Francis Xavier was one of the great missionaries of the church. Born is Spain in 1506, he studied locally before taking up university studies in Paris in 1526, receiving a masters degree in 1530. While in Paris he met Ignatius Loyola and together with a small group of companions, they bound themselves together for the service of God on August 15, 1534, the beginning of what would later become the Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits. After further theological study, Francis and Ignatius were ordained together in 1537.