Strunk, Thomas E. “Socrates and St. Ignatius: The Mad Man, the Monk, and the Philology of Liberation.” Jesuit Higher Education 4.1 (2015). Available at Jesuit Higher Education: A Journal.
St. Ignatius of Loyola’s Shoes, photo by Thomas Strunk taken in St. Ignatius’ rooms, Church of the Gesu, Rome
This article explores the connections and contrasts between the modes of thinking of St. Ignatius of Loyola and Socrates of Athens. Though the two men diverge in many ways, their behavior and ways of examining the world are both liberating.
Jesuit education is founded upon the traditions of both Ignatian spirituality and Humanism, which can be
traced back to classical antiquity. The lives of St. Ignatius and Socrates are thus fundamental to learning at Jesuit institutions, because they represent two pedagogical models by which we can come to know ourselves and our place in the world: self-reflection through the application of the senses and philosophic inquiry in dialogue with others. When these methods are applied to works of philosophy, literature, and art, they
provide a reflective space for self-transformation and produce a philology that is liberating.
