Superior General of the Society of Jesus

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Saint Ignatius of Loyola served as the first Superior General.

The Superior General of the Society of Jesus is the official title of the leader of the Society of Jesus—the Roman Catholic religious order also known as the Jesuits. He is generally addressed as Father General. Because the Jesuits are such a large and influential order, the position carries the nickname of Black Pope, after his simple black priest's vestments, as contrasted to the white garb of the Pope.

1 Titles
- 1.1 Black Pope
2 Powers
3 Conspiracy Theories
4 Succession
5 List of Superiors General
6 Notes
7 References
8 External links and references

[edit] Titles

The formal title in Latin is "Praepositus Generalis," which may fairly be rendered as "superior general," or even "president general." The term is not of military origin, despite popular misconceptions, but is derived from "general" as opposed to "particular" (as with many other Catholic religious orders, like the Dominicans' "master general," Franciscans' "minister general," Carthusians' "prior general" etc.). The Jesuits are organized into provinces, each with a provincial superior (usually referred to as the "Provincial Father," or just "Provincial"), with the head of the order being the "general superior" for the whole organization. As a major superior, the Superior General is styled "The Very Reverend".

[edit] Black Pope

"Black Pope" is a light-hearted name given to the Superior General, usually by the media (and never used by the Jesuits themselves). The name comes partly from the color of the plain black priest's cassock worn by members of the society, including the superior general, and partly from a past concern (most prominent around the 16th and 17th centuries) amongst Protestant European countries concerning the relative power of the Jesuits within the Roman Catholic Church

[edit] Powers

The Superior General is invested with ordinary power over the members of the society, similar to the power given to a bishop over the people of a diocese. Superiors General submit themselves to the direct authority of and service to the Pope, not local ordinaries.

[edit] Conspiracy Theories

A number of conspiracy theories involve the "Black Pope". One such is the idea that the Jesuit Order has control of most of the secret services in the world including the CIA, the FBI, the KGB, the Mossad, the BND, and the SIS and have ordered and profited through creating wars and killing millions. Their motive is claimed to be the eventual rise of the "Black Pope" into the Anti-Christ[1].

[edit] Succession

Superiors General are elected by the General Congregation of the Society, summoned upon the resignation, retirement or death of an incumbent. Superiors General are elected for life, and almost all have served life terms, the exception being Father Pedro Arrupe who resigned for reasons of failing health. The current Superior General of the Society is Father Peter Hans Kolvenbach. In February 2006 he announced his resignation and convoked a new General Congregation, to convene in January 2008, which will elect his successor.

[edit] List of Superiors General

Peter Hans Kolvenbach, current Superior-General of the Catholic order or the Jesuits, in Goa, India, Nov 9, 2006.

Jesuit Superior-General Fr Kolvenbach poses for a photo with alumni of a Jesuit school, in Goa

St. Ignatius of Loyola (April 19, 1541–July 31, 1556)
James Lainez (July 2, 1558–January 19, 1565)
St. Francis Borgia (July 2, 1565–October 1, 1572)
Everard Mercurian (April 23, 1573–August 1, 1580)
Claudius Acquaviva (February 19, 1581–January 31, 1615)
Mutio Vitelleschi (November 15, 1615–February 9, 1645)
Vincenzo Caraffa (January 7, 1646–June 8, 1649)
Francesco Piccolomini (December 21, 1649–June 17, 1651)
Alessandro Gottifredi (January 21, 1652–March 12, 1652)
Goschwin Nickel (March 17, 1652–July 31, 1664)
Giovanni Paolo Oliva (July 31, 1664–November 26, 1681)
Charles de Noyelle (July 5, 1682–December 12, 1686)
Thyrsus González de Santalla (July 6, 1687–October 27, 1705)
Michelangelo Tamburini (January 31, 1706–February 28, 1730)
Franz Retz (March 7, 1730–November 19, 1750)
Ignatius Viscanti (July 4, 1751–May 4, 1755)
Alessandro Centurioni (November 30, 1755–October 2, 1757)
Lorenzo Ricci (May 21, 1758–August 16, 1773) ^[2]
Tadeusz Brzozowski (August 7, 1814–February 5, 1820)
Luigi Fortis (October 18, 1820–January 27, 1829)
Jan Roothaan (July 9, 1829–May 8, 1853)
Pieter Beckx (August 2, 1853–March 4, 1887)
Anton Anderledy (March 4, 1887–January 18, 1892)
Luis Martín (October 2, 1892–April 18, 1906)
Franz Xavier Wernz (September 8, 1906–August 20, 1914)
Wlodimir Ledochowski (February 11, 1915–December 13, 1942)
Jean-Baptiste Janssens (September 15, 1946–October 5, 1964)
Pedro Arrupe (May 22, 1965–September 3, 1983)
Peter Hans Kolvenbach (September 13, 1983–present)

[edit] Notes

^ In 1773, the Jesuits were suppressed by Pope Clement XIV through the brief Dominus ac redemptor on July 21, 1773, executed August 16. The leaders of the order in the nations where the Papal suppression order was not enforced were known as temporary Vicars General. They were:

Saint Francis Borgia, depicted performing an exorcism, served as the third Superior General.

Stanislaus Czerniewicz (October 17, 1782–October 21, 1785)
Gabriel Lenkiewisz (October 8, 1785–October 21, 1798)
Franciszek Kareu (February 12, 1799–March 7, 1801)

On March 7, 1801, Pope Pius VII issued the brief Catholicae fidei, giving approval to the existence of the Society in Russia and allowing the Society there to elect a Superior General for Russia. This was the first step to the Society's eventual restoration. The generals in Russia were: