Mother Ignacia:

the Missionary
Objectives:

•At the end of the session, the students will be able to:
• Trace the apostolic spirit of Mother Ignacia and her companions during
her time up to the present ;
• Own their Christian identity which is basically missionary as lived by
Mother Ignacia; and
• Display missionary attitudes in school, and in community.
• The servant of God, Ignacia
del Espiritu Santo, had a
sensitivity to the movements
of God in her life. When in
1684, at age twenty-one,
Ignacia faced the need of
choosing a state of life, it was
indeed a moment of
decision.
• Her parents wanted her to
get married, but she had
another preference, that of
religious life.
• At this time of her life, Divine
Providence led her to Fr. Paul Klein,
a Jesuit professor at the Colegio de
Manila.
• The Jesuit director offered Ignacia
the Jesuit tool of discernment, the
Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius,
commonly called a retreat.
• It was during this period of the retreat
that the servant of God was “inspired by
God to remain in the service of the
Divine Majesty.” She also resolved to
live by the sweat of her brow (Murillo
Velarde, 809).
• Thus, inspired and moved by God, she
made the decision to leave home and
pursue a lifestyle of prayer and ascetical
discipline.
• She also worked for her own livelihood.
God’s call came to her and she
responded with an openness of mind,
heart and spirit.
• Here began for her the interior
formation of that radical posture of one
• The Jesuit historian, Murillo
Velarde, affirms that Ignacia
established herself in a house
located at the back of the
Jesuit college, the same place
where later, the Mother
House of her foundation was
to be situated. (Behold the
Handmaid of the Lord!, p. 4)
• Consequently, God’s call for
Mother Ignacia brought her to
the five moments of decision-
making (turning points) in her life
which can be viewed from the
perspective of call and response.
• Her decision in each situation was
her response to God’s call. That
response included acting out her
decision and bearing the
consequences.
The five calls are:
i) the call to solitude;
ii) the call to community;
iii)the call to ministry;
iv)the call to institutionalization;
v) the call to hidden and humble
service.

To consider the experiences of Mother

Ignacia from the perspective of call and
response is to view them in the light of
faith.
The basic affirmation is that underlying
the progress of events and the
decisions made by her was the guiding
hand of God. (A Lamp to our Path, pp.30-31)
 “In the past three hundred years, the church in the
Philippines has benefitted from the apostolate of
education and works od charity that stem from
the great love of souls which Mother Ignacia
bequeathed to you as a precious heritage.”
• Theses were the words of Poep John Paul II when
he addressed the RVM Sisters in their special
audience with him in Rome during the 300th
anniversary of RVM Congregation’s existence.
• The Holy Father’s statement is a confirmation of Mother Ignacia's
mission-mindedness. For one can posses a great love for souls unless the
person has a great love for God. And no one with great love for God can
fail to follow His commission to every baptized person to proclaim the
good news. Thus, we become the extension of Christ’s mission from the
Father. And this means “to love without frontiers, to communicate and
extend the kingdom of God and open new ways to the Gospel “. This is
being missionary.
• This is the missionary in Mother Ignacia. And this missionary
spirit of mother Ignacia is greatly influenced by her great
devotion to the Blessed Mother Mary in her radical
commitment to do the will of God that impels her to be
humble and courageous, to have creative and generous service
to the church especially the poor.
Answer the following questions:
1. What attitudes or characteristics of Mo. Ignacia do I need to imbibe in order to carry out my mission
as a Christian youth today?
2. What is my personal response to the call of the Church?
3. As student, how do I respond to the missionary invitation of God like Mo. Ignacia?
Song by: We Are Called by David Haas - (Video clip)