I.

Introduction

Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552), Spanish Jesuit missionary, called the Apostle of the Indies.

Born near Pamplona, on April 7, 1506, Xavier was educated at the University of Paris. In 1529, while in Paris, he met the Spanish ascetic Ignatius of Loyola. Xavier was one of the group that joined (1534) Ignatius to found the Society of Jesus (see Jesuits). In 1537, the year he was ordained priest, Xavier became the first secretary of the Society of Jesus.