James Carroll Profiles Pope Francis in the NEW YORKER

 

But Carroll does not mention that certain early Jesuits were famous missionaries who went from their European countries to far off places such as India, China, North America, and Latin America.

 

Carroll also does not mention the 1986 Hollywood movie The Mission, which was shot in Latin America.

 

Because the Jesuit missions in Latin America were famous enough to be made into a movie, do you actually believe that the cardinal-electors were unaware of the symbolism involved in electing Cardinal Bergoglio of Argentina to be the first Jesuit pope? I think they wanted that symbolism.

 

Moreover, I think they also wanted what Moore characterizes as Warrior training. In effect, they elected one from their ranks to serve as their warrior/king. Make no mistake about it, Pope Francis is a cultural warrior.

 

Carroll mentions in passing that the Jesuit order was officially suppressed at one time, largely because of the successes of Jesuit missionaries in Latin America. The greed of certain European powers led to the kinds of conflicts portrayed in The Mission. Certain European powers then conspired to have the pope officially suppress the Jesuit order. However, at a later time, a later pope restored the Jesuit order.

 

It would be hard to measure the impact that the historical suppression of the Jesuits has on contemporary Jesuits. However, it is probably safe to say that contemporary Jesuits would prefer not to have the Jesuits suppressed again.

 

But how should we factor in the historical suppression of the Jesuits by the pope in trying to assess Fr. Jorge Bergoglio, S.J., who became the Jesuit Provincial Superior of Argentina in 1973 at the age of 36? As Carroll notes, "he was exceptionally young for such a position." He served as Provincial from 1973 to 1979, "a span that overlapped with the so-called Dirty War, in which Argentina's far-right military junta murdered many thousands of people."

 

Carroll notes, "By Bergoglio's admission, he was not prepared for the challenges of exercising authority in such a tumultuous context." But if Aeschylus is correct in claiming that we learn from suffering, what did Bergoglio learn from his searing experiences of exercising authority in such a tumultuous context?

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