TAMBURINI, MICHELANGELO

14th general of the Society of Jesus; b. Modena, Sept. 27, 1648; d. Rome, Feb. 28, 1730. He taught scholastic philosophy at Bologna and theology at Mantua for 12 years. Such were his qualities of virtue, patience, and courage that he became successively rector of several colleges, provincial of the Venetian province, secretary general, and finally, in 1703, vicar-general. Upon the death of Thyrsus Gonzalez, he was elected general of his society on Jan. 3, 1706. His generalate saw the full flourishing of Jesuit missionary activity, such as the reduc tions of paraguay, new missions in the Levant, and Constant Beschi's continuance of the traditions of "Brahman Christianity" initiated by Robert de nobili in India. But there were also unmistakable signs of the mounting opposition that would result in the society's suppression in 1773. The Jansenists especially, embittered by the suppression of port-royal, in 1708 accused the Jesuits of failing to comply with the directions of Rome in adapting Christianity to non-European cultures. In 1710, when Clement XI condemned certain of the ceremonial customs that Jesuit missionaries had judged indifferent and had permitted to Indian and Chinese Christians, Tamburini went to the Vatican to make a formal declaration of fidelity of all Jesuits to the Holy See.

Bibliography: j. crÉtineau-joly, Histoire religieuse, politique et littéraire de la Compagnie de Jésus, 6 v. (Paris 1844–46) v.2. l. koch, Jesuiten-Lexikon: Die Gesellschraft Jesu einst und jetzt (Paderborn 1934) 2:1725–26. c. sommervogel, Bibliotèque de la Compagnie de Jésus, 11 v. (Brussels-Paris 1890–1932) 7:1827–30.

[j. h. campana]