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. The Superior General is addressed Father General, harkening back to the early military career of the founder and first Superior General of the Society, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, a Basque soldier. He organized his religious order into military units, thus the collective religious order is seen as a company led by a general.

As a major superior, the Superior General is styled "The Very Reverend" and is invested with ordinary power over the members of the society, similar to the power given to a bishop

Superiors General submit themselves to the direct authority of and service to the Pope, not local ordinaries. Superiors General are elected for life, and almost all have served life terms, the exception being Father Pedro Arrupe. The current Superior General of the Society is Father Peter Hans Kolvenbach. He has recently announced his resignation and convoked a new General Congregation, to convene in January 2008, which will elect his successor.

List of Superiors General

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

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:

• Franciszek Kareu (March 7, 1801–August 11, 1802)
• Gabriel Gruber (October 22, 1802–April 6, 1805)
• Tadeusz Brzozowski (September 14, 1805–August 7, 1814)

The order was restored on August 7, 1814 by Pope Pius VII through the bull Sollicitudo omnium ecclesiarum.

Due to his power within the Church and his black garments, the Superior General has at times been called the "Black Pope".

References

See also

• Black Pope