The Life of Mother Ignacia
Ignacia – A Providential Name
The story of Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo, foundress of the Religious of the Virgin Mary
(RVM), comes to us from Pedro Muriilo Velarde, a Jesuit Historian who came to Manila in 1723. He
included in the history of the Jesuit missions in the Philippines a brief account of the foundation of the
Beaterio Dela Compania de Jesus, now called RVM.
No precise information about her birth is given in Velarde’s account. However, her baptismal
record, which was found in 1959, states that Ignacia was baptized on March 4, 1663 by Fray Antonio
Collares, OP. Her Parents were Jusepe Iuco, a Sangley, and Maria Jeronima, an yndia. The date of birth
was not mentioned. But since it was customary during the Spanish colonial period to name the child
after the saint on whose feastday the child was born, Ignacia could have been born on February 1, the
feast day of St Ignatius of Antioch at that time. In affixing “del Espiritu Santo” to her name, her parents
could be expressing their own devotion to the Holy Spirit. Little did they realize that she would live up to
her name. In a way, her name sealed her destiny. The name “Ignacia” come from the Latin ignis which
means “fire.” She would be the “fire of the Holy Spirit” on a native soil. She would bring the fire of the
Holy Spirit to a conquered race by bearing witness to God’s gracious action in the midst of a colonized
people.
It is only by hindsight that we are able to affirm interesting coincidences. Ignacia’s name was
after St. Ignatius of Antioch, but her name can be easily associated with St. Ignatius of Loyola, whose
spirituality she would learn and imbibe from her Jesuit spiritual director, Fr. Paul Klein. Her birthday,
which was probably on Feb.1 (Feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch) could be actually on Feb.2 because of the
time difference between Spain and the Philippines of which the Spanish explorers at that time were yet
unaware. The Spaniard kept the Western standard for Eastern Time, so they were one day behind the
standard time of the world before a correction was made through the decree of 1844. If she was
actually born on Feb. 2, the Feast of our Lady’s Purification and the Presentation of our Lord, it would be
providential for she was so devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the cross of Jesus Christ.
Ignacia: In Search for the Will of God
Ignacia, a native of Binondo, belonged to a parish under the care of the Dominicans. She,
however, did not consult a Dominican but a Jesuit, Fr. Paul Klein, when she had to make a difficult
decision. Although the Dominicans took care of Binondo and Parian, contact of the Chinese with the
Jesuits cannot be excluded, for the Jesuits ministered also to the Chinese in Sta. Cruz and Quiapo.
In 1862, when Ignacia was nineteen years old, Fr. Paul Klein arrived in Manila. He became
known as an able preacher, a linguist, a financial wizard and a generous missionary. In his association
with the Chinese to whom he rented a row of shops, he could have come to know the family of Jusepe,
Ignacia’s Father.
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Around this time also, a group of Dominican tertiaries started to live together in the house of a
Spanish widow, Antonia Esguerra. This was most probably the group identified by Murillo Velarde as the
Beaterio de Santo Domingo which Ignacia wanted to join. When Ignacia was making her decision in
1684, the group was not yet formally organized. Murillo Velarde was writing from the perspective of the
mid-eighteen century when the Beaterio de Santo Domingo was already recognized institution. The
proposal of the Dominican tertiaries was supported by the Dominican friars in 1686 and the permit from
the Dominican authorities in Rome was granted on January 11, 1688. In 1696 the Beaterio was
inaugurated with the installation of Francisca Fuentes del Espiritu Santo as prioress. By this time, Ignacia
had been living as a Beata de le Compania de Jesus for eleven years.
Ignacia might have considered going to a Dominican for advice. Since the priest known to her
family, Fray Alberto Collares, had died in 1673, she would have to go to another Dominican confessor. If
she had done so, it could have facilitated her enlistment among the beatas of Sto. Domingo. The group
initially did not discrimianate against the yndias. One of them was an yndia Sebastiana de Santa Maria,
who died in 1692, four years before the formal establishment of the Beaterio. Going to a Jesuit for
advice could be Ignacia’s attempt to elicit a second opinion. This would indicate her earnest search for
the will of God.
If Ignacia did not think at all to consult a Dominican, it might be because she was already
determined to join the Beatas de Santo Domingo. She needed no further encouragement in this regard.
She was probably looking for someone who could give her an objective view in deciding between her
parents’ wish and the call to the way of life of the Beaterio.
Death, A Lesson About Life
The death of her siblings, one after another, must have imprinted in the mind and heart of the
young Ignacia a lesson about life. We do not know when each of her siblings died. Ignacia was two, five
and six years old when she experienced the hope and joy of having brother or sister. This was short-
lived, however. Most likely she did not fully understand what was happening then, but she could have
noticed the mood of her parents and their grief at the loss of their children. She could have had vague
recollections of her brother and sisters and must have asked her parents about them. They could have
told her that they would now be in heaven with God. Ignacia might have wondered why God would take
away her siblings. She could have struggled between an image of a cruel and angry God and that of a
generous and loving Father.
