Francis Borgia was a member of the ruling elite of Spain, and when he became a Jesuit priest, he used his experience as a governor to spread the work of the Jesuits around the world; he became known as their second founder, after the great St. Ignatius.

He was born in 1510 in Spain,the great-grandson of a pope and a king, and cousin to the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of the time. After completing his education, he lived in the Spanish court, where one day he happened to see a man being taken into prison by the Spanish Inquisition. The man was St. Ignatius of Loyola and he was being questioned about his new movement.

Francis married and raised a family and was assigned duties as a governor of Catalonia. He tended to the affairs of the state with diligence, but also began to give more and more time and energy to prayer; he received communion as often as he could.

After 17 years of marriage, Francis’ wife, Eleanor, died, leaving him with eight children, the youngest of whom was 8 years old. The death of his wife spurred him to follow the calling he had been discerning to give his life to God. He recalled the man he had seen imprisoned, and vowed to join his Society of Jesus. Ignatius received the news with joy, but advised him to finish raising his children first, and to bring his executive business to a close.

After several years, having settled his children, Francis joined Ignatius in Rome and became a Jesuit at the age of 40. During his formation, his superiors made a point to treat him opposite to what he was used to—they made him clean the kitchen and serve food and mop floors. He returned to Spain, and was ordained a priest. News of the duke who turned into a Jesuit made a sensation, and people crowded to his Masses.

He began to preach in Spain and Portugal, carrying a bell and calling children to the town square wherever he was to teach them the faith. His words encouraged many to reform their lives and their businesses, and he was one of the first to meet and encourage the great St. Teresa of Avila.

St. Ignatius placed Francis in charge of the Jesuit order in Spain, where he founded new communities and colleges. He was later called back to Rome to assist the growing community from there, and has been called the second founder of the Jesuits for his influence in shaping the new order. Even though it is credited to the pope, it was Francis Borgia who really founded the famous Gregorian University in Rome.

His previous life as a governor gave him skills that he used to establish and promote the work of Jesuits around the world. In all of this logistical work, however, he never got distracted from his life of prayer and faithfulness—those always remained central to him. He sought after humility with diligence—many knew him as a royal personage, and tried to show him deference, but he insisted on being treated according to his state of life as a priest.

Worn out by his work and travels, he died in 1572. His relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica, and the image below was created by Matthew Alderman ’06 and is used here with his permission. It shows St. Ignatius in the center, flanked by St. Francis Xavier on the left and St. Francis Borgia on the right.

St. Francis Borgia, you were the duke and father of 8 children who became a Jesuit—pray for us!

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Image Credit: (1) Our featured image of St. Francis Borgia is in the public domain. Last accessed October 3, 2024 on Wikimedia Commons. (2) Notre Dame alumnus Matthew Alderman holds exclusive rights to the further distribution and publication of his art. Used here with permission.