 Loyola Banner
The five
rings on the cross of the shield represent
the six Pastoral Care groups in the
House and the five years the students
spend in the school.
The school's crest is in the top left
quadrant and diagonally opposite is
the crest of the Jesuits, which Ignatius
Loyola helped found.
The swan of Western Australia is in
the bottom left hand corner and diagonally
opposite, are St. Peter’s keys
of learning.
St Ignatious Loyola
Born 1491 at Loyola,
Guipuzcoa, Spain as Inigo Lopez de
Loyola. He entered the army in 1517,
and served in several campaigns. Wounded
in the leg by a cannonball at the siege
of Pampeluna on 20 May 1521, the
injury left him partially crippled
for life.
During his recuperation the only books
he had access to were The Golden Legend,
a collection of lives of the saints,
and the Life of Christ by Ludolph the
Carthusian. These books, and the time
spent in contemplation, changed him.
On his recovery he took a vow of chastity,
hung his sword before the altar of the
Virgin of Montserrat, and donned a pilgrim's
robes. He lived in a cave from 1522
to 1523, contemplating the way to live
a Christian life. He was a pilgrim to
Rome and the Holy and in 1523. In 1528
he began studying theology in Barcelona,
Alcala, and Paris, receiving his degree
on 14 March 534.
His meditations, prayers, visions and
insights led to forming the Constitutions
of the Society of Jesus on 15 August
1534. He travelled Europe and the Holy
Lands, then settled in Rome to direct
the Jesuits. His health suffered in
later years, and he was nearly blind
at death.
The Jesuits today have over 500 universities
and colleges, 30,000 members, and teach
over 200,000 students each year.
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