Ignatius Press
American Catholic publishing house founded in San Francisco in 1978 by Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J., known as the primary English-language publisher of Pope Benedict XVI's works and, in 2014, at the center of a dispute over a book mailed to Synod on the Family participants.
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- Established
- 1978
- Location
- San Francisco, California, United States
- Country
- United States
- Founded
- June 1978, in San Francisco, as the primary activity of the nonprofit religious corporation Guadalupe Associates, Inc.stated by the subject
- Founders
- Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J., and Carolyn Lemonstated by the subject
- Chief executive
- Mark Brumley, described as Ignatius Press's CEO in a 2014 America Magazine interview
- Scale (as of 2018)
- Roughly 2,000 titles by several hundred authors published since founding, with about 39 million total copies sold and about 2 million copies sold per year
- Best-known author relationship
- Described as the primary English-language publisher of the works of Pope Benedict XVI (Joseph Ratzinger), under whom Fessio had studied theology
- Author (connection to this site)
- Publisher of Donna Steichen's "Ungodly Rage" (1991), "Prodigal Daughters" (1998), and "Chosen" (2009)stated by the subject
Overview
Ignatius Press is an American Catholic publishing house founded in San Francisco in June 1978 by Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J., and Carolyn Lemon, operating as the primary activity of the nonprofit religious corporation Guadalupe Associates, Inc. (Ignatius Press). Fessio had studied theology in Germany under Joseph Ratzinger — later Pope Benedict XVI — and had been mentored in France by the theologian Henri de Lubac; that background shaped the press’s original focus on bringing major European Catholic theologians’ works into English (Ignatius Press). By its 40th anniversary in November 2018, Catholic World Report reported that Ignatius Press had published roughly 2,000 titles by several hundred authors, sold about 39 million copies in total, and was selling about 2 million copies a year, having grown to include film, home and online schooling, periodicals — including Catholic World Report itself — liturgical music and other media alongside books (Catholic World Report). As of a 2014 interview, Mark Brumley served as the press’s CEO, with America Magazine describing Ignatius Press as “one of the biggest U.S. Catholic publishers” (America Magazine).
Notable authors and Pope Benedict XVI
Ignatius Press became known as the primary English-language publisher of the works of Pope Benedict XVI, drawing on Fessio’s earlier relationship with Ratzinger as his theology teacher (Ignatius Press). Catholic World Report’s 40th-anniversary retrospective also lists Pope John Paul II, G.K. Chesterton and Josef Pieper among the press’s notable authors, alongside more recent titles such as Robert Reilly’s “Making Gay Okay” and Michael O’Brien’s “Father Elijah” novels (Catholic World Report).
Connection to Donna Steichen
Ignatius Press published all three of Donna Steichen’s books: “Ungodly Rage: The Hidden Face of Catholic Feminism” (1991), which became an unexpected bestseller for a first-time author; “Prodigal Daughters: Catholic Women Come Home to the Church” (1998); and “Chosen: How Christ Sent Twenty-Three Surprised Converts to Replant His Vineyard” (2009) (Ignatius Press).
The 2014 Synod on the Family book controversy
Ignatius Press became a subject of Vatican-related news coverage in its own right during the 2014 Extraordinary Synod on the Family. The press printed and mailed roughly 200 copies of “Remaining in the Truth of Christ,” a book featuring Cardinal Raymond Burke and four other cardinals defending Church discipline against giving Communion to divorced and civilly remarried Catholics, to synod participants ahead of the proceedings (National Catholic Register). According to reporting from Catholic World Report, Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, the synod’s secretary general, was described as furious about the book and ordered Vatican postal staff to intercept it before it reached the synod hall; only a few of the roughly 200 mailed copies reportedly reached their intended recipients. Fr. Joseph Fessio, on behalf of Ignatius Press, confirmed that account of how many copies were mailed and how few arrived. Baldisseri’s side maintained that the mailing itself had gone through improper channels, effectively acknowledging that the books were taken while disputing that this amounted to censorship (Catholic World Report). National Catholic Register separately reported that Ignatius Press published other synod-related titles in the same period, including “God or Nothing,” a book-length interview with Cardinal Robert Sarah, and “Living the Truth in Love,” on pastoral approaches to same-sex attraction, with Fessio saying that synod-related authors brought their manuscripts to his San Francisco house, and Ignatius Press president Mark Brumley describing the press’s aim of supplying “clear teaching on the faith” during a period of heightened attention (National Catholic Register). America Magazine’s Brumley interview, conducted the same month the synod controversy began, separately confirms that Ignatius Press deliberately times some releases to periods of “heightened media and church attention” (America Magazine).
What this profile does not claim
This profile does not resolve the underlying dispute over the 2014 “Remaining in the Truth of Christ” mailing: Ignatius Press’s account frames the interception as suppression of a book Vatican synod officials did not want cardinals to read, while Cardinal Baldisseri’s side is reported to have said the mailing itself used improper channels. Both positions are stated without adjudicating between them. Leadership history beyond Mark Brumley’s role as CEO in an October 2014 interview — including when he was appointed or who preceded him — could not be independently dated in this pass and is not stated. A HuffPost Religion article that reportedly also covered the 2014-2015 Synod book controversy could not be fetched (blocked by the site’s robots.txt rules) and is not cited; this profile relies instead on Catholic World Report and National Catholic Register for that episode. Founding details beyond the 1978 date and Fessio’s role as founder — the exact co-founder name Carolyn Lemon and the Guadalupe Associates, Inc. parent-corporation structure — rest on Ignatius Press’s own “About Us” page, since no independent source read for this profile gave the same level of founding detail.
