The General Idea

Fr. Adolfo Nicolás, the Jesuits' new superior general, presided at the Eucharist that concluded the Jesuits' 35th general congregation on March 6. It had begun 60 days earlier, having been called by Fr. Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, SJ, superior general since 1983, who wished to resign.

Two hundred and seventeen delegates had convened in Rome in January, 450 years after the first congregation, which elected James Laynez as general after Ignatius's death.

The work done, the discussions held, and the decisions made at this congregation will be guiding the Society of Jesus for many years to come.

January 7 was the congregation's start date. Among the first orders of business were the offering and the acceptance of Kolvenbach's resignation. He (center) and fellow participants (below) walked from a liturgy at the Church of the Holy Spirit to the Jesuit Curia to take up the next task: electing a new general.

The 200-plus Jesuit delegates from the world over dedicated themselves to four days of murmuratio, a time during which they asked and answered questions about fellow Jesuits, trying to identify the best candidate for the position of superior general.

Spaniard Adolfo Nicolás took the oath of office (above right) on January 19 after having been elected on the second ballot.

The next day he celebrated his first mass as superior general at the Jesuits' Church of the Gesù.

The delegates met in groups and then convened in the aula, or hall, at the Jesuit Curia, to decide on changes to Jesuit governance and to craft decrees on the Society's mission and identity, on obedience, and on its cooperation with the laity, among others.

The 60 days in Rome were packed with meetings and committee work, but the Sistine Chapel (below) was a draw for a number of delegates on one February Saturday.

Documents discussed, amended, and finalized, the delegates met on March 6, after two months in Rome, and voted to conclude the congregation.

Pope Benedict XVI met with the Jesuit delegates and the new general in the papal palace. Tradition has it that the pope is the first to be informed when Jesuits elect a new general.