Conserving a letter of Saint Ignatius of Loyola preserved in Malta

Abstract

A letter attributed to Saint Ignatius of Loyola was for centuries preserved at the Jesuits’ Church in Valletta, that is since the second part of the 17th century. The contents of this reliquary, formerly venerated in the Chapel of the Saint in the transept of the Church, were sent to Malta by the Maltese Jesuit Bernardus Bonici (d. 15 May 1660). It contains a letter attributed to Saint Ignatius, and several supporting documents which act as its authentica. These seek to document the transmission of this letter. Given the veneration attributed to it as a relic of their founder, the letter was for centuries kept sealed in its frame reliquary. The letter was first published by Pio Pecchiai in his fundamental study “Il collegio dei gesuiti a Malta,” on the establishment of the Compagnia in Malta. However, since he based his study on archival material preserved in Rome, and presumably had no access to the original letter sealed in Malta, the published text refers to a transumpt of the letter made by notary on 16 August 1708. To date, the accompanying documentation was neither transcribed, nor published.