Jesuit Father Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, whose service as superior general of the Society of Jesus marked a return to normal governance after a period of tension with the Vatican, died in Beirut on November 26, four days before his 88th birthday.
After the Jesuit general congregation accepted his resignation as superior in 2008, he returned to Lebanon and served as an assistant librarian at the Jesuit-run St Joseph University in Beirut.
In a message of condolence to Fr Arturo Sosa, the current superior, and his brother Jesuits, Pope Francis praised Fr Kolvenbach's "complete fidelity to Christ and his Gospel" and his "generous commitment to exercising his office with a spirit of service for the good of the Church."
