Vision
Boston College’s School of Theology and Ministry (STM) offers its students outstanding opportunities for comprehensive graduate theological education and spiritual formation for ministry. Boston College’s Institute of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry (IREPM) and the Ecclesiastical Faculty (EFBC), both renowned for the preparation and renewal of priests, vowed religious, and lay people for ministry, will form the key units of an exciting new Boston College professional school. Their distinctive ethos and celebrated traditions unite within a national and international Catholic university to provide a comprehensive array of academic, theological, spiritual, and pastoral courses for ministry, academic specialization, and continuing education in faith. Beyond the offerings of the school, students may also cross-register for courses in the Boston College Department of Theology and in the seven other schools of the Boston Theological Institute.
The descriptions below provide background and the histories and missions of the three units that will be integrated to form the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry: Ecclesiastical Faculty at Boston College, Institute of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry, and Church in the 21st Century Online Program.
Ecclesiastical Faculty at Boston College
(currently Weston Jesuit School of Theology)
Weston Jesuit School of Theology has played a vital role in sustaining the rich 450-year legacy of Jesuit education and Ignatian spirituality. Founded in 1922 to prepare Jesuits for ordination, Weston Jesuit has evolved into an international center for training men and women at the graduate level of ministerial leadership, both in the Roman Catholic Church and beyond. As one of only seven ecclesiastical faculties in North America, it is chartered to award ecclesiastical degrees and has a distinguished record of educating individuals not only for the priesthood, but also for leadership roles in lay ecclesial ministries. As a comprehensive school of theology, it has educated lay ministers and priests side by side. This collaborative approach to theological and ministerial education has prepared students for service in universities and secondary schools, parishes and dioceses, campus ministries and chaplaincies, and social outreach and services. Weston Jesuit’s graduates bring to their work the skills, insights, and compassion characteristic of the Jesuit, Catholic tradition.
Weston Jesuit’s mission and student body have been truly global; in recent years it has prepared men and women from more than 32 nations for service in more than 90 countries throughout the world.
Institute for Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry
The Boston College Institute of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry was established in 1971 in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council. During its early years, IREPM primarily served priests and vowed religious interested in theological updating. IREPM students today are lay people, priests, and vowed religious from all over the United States and the world and are prepared academically and spiritually for various roles in ecclesial ministry and faith-based social services. In an atmosphere of mutuality and collaboration, IREPM educates students for academic and professional competence in religious education and pastoral ministry, provides continuing education for those in ministry, and fosters the spiritual formation, theological reflection, and personal transformation needed by today’s Church leaders. In addition to its many programs in various ministries, IREPM offers an array of joint and dual degrees with other schools of Boston College. It also makes available its degree programs in a comprehensive and internationally recognized Summer Institute.
C21 Online
C21 Online is a program that emerged from Boston College’s successful Church in the 21st Century initiative to be of greater service to the Catholic community. It develops online courses for spiritual enrichment, faith renewal, and continuing education for adult Catholics. With a focus on shared reflection in an online learning community, C21 Online models the kind of conversation and participation that leads to deeper understanding and faith. It offers courses to support the ongoing formation of Catholic adults and parish volunteers, as well as the professional development of Catholic school teachers and professional lay ministers. Course sites are open 24/7, making it an accessible, schedule-friendly learning venue. In its first three years, C21 Online has had more than 6,000 participants in its courses from all 50 states and 77 countries.
Location
The School of Theology and Ministry will be located on the property recently acquired by Boston College from the Archdiocese of Boston. This facility will provide classroom, office, worship, and social spaces. The former St. John’s Seminary Library building, also acquired by Boston College, will house the STM library that will integrate the outstanding collections of the St. John’s Seminary and the Weston Jesuit School of Theology libraries. The STM library will operate as part of the Boston College library system, which is a member of the prestigious Association of Research Libraries, and contains more than 2.44 million volumes.
