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Alphonsus (Alonso) Rodriguez, SJ (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 province o ...
,
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
– 21 February 1616 in
Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
) was a Spanish
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
priest and spiritual writer of renown. His writings, a single book, underline much the ascetical dimension of
religious life Consecrated life (also known as religious life) is a state of life in the Catholic Church lived by those faithful who are called to follow Jesus Christ in a more exacting way. It includes those in institutes of consecrated life (religious and se ...
.


Life

When twenty years of age he entered the
Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
, and after completing his studies taught
moral theology Ethics involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior.''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy''"Ethics"/ref> A central aspect of ethics is "the good life", the life worth living or life that is simply sati ...
for twelve years at the College of Monterey, and subsequently filled the posts of master of
novices A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience. Religion Buddhism ...
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 Francisco Suárez, (5 January 1548 – 25 September 1617) was a Spanish Jesuit priest, philosopher and theologian, one of the leading figures of the School of Salamanca movement, and generally regarded among the greatest scholastics after Thomas ...
, 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 ''Ejercicio de perfección y virtudes cristianas'', published at Seville, 1609.


The ''Ejercicio de perfección y virtudes cristianas''

This work is based on the material which he 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 ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...
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 ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and 1 ...
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 French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
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, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
, at least ten in
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
, and eight in
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. An English translation from the French by Fr. Antony Hoskins, S.J., 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 Abbé Regnier des Marais. 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


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