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A newly created institute aims to make Boston College a hub for Jesuit studies, while serving as a resource to the University community – and beyond – on the history, spirituality and pedagogy of the Society of Jesus.
Launched this past summer, the Institute for Advanced Jesuit Studies will be, in partnership with other BC departments, offices and programs, a locus for courses, workshops, publications, scholarly symposia and other events and activities that convey the character and nature of the Jesuit mission.
“This is a great opportunity for Boston College to affirm its Jesuit, Catholic identity, and in a way that also serves to promote the work of the Society of Jesus,” said institute director Casey Beaumier, SJ. “We look forward to making a very meaningful contribution to the University’s intellectual, spiritual and formational charge.”
The institute’s inaugural offering was a Jesuit Immersion program this past July, in collaboration with the School of Theology and Ministry, that provided participants with an historical, faith and pedagogical perspective of the Society of Jesus. The program included a 10-day pilgrimage to Spain and Rome, followed by four weeks of courses at BC.
A major facet of the institute’s work, Fr. Beaumier said, will be serving as new headquarters for the Institute of Jesuit Sources, a scholarly publishing house for Jesuit-related texts and studies founded by the Missouri Province of the Society of Jesus in 1961. The relocation of Jesuit Sources – which publishes Jesuit primary sources in English translation, monographs on Jesuits, and auxiliary literature in Jesuit studies – to BC is to take place in late November.
The institute’s associate director, Associate Professor of History Robert Maryks, will be thedirector for Jesuit Sources. Maryks is editor-in-chief of the Journal of Jesuit Studies and the book series Jesuit Studies, both of which also are housed in the institute.
Seth Meehan, assistant director at the institute, will assist in the growth and promotion of the digital archives materials, publication development and research of the Jesuits and their history at BC.
In addition, the institute is home to an online bibliographical library of works in Jesuit studies with a searchable database that will contain every book, book review, article or other scholarly writing reference to the Jesuits throughout history.
Beginning next June, the institute will co-organize a biannual International Symposium on Jesuit Studies, which Fr. Beaumier said will be an opportunity for academic exchange within the global community of scholars across different fields and disciplines.
Also next summer, the institute will begin a program for rising junior and senior high school students that explores the spirituality of the Jesuits, particularly in regard to how it relates to discernment, education and service. Fr. Beaumier said the initiative will give students a useful insight into the Society of Jesus while also underscoring the benefits of Boston College and the Jesuit tradition.
“During this academic year, we will look to make connections across the University, in academic, administrative, student life and other areas,” he said. “We hope that our colleagues will see the institute as a means to animate the vision of the Society of Jesus as it relates to their needs and interests.”
For more information on the Institute for Advanced Jesuit Studies, see http://www.bc.edu/content/bc/centers/iajs.html.