(Rome) Father Adolfo Nicolas, since 2008, elected as the 30th Superior General of the Jesuits, was elected as the president of religious orders (USG) of the Union of Superiors General.[pdf] In the USG more than 200 of the great male orders of the Catholic Church are united. The largest order of the church is the Society of Jesus, founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola, Society of Jesus, better known as the Jesuits. Pope Francis also belongs to them. The term of office is three years.
In the two periods of office 2006-2012, as the Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Salesians held the threads in his hand, his Mexican friar, Father Pascual Chavez Villanueva, the ninth since 2002 the ninth Superior General of the Salesians of Don Bosco, was elected head of Superiors General Conference. Now, as a Jesuit has taken his place on the papal throne, the office of "religious speaker" has been changed to the Jesuits. The Superior General endeavor to maintain good contacts with the Holy See.
At a Spaniard follows a Spaniard. The term of office of Father Jose Rodriguez Carballo lasted only a few months. The 119th Minister General of the Franciscan Order was in 2012, when a change of statutes made it necessary to have been elected to the head of the USG. On 6 April Pope Francis appointed him on one of the first personnel decisions of his pontificate to Secretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.
The Spanish Jesuit General moved as a former Vice-automatically on the top of the USG. The new deputies will be elected in November. The USG is an institution of pontifical right, which was built by the religious congregation as its own canon law subject.
Their main task is to improve cooperation between the Order and to promote a fruitful cooperation with the Order of the Holy See and the bishops. Its members include only superior general of religious orders of pontifical right. USG is the supreme organ of the General Assembly, which meets once a year. It elects the Executive Board, composed of the Chairman, a Deputy Chairman and ten members of the Board.
The Superior General of the Jesuits is known popularly as the "Black Pope", he is called this because of the black cassock he wears in contrast to the white of the Pope. The name goes back to the often powerful position in the history of the Jesuit Order and because the Superior General of the Jesuits worldwide of 19,000 today like the Pope, is elected for life.
Although Father Nicolas is a Spaniard, he has an experience marked with an "Asian" religious life behind him. He worked most of the time in Asia, especially Japan.
Among the 29 successors of the Founder and first General Order of St. Ignatius of Loyola, the Spanish theologian is the second, who comes from the land of the rising sun. Before him, Father Pedro Arrupe (1907-1991) already had a similar path behind him before he was elected the 29th Superior General in 1965. Father Arrupe was novice master of his order in Hiroshima and witnessed the American atomic bombing of the city. Under his leadership it became the largest order of the Catholic Church, who was known for his iron discipline, through the upheavals that followed the Second Vatican Council, in a serious crisis.
It was a crisis that Pope John Paul II in 1981 led to demand the early resignation of Father Arrupe a say and a choice of a successor. The Dutchman Father Peter Hans Kolvenbach was given the task of regrouping the order again and leading it to calmer waters and more moderate positions. After his resignation in 2008 Father Adolfo Nicolas was appointed as his successor.
Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: Cathopedia / La cigüeña de la torre
Image: Cathopedia / La cigüeña de la torre
Edit: seems to me that an ugly logo stands for institutionalism, ossification and further decline into irrelevance. This Superior has had problems in the past in an order riddled with problems. Does he really grasp the problems surrounding them?
