Today, the Church celebrates the memory of Peter Claver, S.J.. Peter was born in Spain, not far from Barcelona in 1580. The wealth of his family enable him to attend the University of Barcelona and it was there that he developed an intense piety which saw its desire in fulfilling a life of service to others in imitation of Christ. After the completion of his studies at Barcelona he entered the Society of Jesus. Part of his studies included the study of philosophy in Palma, Mallorca where he fell under the influence of the Alfonso Rodriquez, the Jesuit brother who was assigned the job of porter but more importantly, shared his spiritual insights with those he met. The outcome of this conversation encouraged Peter to follow his desire and he requested and received the mission to work in the port city Cartagena. Cartagena was one of the centers of the slave trade in the New World, with over 10,000 humans trafficked yearly through its port. Peter was appalled by the conditions of these fellow humans, a hatred of the effects of slavery he developed after following in the footsteps of another Jesuit Alonso de Sandoval. Alonso worked in Cartagena among the slaves for several years prior to the arrival of Peter Claver and wrote an influential book describing the atrocities of slavery. The work of Sandoval was influenced by another Jesuit, José de Acosta whose writings defended the rights of indigenous persons. Inspired by the work of these Jesuits and by his own academic training that argued from reason and faith for the dignity of the human person, Peter Claver spent forty years ministering to the slaves of Cartegena. His heroic story identifies one instance of the Jesuit insistence on the dignity of the human person and his life serves as an inspiration for everyone.