The experience of having and losing must have opened for the young Ignacia a way of looking at
life. Life on earth has an end. The destiny of human life is not this world but God. Death is not the final
destination. Life here on earth is a gift from God and is meant to lead to union with God. This belief is
reflected very clearly in the first number of the 1726 Constitutions of the Beaterio: The end that any
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Maiden, who would wish to live in this House, ought to resolve is to serve God our Lord wholeheartedly,
and to learn the way of perfection, with which she will attain a good death and the Glory of Heaven.
The Conflict in the Society
While Ignacia and her family were experiencing grief, the city of Manila witnessed the conflict
between Governor-General Diego de Salcedo (1663-1668) and Archbishop Miguel Poblete (1653-1667).
Wanting to enforce the right of royal patronage and impose his authority over the clergy, the Governor
came to grips with the Archbishop. The animosity of the governor-general proved to be strong when the
archbishops died in 1667. He forbade the church bells to toll dirges and refused to allow the body to be
embalmed. Such action roused the anger of the clergy and the laity. A year later, Governor Salcedo
became the victim of a plot instigated by Father Paternina, a commissary of the Inquisition. The latter
was provoked by the refusal of the governor to act upon his recommendation to have his favorite
nephew, Captain Gonzalo Samaniego, appointed as alcalde. Taking advantage of the unpopularity of the
governor, Fr. Paternina led a mob of friars, army officers and merchants and broke into the palace on
the night of October 9, 1668. Gov. Salcedo was bound like a common criminal and imprisoned at the
Franciscan convent and later at the Augustinian convent. His property was seized by his enemies and
Paternina took his important papers and valuable jewels.
Paternina accused the governor-general of various acts of heresy and immorality. The latter was
shipped in chains to Mexico to answer charges. He did not reach Mexico for he died at sea on October
24, 1670. A careful study of his case proved his innocence. Paternina, who accused him, was therefore
arrested and ordered to return to Mexico to stand trial for his complicity in the Salcedo affair. Like
Salcedo, Paternina died on his way to Mexico on January 18, 1674. By this time, Ignacia was eleven years
old. News of these events must have circulated in the city. Although Ignacia might not have understood
what the whole conflict meant, she probably was beginning to become aware of the kind of society in
which she lived. The condition of the times during Ignacia’s growing years were socio-political and
religious turmoil. Chaos which includes power struggle, discrimination, and leadership crisis. Jusepe
would leave the Philippines; perhaps, Maria Jeronima, too.
Family ties are strengthened when family members share happy events like births, achievements, a thriving family
business. On the other hand, family crises test its solidarity.
Even before Mother Ignacia was born, there was already a shadow of conflict in her life. Chinese pirates
threatened to invade Manila. An anti-Chinese riot resulted in the death of a great number of Chinese. There was a
threat to expel the Chinese from Manila. Ignacia’s parents were deeply troubled. The experience of having and losing
her borhter and sister left Ignacia and her parents grief-stricken. The conflict between the Church and the State and
the prejudice against the natives (yndios and yndias) were realities the family came to grips with. But the examples of
an unwavering faith in God’s providenc,e perseverance, courage, patience and discipline set by Jusepe and Maria
Jeronima in coming to terms with these situations would mold the character and shape the future and the attitude
towards life and society of the young Ignacia.
(adapted from A Lamp to our Path, S. Ma. Anicia Co, RVM)
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Differences of Color and Race
It was not unlikely that Ignacia awakened very early to the differences of color and race. During
her time, the Spaniards who came to the country from Spain (peninsulares) occupied the top place in
the colonial pyramid. They considered themselves to be the legitimate inhabitants of the islands and
held top government positions. Next in rank were the Spaniards born in the islands (insulares or creoles).
They belonged to the ruling class but were also discriminated against by the peninsulares. Below these
ranks were the half-breeds (mestizos / mestizas) and the natives (yndios/yndias). Ignacia must have
experienced the pain of racial discrimination. As a Chinese-yndia mestiza she must have observed the
ambivalent attitude of the Spaniards toward Chinese. The latter were praised for their industry and
contribution to the economy but at the same time they were taxed heavily and treated with suspicion.
Ignacia must have also felt the need to belong. She could identify with both Chinese and yndias but at
the same time she could feel that she was not completely one or the other. She needed to find and
shape her own identity.