Timeline
- 1978-06
- Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J. — who had studied theology in Germany under Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, and had been mentored by Henri de Lubac — founds Ignatius Press in San Francisco together with Carolyn Lemon, as the primary activity of the nonprofit religious corporation Guadalupe Associates, Inc., with the goal of making important European Catholic theological works available in English.
- 1991
- Publishes Donna Steichen's "Ungodly Rage: The Hidden Face of Catholic Feminism," which becomes an unexpected bestseller for a first-time author.
- 1998-2009
- Publishes two further Steichen books, "Prodigal Daughters" (1998) and "Chosen" (2009).
- 2014-10
- Amid the Vatican's Extraordinary Synod on the Family, Ignatius Press prints and mails roughly 200 copies of "Remaining in the Truth of Christ" — featuring Cardinal Raymond Burke and four other cardinals defending Church discipline against Communion for divorced and remarried Catholics — to synod participants; only a few copies reportedly reach their intended recipients before Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, the synod's secretary general, orders the mailing intercepted, later saying the books had been sent through improper channels.
- 2018-11
- Marks its 40th anniversary, reporting roughly 2,000 titles published by several hundred authors, about 39 million total copies sold, and about 2 million copies sold per year.
What we could not verify
These claims came up in research and could not be confirmed. They are recorded here rather than published as fact or quietly dropped. If you hold a source that settles one, please tell us.
- Precise leadership succession (when Mark Brumley became CEO, and who held that role before him) could not be independently dated in this pass; America Magazine's October 2014 interview identifies him as CEO at that time, but no independently fetched source gave an appointment date.
- A HuffPost Religion article ("Vatican Mystery: Book Thief?") that reportedly covered the 2014-2015 Synod book controversy could not be fetched in this pass (blocked by the site's robots.txt) and is therefore not cited; the controversy is instead sourced entirely to Catholic World Report and National Catholic Register, both of which independently name Cardinal Baldisseri and describe Ignatius Press's and Fr. Fessio's account of events.
- This profile does not resolve the underlying dispute over why the "Remaining in the Truth of Christ" copies were intercepted — Ignatius Press's side describes it as suppression, while Cardinal Baldisseri is reported to have said the mailing itself was irregular — and states both positions rather than adjudicating between them.
Sources
6 sources (4 tier 2, 2 first-party), each opened and read against the claim it supports. Statements the subject makes about itself are marked as such and are not treated as independent evidence. See the source policy.
Every source below was independently fetched and read against the specific claim it supports. Wikipedia's article on Ignatius Press was checked only as a lead index — for example, to identify the 2014 Synod controversy and the co-founder name Carolyn Lemon as leads — and every lead was independently verified against a fresh, non-Wikipedia source (the publisher's own "About Us" page for founding facts, and Catholic World Report / National Catholic Register / America Magazine for the Synod controversy and leadership) before use; it is not cited here. Founding details (exact date, Guadalupe Associates parent corporation, co-founder Carolyn Lemon) rest on the publisher's own first-party page, since no independent source read for this profile gave the same level of founding detail; the 1978 year and Fessio's role as founder are independently corroborated by Catholic World Report and National Catholic Register. The connection to Donna Steichen — that Ignatius Press published "Ungodly Rage," "Prodigal Daughters," and "Chosen" — is drawn from the publisher's own author page, the same first-party source already used for this fact in Steichen's profile.
- Ignatius Press at Forty Supports: Independent confirmation of the 1978 founding date, Fr. Fessio's role as founder, the press's growth to roughly 2,000 titles by several hundred authors and about 39 million copies sold by its 40th anniversary in November 2018, its list of notable authors (John Paul II, G.K. Chesterton, Josef Pieper, Robert Reilly, Michael O'Brien), and its expansion into film, schooling, periodicals (including Catholic World Report itself) and liturgical music.
- Reports: Card. Baldisseri Ordered Interception of Copies of Book Mailed to Synod Participants Supports: The account of roughly 200 copies of "Remaining in the Truth of Christ" being mailed to 2014 Synod on the Family participants, Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri's alleged order to intercept them, his stated justification that the mailing was "irregular," and Fr. Joseph Fessio's confirmation, on behalf of Ignatius Press, that only a few of roughly 200 mailed copies reached their intended recipients.
- Ignatius Press and Its High-Profile Authors Still Inform Synod Debate Supports: Independent confirmation of Ignatius Press's role publishing multiple books tied to the 2014-2015 Synod on the Family debate — "Remaining in the Truth of Christ," "God or Nothing" (a book-length interview with Cardinal Robert Sarah), and "Living the Truth in Love" — Fr. Fessio's account that synod-related authors brought manuscripts to his San Francisco house, the controversy over the mailing and interception of "Remaining in the Truth of Christ," and a quote from Ignatius Press president Mark Brumley on the press's rationale for publishing clear doctrinal teaching.
- Apologetics and American Culture: Q&A with Ignatius Press CEO Mark Brumley Supports: Independent confirmation of Mark Brumley's role as CEO of Ignatius Press, described as "one of the biggest U.S. Catholic publishers"; his account of the press's strategy of timing synod-related book releases to coincide with heightened media attention; and his framing of apologetics as intertwined with evangelization.
- About Us Supports: Founding details not independently corroborated elsewhere: the exact June 1978 founding date, co-founder Carolyn Lemon, the press's legal status as the primary activity of the nonprofit Guadalupe Associates, Inc., and its stated mission and author-selection criteria.
- Authors - Donna Steichen Supports: Confirmation that Ignatius Press's current author catalog lists Donna Steichen's "Prodigal Daughters" and "Chosen."
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