AN Australian priest is being touted as a contender for one of the top posts in the Catholic Church -- the superior-general of the Jesuits, commonly known as the "black pope". Mark Raper, the Provincial of the Australian Jesuits, is believed to be among the favoured replacements for outgoing black pope Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, who is standing aside after 25 years as global leader of the religious order.
Father Raper, who was international director of the Jesuit Refugee Service from 1990 to 2000, is in Rome ahead of this week's General Congregation, a meeting of 226 delegates from the order's geographical "provinces" around the world.
When contacted by The Australian last night, Father Raper said he had been advised not to comment about the coming election.
Asked if he was aware of the speculation that he was a frontrunner for the job, he said: "There's about 19,000 candidates for the position. Every Jesuit who has taken the vows is a candidate."
Father Raper also refused to confirm that he would accept the position if chosen. "I'm sorry, I'm not able to say anything about that."
The election of a black pope requires a three-quarter majority of delegates. It is expected that the new superior-general will be appointed by next week.
The Jesuits are the largest clerical order in the Church.
However, their numbers have dropped in recent years, with about 19,000 members worldwide, down from a peak of 36,000 in the 1960s.
A recent Time magazine article described Father Raper as being on "the insider's list". It also speculated the Jesuits could elect their first leader from Asia, naming Lisbert D'Sousa of India.
Another candidate mentioned was Italy's Federico Lombardi, the current papal spokesman and longtime head of Vatican radio and television channels.
Voting takes place only after four days of what in Latin is called "murmuratio" or private discussions among delegates.
"Anyone showing any sign of ambition is automatically disqualified. Then, after a prayer to the Holy Spirit and oath of allegiance, the voting is carried out with secret written ballots," the article said.
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