''Exposcit Debitum'' (Latin for ''The Duty requires'') is the title of the Papal bull (or 'Apostolic Letter') that gave a second and final approval to the foundation of the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

(the Jesuits). It was issued by

Pope Julius III Pope Julius III ( la, Iulius PP. III; it, Giulio III; 10 September 1487 – 23 March 1555), born Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 February 1550 to his death in March 155 ...

on 21 July 1550. It replaced '' Regimini militantis Ecclesiae'' of 1540. The structure of the text is the same but, based on 10 years experience, some modifications were introduced: #the limitation to 60 members was dropped; #it allowed the admission of Coadjutors, that is: zealous but uneducated priests (spiritual coadjutors) and competent lay people desirous to offer their life for an apostolic service (temporal coadjutors) The temporal coadjutors have always taken the same three vows of religious life, and are nowadays called 'Jesuit Brothers';''Exposcit Debitum'' at jesuitportal.bc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/1550_Formula.pdf. Retrieved 15 December 2017. #''Defence of the faith'' is added to its ''Propagation'' as an aim of the Society of Jesus (the 10 years separating this text to the first approval, have been enough for St

Ignatius of Loyola Ignatius of Loyola, S.J. (born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; eu, Ignazio Loiolakoa; es, Ignacio de Loyola; la, Ignatius de Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Spanish Catholic priest and theologian, ...

to realize how dangerous for the

Catholic faith The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

was the rapid progress of

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

). ''Exposcit Debitum'' is still the referential papal document, a sort of foundational chart, for whatever deliberation takes place on the identity and mission of the Jesuits in the world of today.

References

Bibliography

*(Text in Latin): ''Constitutiones Societatis Iesu'', Romae, 1937, pp.xxiii-xxxiii. *Aldama, Antonio de. ''The Constitutions of the Society of Jesus: The Formula of the Institute'', Notes for a Commentary, trans. Ignacio Echániz. St. Louis: The Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1990, pp. 2–23. *(Text in ANSSish): Ganss, George (ed), ''The Constitutions of the Society of Jesus'', St Louis (USA), 1970, pp. 63–72. {{Jesuits Society of Jesus Papal bulls associated with Jesuit history Documents of Pope Julius III 1550 works 16th-century papal bulls 1550 in Christianity