Foundation and History

Initiated by Boston College President William P. Leahy

William P. Leahy

Leahy's memberships include the American Catholic Historical Association, the American Historical Association, the History of Education Society, and the Organization of American Historians....

, S.J., in September 2002, the Church in the 21st Century initiative was originally conceived as a two-year project to examine the underlying issues raised by the sexual abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

. The most comprehensive response to the crisis, the Church in the 21st Century included academic symposia, conferences, public lectures, publications, video and audio streaming resources, reading lists, and programs for Boston College students, staff, faculty, alumni and the general public. It broke ground on a number of previously-taboo issues facing the church and coincided with the growth of Voice of the Faithful and other lay movements committed to church reform. In 2004, the Church in the 21st Century Center became a permanent Boston College center. John P. McGinty, S.T.D., currently directs the Center’s activities. C21 is guided by an Advisory Committee composed of Boston College faculty, staff, students, and alumni, a Steering Committee drawn from the Advisory Committee, and selected task forces and planning groups focusing on specific issues or activities. Since 2003, C21 has published C21 Resources, a 24-page tabloid that reprints significant articles on contemporary Catholic issues and that has a circulation of over 160,000. The Center maintains a robust website that provides access to over 100 video streamed campus events.

Mission statement

The Church in the 21st Century Center at Boston College seeks to be a catalyst and resource for the renewal of the Catholic Church in the United States by engaging critical issues facing the Catholic community. Drawing from both the Boston College community and others, its activities currently are focused on four challenges: handing on and sharing the Catholic faith, especially with younger Catholics; fostering relationships built on mutual trust and support among lay men and women, vowed religious, deacons, priests, and bishops; developing an approach to sexuality mindful of human experience and reflective of Catholic tradition; and advancing contemporary reflection on the Catholic intellectual tradition.

External links

• Church in the 21st Century Center website