Los jesuitas : Una historia de los "soldados de Dios"

Missionaries and educators, travelers and explorers, cartographers and geographers, men of theology and the sword, of science and spirituality, political conspirators or peacemakers, the Jesuits have been, since the founding of the Society of Jesus by Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556), one of the most important, controversial, and respected religious orders in Christendom. Recognized as an order in 1540, their scholarly and combative tradition (from the conquest and evangelization of the Americas to liberation theology) and their tireless determination in undertaking missions in little-known territories (from the creation of schools and churches in Asia in the 16th and 17th centuries to the perilous journeys along the Mississippi or the Amazon) have made these "soldiers of God" a cornerstone of the Church and one of its critical vanguards. Educators and scientists (physicists, chemists, and mathematicians) at universities around the world, or scribes in the distant courts of Chinese emperors, the Jesuits have reached the 21st century as a universal point of reference thanks to their ideological strength, their presence in terrible conflicts, and their profound knowledge of the inner workings of the Vatican. Jonathan Wright, a specialist in religious movements with an extraordinary narrative ability, guides the reader through legend and reality, the secret plots and exploits of these intrepid adventurers in the cultural, political, and spiritual history of the modern world.