Luke 14:25-33, Solemnity of St Ignatius of Loyola

The Homo Sapiens Superior

Today, we are going to discuss six words that Gen Zers, Millennials and Gen Alpha share in the blogosphere.  The first one is Sigma—the lone wolf. Someone who doesn’t need approval. He does what he wants and walks his own path. He is strong, silent, strategic.

Then we have Kewl—Someone whose every movement is calculated, aesthetic, and admired. Has an effortless swag or unbothered aura. He is nonchalant personified.

The third word is Rizz—a man of smooth confidence, not just in looks but in how he wins hearts and commands attention without trying too hard. Everybody drools over him.

Now, if we combine these three traits in a man, who do we get? You guessed right: Superman. Tall, stoic, striking jawline, penetrating gaze, flawless physique. Magnetic personality. Prince Charming and the Knight in Shining Armor rolled into one. He’s the very epitome of the modern ideal man.

Behold: here is the 21st-century ideal of the perfect human: The Homo sapiens superior (The Superior Human Being)—oozing with sigma, crawling with kewl, resplendent with rizz.

The Homo Sapiens Inferior

Now, meet someone who looks like the complete opposite: a washed-up soldier, wounded in battle, bedridden and broken. Prone to bouts of depression. Bald-headed and on the vertically-challenged side. He limped for the rest of his life, appeared grimy in his worn-out clothes, was obsessed with fasting and self-denial.

Meet Ignatius of Loyola. Our next three words apply to him.

By today’s standards, he might be called a Simp—pining for a lady love far above his pay grade. He dreamt of heroic conquests to win her hand. Later on, this unrequited love transformed to an undying devotion to a carpenter’s step-son and his virgin wife. He was willing to do—and suffer—literally anything for Jesus and Mary.  For this, he is truly a simp the way our Gospel portrayed the true friends of Christ:

“Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple… whoever does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:25–33.

Simp by the world’s standards is often faithfulness in God’s eyes.

Ignatius is Cringe—he begged on the streets of Paris just to get through a theology school. Being ignorant of Latin, he had to join little school boys in learning the required language for his studies. He was overly fond of making a long list of all his sins and repeatedly confessing them to priests, bawling his eyes out that one of them told him: “Stop crying or you will go blind!” Cringe is what society labels those who behave in an uncool and socially-frowned manner.  Ignatius is cringe the way Psalm 34 depicts those who fear the Lord:

“Fear the Lord, you his holy ones, for nothing is lacking to those who fear him… those who seek the Lord want for no good thing.” Psalm 34:10-11

What is cringe to the world is courage in God’s wisdom. 

And he is Woke—not the desirable kind, but the type the world now suspects: housing prostitutes, feeding the hungry, tending to plague victims, teaching the ignorant and leading people to the Spiritual Exercises. And doing these without taking something in return. Ignatius is woke in the manner of how St. Paul of our First Reading challenged the followers of Jesus:

“Brothers and sisters: Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God…. please everyone in every way…not seeking [your] own benefit but that of the many so they may be saved.” 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1

What the world calls woke is compassionate in Christ’s eyes. “Be merciful as your Father in heaven is merciful,” he said.

Behold: here is the rejected and forgotten version of the human ideal: The Homo sapiens inferior (or the Inferior Human Being)— A Simp. Cringe. Woke. Someone not even a pet dog like Krypto would consider hanging out with.

THE TWIST:

But lo and behold—more people have been healed, helped, saved, educated, and transformed by people like Ignatius than people like Superman.

Why?

Because Ignatius didn’t just inspire; he instituted thechanges he wanted to see in the world. He didn’t just perform heroic acts—he formed heroic men and women and enlisted them to an enterprise greater than themselves and a mission that embraces not only the Metropolis but the entire world.

Through the Society of Jesus, the religious order he founded, the following have emerged:

• Education: Over 200 Jesuit colleges and universities worldwide—including world-class institutions like Georgetown and Fordham in the US, Sophia University in Japan, the Gregorian in Italy and the Ateneo de Manila here at home.
• Science: Jesuit astronomers run the Vatican Observatory. Thirty-five lunar craters are named after Jesuit scientists. They contributed to seismology, botany, and even the development of genetics.
• Spirituality: Ignatian retreats and the Examen are now practiced by millions—Catholic or not. Even business leaders and therapists have adapted his methods for discernment and mindfulness.
• Art & Culture: From Matteo Ricci’s cartography in China to Karl Rahner’s theology, from Gerard Manley Hopkins’ poetry to the screenplay of The Mission—Jesuits have shaped how we imagine, believe, and dream.
• Politics & Human Rights: Jesuits have long defended the oppressed, often martyred for standing with the poor—from India and China to Europe and the Americas, from Lebanon to the Philippines.
• Health and Human Services: The Jesuits run thousands of hospitals, orphanages, missions, and social centers serving prisoners, refugees, addicts, the mentally ill, the dying.

And yet, Ignatius never sought applause. He just wanted to help souls. Ignatius never wanted fame for himself that’s why he chose “Society of Jesus” as the name of the congregation he founded—a name that bore not his own but the name of the master he wanted his Jesuits to follow.

Yes, Ignatius was every bit the opposite of Superman. He could not fly. He could not dodge bullets. He had no x-ray vision. But he saw a world charged with the grandeur of God.  He may not have a group of Kryptonian robots at his beck and call but he has an army of Jesuits willing to do anything, suffer anything, be sent anywhere and be anything for the greater glory of God. 

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CHALLENGE:

Jeremiah captures this interior torment beautifully in today’s First Reading:

“You duped me, O Lord, and I let myself be duped… I say to myself, I will ot speak in his name anymore. But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart… I grow weary holding it in, and I cannot endure it.” (Jeremiah 20:7–9)

Ignatius felt the same. When he tried to walk away from God’s call, he was restless, agitated, undone. Until he surrendered. Until he embraced becoming a meme, misunderstood, even mocked.

This world prizes appearances over interiority; pursues fame, fortune, and glory rather than poverty of spirit and humility. It chooses the standards of Satan over those of Christ.

If you live like Ignatius, the world would dismiss you. It will even cancel you.

You will be called simp if you try to live a life of kindness, holiness even.
You will be labeled cringe when you empathize with the poor and marginalized.
You will be tagged woke when you march and fight for truth and justice.

But the world needs more men and women who appear weak but are strong for the vulnerable, rather than those who project strength but favor the oppressors and turn a blind eye to the sufferings of the little, the least, and the lost.

In a world full of pabida (wannabe heroes), be santo or santa— willing to suffer for Christ, to do His work, and to love the way He does.”

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FINAL LINE:

Because in the end, the world may seem to adore and drool over Supermen and Superwomen, but it truly hungers for saints like Ignatius.

People may seem to profess undying devotion to rock stars, models and celebrities but they truly need someone who will tell them that God has undying love for all of them. 

And in a time when superheroes become our substitute for the deepest longing of our hearts for change, for justice, for meaning and salvation, it is the simp, the cringe, and the woke that truly satisfy our souls for the greater glory of God.

St. Ignatius of Loyola, pray for us!

Amen.