Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu
Encyclopedia
The Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu (MHSI) is a collection of scholarly volumes (157 to this day) on critically edited documents on the origin and early years of the Society of Jesus
, including the life and writings of St Ignatius of Loyola.
that writing the Society of Jesus’ history be resumed, the newly elected Luis Martin
embarked on a vast project of having first published critical editions of documents on the origins of the Society available in the archives of the Order. A team of experts was appointed and a first volume of the MHSI was published in Madrid
in 1894. When the Jesuit Historical Institute was established in Rome
(1930) the work was carried on from there. It could be said that this was also stimulated by the renewal of historical research
methods that characterised the end of the 19th century.
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
, including the life and writings of St Ignatius of Loyola.
Origin
Prompted by General Congregation XXIV of 1892, which recommended to the Superior GeneralSuperior General of the Society of Jesus
The Superior General of the Society of Jesus is the official title of the leader of the Society of Jesus—the Roman Catholic religious order, also known as the Jesuits. He is generally addressed as Father General. The position carries the nickname of Black Pope, after his simple black priest's...
that writing the Society of Jesus’ history be resumed, the newly elected Luis Martin
Luis Martín
Luis Martín García was a Spanish Jesuit, elected the 24th Superior General of the Society of Jesus.-Early years and formation:...
embarked on a vast project of having first published critical editions of documents on the origins of the Society available in the archives of the Order. A team of experts was appointed and a first volume of the MHSI was published in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
in 1894. When the Jesuit Historical Institute was established in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
(1930) the work was carried on from there. It could be said that this was also stimulated by the renewal of historical research
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
methods that characterised the end of the 19th century.
Writings of St Ignatius of Loyola
- Epistolae et Instructiones (Lettres and Instructions) : 12 volumes.
- Exercitia spiritualia (Text of the Spiritual Exercises and its Directories): 2 volumes.
- Constitutiones et Regulae Soc. Iesu (Latin and Spanish text; preparatory documents, various sets of rules and directives): 8 volumes.
- Fontes narrativi de Sancto Ignacio (Writings about St Ignatius by his contemporaries): 4 volumes.
Primary sources from Ignatius’ Contemporaries
- Epistolae mixtae: 1537-1556 (Letters addressed to St. Ignatius): 5 volumes.
- Litterae quadrimestres: 1546-1562 (Quarterly reports to the central government of the Society): 7 volumes.
- Epistolae S.Francesci Xaverii: 1535-1552 (Letters and other writings of St Francis Xavier): 2 volumes.
- Documentss, letters, etc., of the early companions of St Ignatius: Favre (1 vol.), Salmeron (2 vol.), Broet, Codure, Le Jay, Rodrigues (1 vol.), Bobadilla (1 vol.), Ribadeneyra (2 vol.), Polanco (2 vol.)
- Commentarii de Instituto Societatis Iesu (Jerome Nadal’s instructions on the Constitutions): 2 volumes.
On Jesuit Education
Monumenta paedagogica Societatis Iesu: 1540-1616 (Ratio Studiorum and its preparatory documents): 7 volumes.'Monumenta' Countrywise
- Monumenta anticae Hungariae:1550-1600 (HungaryHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
): 4 volumes. - Catalogi Provinciae Austriae:1551-1640 (AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
): 2 volumes. - Monumenta Angliae:1541-1662 (EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
): 3 volumes. - Monumenta Peruana:1565-1604 (PeruPeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
): 8 volumes. - Monumenta mexicanae:1570-1605 (MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
): 8 volumes. - Monumenta Brasiliae: 1538-1565 (BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
): 5 volumes. - Monumenta Novae Franciae:1602-1661 (French CanadaQuebecQuebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
): 9 volumes. - Documenta indica:1540-1597 (IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
): 18 volumes. - Monumenta Historiae Japoniae:1547-1562 (JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
):3 volumes. - Documenta Malucensia:1542-1682 (Moluccan islands): 3 volumes.
- Monumenta Proximis Orientis:1523-1700 (Middle-East): 5 volumes.
- Monumenta Sinica:1546-1562 (ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
): 1 volume.