Church of the Gesu

Church of the Gesù
Italian: Chiesa del Santissimo Nome di Gesù all'Argentina
Giacomo della Porta's façade, a precursor of the Baroque
Church of the Gesù
41°53′45″N 12°28′47″E / 41.89583°N 12.47972°E / 41.89583; 12.47972Coordinates: 41°53′45″N 12°28′47″E / 41.89583°N 12.47972°E / 41.89583; 12.47972
Location	Via degli Astalli, 16 Rome
Country	Italy
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Website	www.chiesadelgesu.org
History
Consecrated	1584
Architecture
Status	Mother church of the Society of Jesus
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola Giacomo della Porta
Style	Mannerist Baroque (façade)
Groundbreaking	1568
Completed	1580
Specifications
Length	75 metres (246 ft)
Width	35 metres (115 ft)
Nave width	25 metres (82 ft)
Other dimensions	Façade direction: W
Number of domes	1
Administration
Diocese	Rome

External video

Pozzo's Saint Ignatius Chapel in the church Il Gesù, 1695 (Rome), Smarthistory

Il Gesù, Rome, Smarthistory

The Church of the Gesù (Italian: Chiesa del Gesù; Italian pronunciation: [ˈkjɛːza del dʒeˈzu]) is the mother church of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), a Catholic religious order. Officially named Chiesa del Santissimo Nome di Gesù all'Argentina (English: Church of the Most Holy Name of Jesus at the "Argentina"), its facade is "the first truly baroque façade", introducing the baroque style into architecture. The church served as model for innumerable Jesuit churches all over the world, especially in the Americas. The Church of the Gesù is located in the Piazza del Gesù in Rome.

First conceived in 1551 by Saint Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits Society of Jesus, and active during the Protestant Reformation and the subsequent Catholic Counter-Reformation, the Gesù was also the home of the Superior General of the Society of Jesus until the suppression of the order in 1773. The church having been subsequently regained by the Jesuits, the adjacent palazzo is now a residence for Jesuit scholars from around the world studying at the Gregorian University in preparation for ordination to the priesthood.

Although Michelangelo, at the request of the Spanish cardinal Bartolomeo de la Cueva, offered, out of devotion, to design the church free, the endeavor was funded by Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, grandson of Pope Paul III, the pope who had authorized the founding of the Society of Jesus. Ultimately, the main architects involved in the construction were Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola, architect of the Farnese family, and Giacomo della Porta. The church was built on the same spot as the previous church Santa Maria della Strada, where Saint Ignatius of Loyola had once prayed before an image of the Holy Virgin. This image, now adorned with gems, can be seen in the church in the chapel of Ignatius on the right side of the altar.