Alphonsus (Alonso) Rodriguez (1538 in
Valladolid
Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...
,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
– 21 February 1616 in
Seville
Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...
) was a Spanish
Jesuit
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
priest and spiritual writer. His writings, a single book, underline much the
ascetical dimension of
religious life.
Life
When twenty years of age, Rodriguez entered the
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...
. After completing his studies taught
moral theology for twelve years at the College of Monterey, and subsequently filled the posts of master of
novices for twelve more years, of rector for seventeen years, and of spiritual guide at
Cordova for eleven years. As master of novices he had under his charge
Francisco Suárez, the celebrated theologian.
Alonso's characteristics in these offices were care, diligence, and charity. He was a religious of great piety and candour, hating all pride and
ostentation
In sociology and in economics, the term conspicuous consumption describes and explains the consumer practice of buying and using goods of a higher quality, price, or in greater quantity than practical. In 1899, the sociologist Thorstein Veblen co ...
. It was said of him by those who were personally acquainted with him, that his character and virtues were accurately depicted in , published at Seville, 1609.
The
This work is based on the material which Rodriguez collected for his spiritual exhortations to his brethren, and published at the request of his superiors. Although the book thus written was primarily intended for the use of his religious brethren, yet he destined it also for the profit and edification of other religious and of laypersons in the world. Of set purpose it avoids the loftier flights of mysticism and all abstruse speculation. It is a book of practical instructions on all the virtues which perfect the Christian life, whether lived in the
cloister
A cloister (from Latin , "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open Arcade (architecture), arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle (architecture), quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cat ...
or in the world. It became popular at once, and remained in use till the era of
Vatican II
The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilic ...
by all classes of Christians, particularly by those who had entered religious life. More than twenty-five editions of the original Spanish have been issued, besides extracts and abridgements.
More than sixty editions have appeared in
French in seven different translations, twenty in
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
, at least ten in
German, and eight in
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
. An English translation from the French by Antony Hoskins was printed at
St. Omer in 1612.
The best known English translation, under the title ''Practice of Christian Perfection'', often reprinted, is that which first appeared in London, 1697, from the French text of
François-Séraphin Régnier-Desmarais. P.O. Shea issued in New York an edition adapted for general use in 1878. The book has been translated into nearly all the European languages and into many of those of the East. No other work of the author was published.
References
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*
External links
* English translation:
Internet Archive Search: Rodríguez, Alfonso, 1538-1616 various older translations, including French and English. 3 vols.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Alonso
1538 births
1616 deaths
17th-century Spanish Jesuits
16th-century Spanish Jesuits