We did it once, we can do it again.
An Excellent Idea
- Donald R. McClarey
Donald R. McClarey
Cradle Catholic. Active in the pro-life movement since 1973. Father of three, one in Heaven, and happily married for 43 years. Small town lawyer and amateur historian. Former president of the board of directors of the local crisis pregnancy center for a decade.
As one who was Jesuit educated, my experience was that the Jesuits themselves at the university ran the gamut, and it was usually their ages that you could determine where they stood (i.e. older = more traditional).
There were/are 3-4 to whom I owe my life for their assistance and spiritual direction to the 18-21 year old me, and there were about 5 others who were/are textbook cases of why Clement XIV was right to suppress the Order in 1773.
So, Francis was too radical for Martini?!!? That’s saying something!
I would tie in the suppression of the current Order with a new Jesuit Order, with strict rules as to who can apply, and current Jesuits only with explicit papal approval. 90 percent of the current Jesuits give the remaining ten percent a bad name.
That 90-10 ratio is pretty spot on. The aforementioned Jesuits who were indispensable to me have all gone on to their eternal reward, leaving behind the ones who treat their priesthood and vocation as a burden.
“90 percent of the current Jesuits give the remaining ten percent a bad name.” Amen to that. I can count the number of Jesuits that I’ve met that are faithful on one hand with fingers left over. I knew Fr. John Hardin RIP and casually know Fr. Fessio and Fr Spitzer. Other than them, I don’t know a faithful one, even though I’m sure they’re out there. Probably keeping their head down. Bishop Strickland shows the intelligence in doing that. Getting on the Pope’s enemies lists is worse than getting on Biden’s.
As they say: “Not all Jesuits are bad. Fr. Mitch Pacwa is still alive.” The modern Jesuits are merely representative of the decay of the modern, post-conciliar Church. They’re the symptom and while I think suppressing them would be an improvement, it will have to come with a lot more tending of the garden.

One has to consider suppressing much more than just the Jesuits. But, then again, rather than suppressing many, we need to agitate them to activism to do the very job for which they took those vows. What this church needs now is martyrdom badly. Better a wounded, but holy church, than an empty shell, that is silent. Our Lord was not crucified because He was silent.
Suppressed in 1773…
The 1770s must have been a wild time to be an American Catholic!
When I was in Catholic High School, we had a Jesuit Tertiary a few blocks away. Many of us became acquainted with the professed brother who was in charge of the facility administration and coordinated our senior retreat. This was at the time Vatican II was just being organized. There was very little discussion of the agenda or individual interests but everyone seemed quite hopeful. About 15 years later the facility closed for lack of seminarians. So much for hope and change..
“So much for hope and change..“. If there’s one thing, the current pontificate teaches us, it is that not all change is good.
Optimist, if by America, you mean the area that became the United States, probably not so wild. In Central and South America, however, where you had what might almost be considered a Jesuit Empire, wild probably didn’t even begin to describe it. And thank you for giving me a new amateur research project, as I do not know what it is that I do not know!
Admittedly, I was thinking about those Catholics in the 13 colonies who would be experiencing this along with the American Revolution.
But now I too am curious about the effect on the Spanish New World…
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My Jesuit experience at BC in the early/mid ‘70s exposed me a collection of priests who were embarrassed by many things Catholic. Except the WWII era priests of course.
The others looked up to Teilhard and Drinan. Loyola was never mentioned.