Postscript to his brothers: Reading Alonso De Sandoval's De Instauranda Aethiopum Salute (1627) as a Jesuit spiritual text

Abstract

For scholars who wish to understand the African/European encounter in the early modern Atlantic world, Alonso de Sandoval's unique treatise is a must-read. Described by literary scholar Margaret Olsen as an “historical and geographic compendium of Africa, apology for Jesuit action in the New World, and practical missionary manual,” the work is marked by a complexity of motivations and discourses. In this article, I explore Sandoval's contribution to Jesuit spiritual writing, a dimension of that discourse that has been completely overlooked in the recent scholarship. Through a close reading of Book 4, which Sandoval views as a domestic, in-house discussion with his fellow Jesuits, I show that what some scholars have narrowly interpreted as sectarian posturing vis-à-vis rival ecclesiastical institutions is, to a large degree, an intra-Jesuit exploration of the Order's core values and priorities. As a spiritual writer, Sandoval's concern is much deeper than the mere defense of pastoral turf; he is clearly troubled by what he sees as mixed messages within his own religious community. In order to promote pastoral ministries among African slaves arriving in New World ports, he turns to the introspective question of what it means to be a Jesuit. That question takes him to the moment of the Order's spiritual inception, Ignatius Loyola's mystical vision at La Storta. In that vision, he will argue, lies the key to Jesuit self-understanding.