Anton Anderledy facts for kids
Anton Maria Anderledy (born June 3, 1819 – died January 18, 1892) was an important Swiss Jesuit. He was chosen as the twenty-third leader, called the Superior General of the Society of Jesus, for the worldwide Jesuit order.
Early Life and Education
Anton Maria Anderledy was the son of a man who managed postal services. He joined the Jesuit order in 1838 at Brig. This was the start of his training, called a novitiate.
After his novitiate, he taught classic subjects like Latin at a college in Fribourg from 1842 to 1844. He was very good at Latin. He then studied Philosophy in Rome from 1844 to 1847. He also began studying Theology there.
Because of his health, he moved back to Fribourg. In November 1847, the Jesuits were asked to leave Switzerland. Anderledy continued his theology studies in Chambéry (Savoy). In March 1848, another order forced him and fifty others to leave for the United States. He finished his theology studies in St. Louis, Missouri. He became a priest there on September 29, 1848. Archbishop Peter Richard Kenrick ordained him.
Working as a Priest and Leader
For two years, from 1848 to 1850, Anderledy helped German people who had moved to Green Bay, Wisconsin. He worked very hard to support them.
In 1850, he was called back to Europe. He completed his final year of Jesuit training in Drongen, Belgium. Soon after, in 1851, he joined a group of missionaries in Germany. He took part in over 40 missions in different German towns. These missions helped people learn more about their faith.
In 1853, he became the rector, or head, of Jesuit students in Cologne. He moved with them to Paderborn and was in charge of their studies until 1859. Then, he was chosen to be the Provincial of the German Province. A Provincial is a leader who oversees all the Jesuits in a specific region.
During his six years as Provincial, he bought the beautiful medieval abbey of Maria Laach. This abbey was near Bonn. He made it a house for higher studies for the Jesuit province. In 1865, he taught moral theology at Maria Laach. From there, he started a well-known theology journal called Stimmen aus Maria-Laach. In 1870, Anderledy was called to Rome. He became an Assistant to the Jesuit Superior-General for German-speaking areas.
Leading the Jesuits
The Superior General, Pieter Beckx, was 88 years old and unwell. He called a special meeting, called a General Congregation, to choose a vicar general. This vicar general would take over if Beckx could no longer lead.
This meeting, General Congregation XXIII, did not happen in Rome. It was held in Fiesole (Firenze) in 1883. This was because of political problems in Italy. The members almost all chose Anton Anderledy as the vicar general. This meant he would be the next leader. The meeting also decided to strengthen theological and scientific studies within the Jesuit order. They also strongly supported the Gregorian University.
In January 1884, Anderledy took over all the duties of the Superior-General. Beckx retired in Rome. When Beckx died in 1887, Anderledy officially became the Superior-General of the Society of Jesus.
- He wrote letters to the Jesuit order about religious topics. These included the official recognition of saints like Edmund Campion, Alphonsus Rodriguez, John Berchmans, and Aloysius Gonzaga. He also promoted devotion to the Sacred Heart.
- He strongly supported Pope Leo XIII. He backed the Pope's views on certain groups in a letter from 1884. He also spoke out against writings that were against the Pope in France.
- During this time, Jesuits were banned in many European countries. This led to more work overseas. The Canadian mission became independent from England. New missions started in places like Moldavia (1885), Pune (India, 1886), and El Minya (Egypt, 1887). Many new colleges and Universities were also founded. These included Enghien in Belgium (1887), Los Gatos (California), Kurseong (India, 1888), and Tananarive (Malagasy, 1888).
- He also prepared a new edition of a book called Neo-Confessarius by Reuter. He added his own notes to it.
His Legacy
Anderledy's time as Superior General was shorter than his predecessors. He also had to lead the Jesuits while they were not based in Rome. His main office was in Fiesole (Firenze). This caused many challenges.
He was known for being very firm in how he led the Jesuits. He also showed a modern interest in scientific studies in Jesuit schools. Even with many difficulties, the number of Jesuits continued to grow. When he was chosen, there were 11,481 members. By 1892, there were 13,275. This showed his strong leadership during a tough time.
