| rdfs:comment
| - St. Aloysius Gonzaga (Italian: Luigi Gonzaga, 9 March 1568–21 June 1591) was an Italian Jesuit and saint. He was born in the family’s castle in Castiglione delle Stiviere, between Brescia and Mantova in Italy. He was the oldest son of the condottiero Ferrante Gonzaga, a prince of the Holy Roman Empire, and Marta Tana Santena, daughter of a baron from Piemonte, of the Della Rovere family.
|
| abstract
| - St. Aloysius Gonzaga (Italian: Luigi Gonzaga, 9 March 1568–21 June 1591) was an Italian Jesuit and saint. He was born in the family’s castle in Castiglione delle Stiviere, between Brescia and Mantova in Italy. He was the oldest son of the condottiero Ferrante Gonzaga, a prince of the Holy Roman Empire, and Marta Tana Santena, daughter of a baron from Piemonte, of the Della Rovere family. His father assumed that he would become a soldier, as the family was constantly involved in the frequent minor wars in the area. His military training started at an early age, but he also received an education in languages and other subjects. In 1577, at age 8, he was sent to Florence with his younger brother Ridolfo, to serve at the court of Grand Duke Francesco I de' Medici and to receive further education. While there, he fell ill with a disease of the kidneys, which was to trouble him throughout his life. While he was ill, he took the opportunity to read about the saints and to spend much of his time in prayer. He is said to have taken a private vow of chastity at the age of 9. In November 1579, the brothers were sent to the Duke of Mantua. Aloysius was shocked by the violent and frivolous life-style he encountered there. In 1580, he returned to Castiglione. There, he met Cardinal Charles Borromeo in July of the same year. The cardinal found out that Aloysius had not yet received his first holy communion, and gave this to him on 22 July 1580. After reading a book about Jesuit missionaries in India, he felt strongly that he wanted to become a missionary himself. He started practicing by giving catechism classes to young boys in Castiglione in the summers, and by frequently visiting the Capuchins and Barnabites in Casale-Monferrato, where the family spent the winter. He also adopted an ascetic life-style. The family was called to Spain in 1581, to assist Empress Mary of Austria. They arrived in Madrid in March 1582, and Aloysius and Ridolfo became pages for the infante don Diego, Prince of Asturias (1575-82). He then started thinking in earnest about joining a religious order. He had considered joining the Capuchins, but he had a Jesuit confessor in Madrid, and decided to join that order. His mother agreed to his request to join the Jesuits, but his father was furious. In July 1584, one and a half years after the infante's death, the family returned to Italy. Aloysius still wanted to become a priest, and several members of his family worked hard to persuade him to change his mind. When they realized that there was no way to make him give up his plan, they tried to persuade him to become a secular priest, and to arrange for a bishopric for him. If he became a Jesuit he would renounce any right to income from property or status in society. His family was afraid of this, but their attempts to persuade him not to join the Jesuits failed; Aloysius was not interested in higher office and still wanted to become a missionary.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)