. Goodbye, Beast. Father Ignatius! Father Ignatius! There is Master Ignatius whistling in the garden. There you are, boy. Come over here. Master Ignatius, let me tell you what I've learned. So you see, I am learning to be obedient. I hope to do God's will. I guess I just wanted to thank you. For what exactly? Father, you have shown me that obedience is better than greatness. Greatness is a worthless pursuit. Explain. When you tried to become a great knight, your leg was shattered. When you tried to become a great saint, you were deceived by the devil. When you tried to become a great martyr, the Lord God sent you straight home. When you abandoned your desire for greatness, when you became obedient to God, that is when you actually became great. And holy, even dressed in beggars' rags. Ironic, isn't it? It is. And when I try to become great, I lied, I protested, I was disobedient. I failed, and I was dismissed. There is, perhaps, one more thing that Enigo learned when he came home from the Holy Land that might be helpful to you. Perhaps it might benefit you to hear the rest of the story. It would be a blessing indeed, Father. When Enigo left to go back to Loyola, he was confident that he had a deep knowledge of spiritual things. By abandoning his own desire, even for something great like martyrdom, to be obedient, he began to trust deeply that Christ was directing him. Now that his dream of living and dying in the Holy Land came to an end, he began to walk a different path. He wanted to share what he had learned with others as much as he could. But didn't that rich Spaniard say that you would get arrested for preaching without a license? Yes, he did. So did you lay low, preach in secret? Not exactly. I say to you, come out of her! Come out! No! Madam, how long? Are you okay? Christ the Lord has freed you. Thank God! I'm free! Thank you! Oh, praise God! He's nasty, I'm being praised, praise him! We should follow him! You're making quite the scene, beggar! You should be more careful. Careful? Is that Duke Antonio? Is that you? Enigo? It has been a long time. I haven't seen you since that cannonball shattered your leg. What has happened to you? It is a very long story. You look awful! Thank you. What are you doing here? I'm on my way home to Loyola. Staying out of trouble, I hope. You've always had a knack for getting into trouble. Are you a preacher now? Just a poor pilgrim, sir. You can't be preaching out in public without a license like that? I'm surprised you haven't been arrested. There are inquisitors everywhere. Well, I am a simple pilgrim simply preaching the gospel. Yes, that's what worries me. You should hurry home. The sooner you are in Loyola, the better. I'll be on my way then. Oh, oh, and Enigo? Yes. Stay off the main roads. The French soldiers we fought against in the Battle of Pamplona, they're looking for us. They remember you specifically. Getting into some trouble of your own, Duke? Just take my advice. Stay out of trouble. And stay off the road. Did you take his advice? Enigo, unfortunately, was still sorting out the difference between vain glory and love of God. He wanted to do great things for the greater glory of God, but his ability to discern God's will was still being developed. So you took the main road? Yes. Enigo took the main road. The void road where all the travelers will be, this is where I'm needed the most. I will not turn to the left nor to the right. I will follow you, Lord, like the disciples on the road to Emmaus. Oh, perhaps the Duke is right. You there, Spaniard. Good day. It's him, walking with a limp, the valiant Spaniard. Separated from your company, Spaniard. I'm afraid you're confused. I'm not a soldier. I carried you to Loyola myself. I would recognize you anywhere, even in those rags. I said, if we ever catch you again, you won't be so lucky. Dismount! Arrest Spaniard! Please, I'm not who you think I am. Allow me to pass down the road. Kill off me. Let me see your leg. My leg? Why? If there is no evidence that your leg was struck by a cannonball, we will allow you to pass. I will not show you my leg. Seize him. Let go of me! Come on! I said, let go of me! Look at your scowl, Spaniard. You're coming with us. Get him up, men. Take him to the commander. Tie him up. Put him on the horse. Put me down. Let me go. Let's ride. Inigo knew that he was in trouble. He decided to try something new. Something new? In an effort to remain humble, he decided to address everyone as if they were little children. This does not seem like the time for that. Commander! Sir, we found the Spaniard from Pamplona on the road. The one whose leg was struck by the cannonball. That's impossible. Where is he? This is he, sir. Hello, friend. How are you today? Pardonz-moi. I will ask the question, Spaniard. Okay, friend. If you like. Is that how you address a French officer? Is that how you speak to a military man? Losing our temper, are we? You are tempting your own fate with your disrespect. You are tempting the point of my sword. Oh, wow. You are very angry, aren't you? Take a deep breath and wiggle your toes. It will pass. Silence, Sergeant! This is certainly not the same man who valiantly fought against us in Pamplona. This is a big, bumbling buffoon. Blatedly billed after behavior befitting my barracks. He is a madman, and I order you to remove him from my sight at once. Yes, sir. You heard him, men. Throw the prisoner out. I can't believe that worked. Neither could an eagle. As an eagle was experimenting through these crazy adventures on the way home from the Holy Land. An eagle learned something very important. He learned... Father, hold on. What is it, boy? I think I've got it. You were speaking like a child, but the Lord was really teaching you to become like a child. A student who needs a tutor, and humility is directly opposed to vain glory. Very good, my son. A good teacher is hard to find. Did you ever find one? Yes. Where? Grammar School. Grammar School? For little children? Yes. An eagle went home and enrolled in grammar school. You truly became like a little child. To enter the kingdom of heaven, we must all become like little children. No vain glory in children is there. No, there isn't. Father, I am glad to know that I ought to become like a child. That becoming Superior General one day will not make me into a great saint. I cannot go out and make myself into a saint. Only the Lord can make someone into a saint. We discover his desires by attending to his work in all things. Even little things. Like telling a story or planting a rose bush. We make heavy burdens for ourselves with all this greatness and vain glory, don't we? His yoke is easy. His burden is light. Thank God for obedience. I think you have learned your lesson, son. I have? If you are willing, I would like to invite you to return to the Society of Jesus. Oh, Father, I am willing. I am. Welcome home, then. Thank you, Father. You're welcome. So, what now? Now, I suppose your journey begins. Grab your shovel. My shovel? More pennants? The rest of these rose bushes aren't going to plant themselves. Very well, Father. I will obey. Amigo went on quite the adventure, didn't he, Father? Yes, he did. Is that the end of the story? No, certainly not. That is merely the end of the beginning of the story. Will you ever finish it? If God wills it, my son. If God wills it. The Society of Jesus Hi, this is Peter Atkinson from The Mary Beggars. Thank you for listening to The Saints. To listen to more thrilling adventures, go to thesaintspodcast.com.