Rudiments of Faith
From her mother, Ignacia learned the rudiments of faith, prayer, and Christian piety. Ignacia
must have grown in her knowledge of the faith through the Doctrina Cristiana, the cathechism book
which was printed in Tagalog in 1953 and was intended for native pupils. There was also Doctrina
Cristiana in Chinese printed in the same year. Ignacia’s father must have learned about the Christian
faith from this Chinese catechism.
The young Ignacia followed the practices of piety common during her time: praying the rosary
and other devotions, joining processions, assisting at Mass, receiving Holy Communion, going to
confession. The young Ignacia’s upbringing affects the way she would deal with her community, e.g. the
parish, her classmates in catechism class. She would bring with her all the things her parents taught her-
by word or by example.
During that time, the Spaniards made the church the center of the catechetical instruction, celebration of the
masses, reception of the sacraments and devotional prayers. M. Ignacia learned her catechism from her parents,
attended Mass with them and received the sacraments. She grew up to be prayerful, obedient, helpful, a woman of
strength, with inner freedom and responsibility.
Crossroad of Life
Two events in 1682 were important for Ignacia who was then nineteen years old. A group of
Dominican tertiaries – Francisca Fuentes, Ana de la Vega, Sebastian de la Sta. Maria, gathered in the
house of Antonia Esguerra, a Spanish widow. They petitioned the Dominican friars to allow them to live
together as a religious community. In the meantime, a Jesuit from Bohemia arrived in Manila. His name
was Fr. Paul Klein who came to be known by his hispanized name, Fr. Pablo Clain. The significance of
these two events would later unfold when Ignacia would reach twenty-one years of age.
Ignacia was twenty years old when there arose a conflict between the Governor-General Juan
de Vargas (1678 – 1684) and Archbishop Felipe Pardo (1677 – 1689). It resulted in the banishment of the
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archbishop to Lingayen. The Governor-General was replaced by Gabriel de Curuzelaegui (1684 – 1689)
who reinstated(replaced) Archbishop Pardo and foiled (stopped) the latter’s attempt to exact vengeance
on the former governor-general and his associates.
Against the backdrop of this socio-political and religious situation, Ignacia experienced a conflict
in her own personal life. She was 21 years old in 1684 when her parents wanted her to get married. Her
parents’ wish clashed with her own determination to become a beata and, perhaps, to join the beatas
gathered in the house of Antonia Esguerra. Ignacia was torn between her desire to obey her parents and
make them happy and the desire to follow the inner stirrings of her heart. Her parents were counting on
her. She was their only surviving child. She would be the one to fulfill their dream for posterity. They
must have expressed their hope of seeing their grandchildren. It must have pained Ignacia to tell them
that her desire ran contrary to their expectations. Iganacia found herself at the crossroad of her life. She
had to make a decision. She approached Fr. Paul Klein to make a general confession and to seek his
advice. Ignacia did not ignore her parents’ expectations; neither did she stifle her heart’s desire. She
sought a way of finding out God’s will for her. God’s will became the guiding light of her life.
Fr. Klein advised her to stay in the house of the “Mother of the Congregation.” The house was
probably the house formerly occupied by the group of Japanese beatas who were exiled from Japan and
came to Manila on December 21, 1614. The foundress of the group, Doña Julia Nayto became known as
the “Mother of the Congregation.” She died in 1627. The group became extinct when the last Japanese
beata died in 1656. The house could have been used as a house of recollection but was probably
unoccupied when Ignacia needed a place to stay.
Ignacia went through the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola under the guidance of Fr.
Klein. Her decision at the end of her retreat was “to remain in the service of the Divine Majesty” and to
“earn her living by the sweat of her face.”
Mother Ignacia committed herself to a life of prayer, sacrifice and service. She reached a certain level of
prayer where Fr. Pablo Clain saw in her a woman of prayer.
Mother Ignacia is a woman of prayer. Her prayer life as she was inspired was a life of relationship with God, a
following of Jesus, poor, chaste and obedient, service to God our Lord and taking Mary as Mother, Model and
Patroness. Belonging to the family of Mary, Mother Ignacia with her beatas prayed the holy rosary and made their
examination of conscience twice a day and adopted three-o'clock devotion in the afternoon to the agony of Christ
our Lord and the sorrows of the Blessed Mother. The Eucharist was given importance, before and after receiving
holy communion with silence and recollection, leaving all external occupations unless very necessary so that they
can have more time to thank God for this grace and privilege. God must have been pleased with Mother Ignacia in
this regard so that tradition has it that she died after receiving holy communion.
Mother Ignacia prayed also with others especially the members in her community. They started promptly at 4:00
in the morning by making the sign of the cross, giving thanks to God for the benefits received during the night and
also to dedicate to Him all their thoughts, words and actions so that they could serve God with greater fidelity during
the day as a preparation for their meditation prior to an early Morning Praise.
