Isabella Cristina Berinzaga (ca.1551–1624) was an Italian mystic and spiritual author in the Ignatian tradition.

Life

Isabella was born in Milan, probably in 1551, into the Lomazzi family, but preferred to use the name of the uncle who raised her, Berinzaga. She had an unhappy childhood, suffering from poor health and persecution by her aunt.Gaetano Cozzi
Berinzaga, Isabella Cristina
'' Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani'', vol. 9 (1967). In 1579 she was accepted as a "spiritual daughter" of the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

after an examination by Fr Morales, sent from Rome by Jesuit General

Everard Mercurian Everard Mercurian (1514 – 1 August 1580) was the fourth Superior General of the Society of Jesus. Early life Born 'Lardinois' into a humble family in Marcourt, near La Roche-en-Ardenne in what is now the province of Luxembourg in 1514, in ...

for the purpose. In 1584

Achille Gagliardi Achille Gagliardi (1537–1607) was a Jesuit ascetic writer and spiritual director in the Ignatian tradition. Life Gagliardi was born at Padua, Italy. After a brilliant career at the University of Padua he entered the Society of Jesus in 1559 ...

was appointed her

spiritual director Spiritual direction is the practice of being with people as they attempt to deepen their relationship with the divine, or to learn and grow in their personal spirituality. The person seeking direction shares stories of their encounters of the di ...

. In this capacity, he asked her to provide sketches of her spiritual autobiography. These circulated in manuscript for some time and eventually formed the basis for the ''Breve compendio intorno alla perfezione cristiana'' (Brescia, 1611).An English translation of which was produced by Mary Percy as ''Abridgement of Christian Perfection'' (1626). In the 1590s, the relationship between Berinzaga and her confessor came under negative scrutiny, in large part due to Isabella's claim to have received divine intimations concerning the reform of the Society of Jesus as becoming too invested in education at the expense of direct evangelization.

Claudio Acquaviva Claudio Acquaviva, SJ (14 September 1543 – 31 January 1615) was an Italian Jesuit priest. Elected in 1581 as the fifth Superior General of the Society of Jesus, he has been referred to as the second founder of the Jesuit order. Early life an ...

, attempting to reduce Gagliardi's influence, excluded him from the General Congregation of the Society held in Rome in the winter of 1593–1594, and ordered him to leave Milan. Gagliardi, however, received political support from

Juan Fernández de Velasco ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...

, Spanish governor of Milan, and was able to have the order temporarily revoked. Ultimately, however, he was forced to leave Milan. Robert Bellarmine carried out a study of writings circulating in manuscript that were attributed to Berinzaga, and condemned them as "new and dangerous", based on "imagination or illusions". Gagliardi and Berinzaga were censured, and avoided being referred to the Roman Inquisition by accepting the censure. Gagliardi attributed all the offending views to Berinzaga. She died in Milan in 1624.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berinzaga, Isabella Cristina Year of birth uncertain 1624 deaths Italian Christian mystics Italian autobiographers 16th-century Italian women writers 17th-century Italian women writers