Mercurianus, Father

Mercurianus, Father a noted Romanist of the Order of the Jesuits, was a Belgian by birth. We know but little of his personal history, except that he stood very high in the estimation of pope Gregory XIII, who caused his advancement to the generalship of the order. He died Aug. 1, 1580. Nicolini, Hist. of the Jesuits (p. 150), tells us that "he was a simple and weak old man. Mercurianus," he continues, exercised very little influence on the destinies of the order, and was the first general whose authority was held in little account."