What are the Jesuits, and what do they believe? The Jesuits today form the largest single religious order of priests and brothers in the Catholic Church. Jesuits are called the pope’s men and take a vow of absolute obedience to the pope. Though Jesuits have existed for 500 years, there had never been a Jesuit pope until the election of Pope Francis in 2013. Many had feared the possibility of a Jesuit pope because of the Jesuit tendency to involve themselves in politics and even to participate in the overthrow of governments.

It has now come to light that the Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Kaine was raised in Jesuit school and participated in a special mission with the Jesuits in Honduras as a young man.