The hand-made wool carpet, designed by Steven Holl, continues the story of the illumination from within and above that the pilgrim Ignatius experienced. At the River Cardoner outside of Manresa, Ignatius had a moment of profound spiritual insight in which, as he described later, "the eyes of his understanding began to be opened...so great an enlightenment that everything seemed new to him." He had similar moments of deepening from outside and within while in the other cities named on the carpet border. The blue part of the carpet represents the River Cardoner, flowing from the pool of contemplation outside the chapel, directing pilgrims toward the flowing water of the baptismal font and further into the assembly worship space.
The narthex features five icons that portray key moments in the spiritual growth of Ignatius. The icon were commissioned for the chapel and were painted by Dora Nikolova Bittau, who lives and works in Rome.