The Society of Jesus has two missions, to defend the Church against heresy and to make converts. It is a very large society as someone has already said. It’s an international community. There is going to be a great deal of variety among its members.
In addition, it is a Society of scholars. Part of defending the Church against heresy means understanding what is and what is not heresy. Therefore, they are students of a broader cut of theological and secular sciences than other religious communities. Most Jesuits have several degrees, not just in theology, but other disciplines as well. When they speak they often bring in ideas from their different fields of expertise.
Contrary to what the laity expects, it is not the mission of the Jesuits to be apologists. Their mission is to educate Catholics and non Catholics alike, both in ecclesial disciplines and secular disciplines. This was the mission entrusted to them by their founder. It is up to the listener to think about what they are taught and to discriminate between faith, reason, opinion and dogma.
Unlike the Dominicans, the Jesuits are not bound to preach just the faith, but to educate the entire person and to offer the individual enough information and knowledge so that he or she can make an informed assent to the faith.
Like all large religious institutes, the Society has men who identify one area as their primary concern and focus on that, like Father Mitch. But it has never been part of their tradition to have a common area of concern for the entire Society.
Jesuits are religious of a different type than other religious. They are really diocesan priests who make vows. They are bound to what is called the Common Table, not to Obedience, as are many other religious such as Franciscans, Dominicans, Carmelites, Augustinians etc. The Church makes these distinctions among religious institutes to allow each to live according to its charism. This does not mean that the Jesuits do not have to be obedient. They do. This means that they are not bound to obey one ideal or one emphasis of religious life. In this sense, they are like diocesan priests. Diocesan priests are not religious. Each priest can follow his own calling and dedicate his life and work to a particular mission or need within the Church. He can choose what aspect of the faith he wants to emphasize in his ministry and personal life.
The only reason that the Society makes solemn vows is to protect them from the reach of the bishops. Men and women in solemn vows have Pontifical Rights. They answer only to the Pope. The Pope rarely intervenes in their life or ministry, though he can. No bishop can do so. Had it not been for the power of the bishops, Ignatius would have not made vows, except the one to the Holy Father. He never intended to found a religious order. His intention was to found a society of scholarly missionaries modelled on the armies of Spain. What make the Jesuits very unique are their scholarship and their internal organization. They are organized like an army with a Superior General who is elected for life, like a General in the army. He is often referred to as the Black Pope because of his power and his black cassock or suit.
When a Jesuit speaks, it falls on the audience to use their knowledge of theology, scripture, spirituality, social science, natural science and other disciplines to sort out the message. Even among those Jesuits that sound very liberal there are very holy men who are doing just what the Society wants them to do, to teach everything so that people can make free and informed choices for the faith. The Jesuits have an interesting exception in the Church. They are allowed to speculate. It’s part of being an ecclesial scholar.
Just like any large family, you are always going to have a rogue member here and there. That’s human and to be expected. But do not measure the Jesuits with the same yardstick that you measure other religious. They are not in the same league or the same kind of religious. Their vocation and life is very different from other religious families. Just observe the manner in which they dress. Jesuits have never dressed as religious do. They have always dressed like secular (diocesan) priests. They did not want to be identified as an order, but as a society of priests in the service of the Church. When St. Francis Xavier went to the East he wore the orange robes of the Asian pagan clergy. So did all the Jesuits.
Hope this helps.
Fraternally,
JR
