Subsequent to their initial deliberations during Lent in 1539, the eleven men determined their religious order would include a vow of obedience. They offered their shared intentions to enter that organization by signing the following vow of obedience, if, the vow notes, the group “will be confirmed by the pope.” Papal approval for the Society […]
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This document, a chapter from the Part IX of the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus, articulates the desired qualities in the Jesuits’ superior general. Though the Constitutions were not approved until the first General Congregation of 1558, the first Jesuits elected Ignatius as their superior general in April 1541. Ignatius collaborated with Juan Alfonso
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The Constitutions of the Society of Jesus recognized the difficulty in maintaining a unity among Jesuits so dispersed in the world, noting that “the Society cannot be preserved or governed, or consequently, attain the aim it seeks for the greater glory of God unless its members are united among themselves and with their head.” In Part
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The Society of Jesus—much like “all well-organized communities or congregations”—appoints a person “whose proper duty,” according to the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus, “is to attend to the universal good.” For the Jesuits in particular, the superior general’s “duty is the good government, preservation, and growth of the whole body of the Society.” (Rather
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Founded at Boston College in 2014, the Institute for Advanced Jesuit Studies seeks to deepen understanding and appreciation for the history, spirituality, educational heritage, and pedagogical approaches of the Society of Jesus. The Institute hopes to serve as a dynamic and collaborative scholarly resource—both at Boston College and around the world—for important coursework, publications, symposia,
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International Symposia on Jesuit Studies are held on an annual basis, providing opportunities for academic exchange within the global community of Jesuit Studies scholars. Each year, the Institute invites some of the presenters to revise their presentations into essays, which are peer reviewed and published, both in print and online in Open Access. The
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