History of the Woodstock Theological Center
History of the Woodstock [Woodstock Report, October 1994, no. 39]
Copyright © 1994 Woodstock Theological Center
All rights reserved
When most people hear the name, "Woodstock," they think either of an aging rock star or a little bird sitting on top of a dog house! But there is another "Woodstock" which, in academic theological circles at least, has had a long and illustrious history. That "Woodstock" is the small college near the town of Woodstock, Maryland, just outside Baltimore. There generations of Jesuits were educated to the priesthood for well over a hundred years, starting in 1869. And among its faculty were scholars of national and international rank, the best known of whom was the political philosopher, John Courtney Murray.
In light of the new perspectives and directions of the Second Vatican Council, the Jesuits realized that we could no longer educate future priests in rural isolation, no matter how beautiful the countryside. So in 1969 the decision was made to move Woodstock to New York, near Columbia University, Union Theological Seminar, and other institutions, resources, and people who could enrich and challenge our young theologians. Vigorous as it was, rich in collaborative associations and programs, as well as outreach to the city, Woodstock's life in New York was short, a mere five years.
In that time it had become increasingly clear that the American Jesuits did not need to maintain five major seminaries in the United States. So, after much study, consultation , and anguish Woodstock was one of the schools closed. This decision was extremely painful to the faculty and student body alike. And there was a strong desire to see Woodstock continue in some form. Besides the tradition to be maintained, there was also a first-class theological library, a resource of inestimable value to scholars and students.
What to do? Many suggestions were made. A committee was formed to sift alternatives and options. Finally, the provincials of the Maryland and New York Provinces, Fathers J. Allen Panuska and Eamon Taylor, respectively, decided to move the library to Washington and to accept the generous offer of Georgetown University to house the Woodstock Library in the ground floor of the new Lauinger Library. The provincials also decided to start a center for theological reflection in Washington (see announcement). The new center would be an independent research institute sponsored by the two Jesuit provinces. The honored name of "Woodstock" would be applied to this center which was to be called the Woodstock Theological Center.
In 1974 the new center opened. At first, offices were divided between a house on 36th Street, opposite Holy Trinity Church, and the old D.C. Transit Car Barn. In 1978 the center was able to rent space from the Georgetown University Jesuit community in a newly renovated wing of the Old Ryan Building. And there it is to this day.
The chief inspiration for Woodstock's rebirth as a theological reflection center was the then Jesuit superior of the Jesuit order, Father Pedro Arrupe, S.J. At an international meeting of Jesuits in 1978, Father Arrupe had placed the work of theological reflection at the top of the apostolic priorities of the worldwide Society of Jesus. He urged the establishment of centers in various parts of the world which would explore contemporary human problems in the light of Christian faith. This mission was strengthened a few years later when the 32nd General Congregation, an international "summit" of Jesuit provincials and elected delegates, declared the mission of the Society today to be "the service of faith, of which the promotion of justice is an absolute requirement." Early in its history the Woodstock Center made this theme the focus of a project which issued in a volume entitled, The Faith That Does Justice, edited by John C. Haughey, S.J., one of the first fellows of the Center.
It has been a long journey from the slumbering town of Woodstock, Maryland, in 1869, to the hustle and bustle of our nation's capital in 1994. But through all the changes, there has been continuity of basic mission: passionate concern for God's glory which is, as Irenaeus said, "the human person fully alive!" Or as St. John says in his first epistle: "No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God lives in union with us, and his love is made perfect in us." (1 John 4:12).
Loving God by caring for each other and our world, this is the mission to which we have been dedicated for 125 years as "Woodstock" and 20 years as a Center!
[Woodstock Report, October 1994, no. 39, p. 5]
When you look back at the projects Woodstock has done over the past 20 years and the books it has published, do we see continuity and consistency? Can we discover, in retrospect, an unfolding evolution? Or is it a collage of one-shot events?
However unconscious it may have been at the time, a backward look recognizes a good deal of gradual growth, development, and continuity. Projects issuing in publications in Woodstock's early years have been the foundations on which further work has built. In fact, some early projects have given birth to program areas, i.e., permanent "departments" in Woodstock's organization.
Looking at a few of these developments makes an interesting trip down memory lane in this anniversary year. More than that, it gives us grist for gratitude to God, in appreciation for God's providential guidance -- always so hard to sight when enmeshed in the here and now.
"Then"
The Woodstock Center was in its infancy in 1975 -- the ten-year anniversary of Vatican II's Declaration on religious liberty, Dignitatis Humanae. As a way of getting public exposure and to commemorate the ground-breaking work of John Courtney Murray, S.J., at Vatican II, the Center held a symposium for the American Bishops in the hotel where they were convening for their regular Washington, D.C., fall meeting. A large number of Bishops attended. The keynote speaker was Monsignor Pietro Pavan of Rome, an intimate personal friend of and close collaborator with John Murray at Vatican II. Reactors to the keynote were George Lindbeck (Yale University), Manfred H. Vogel (Northwestern University), and Walter J. Burghardt, S.J. The symposium was published as the first in the series, "Woodstock Studies," as Religious Freedom: 1965 & 1975. In his introduction to this volume Monsignor George G. Higgins says, "I can think of no better way for John Courtney Murray's beloved Woodstock to have honored his memory."
"And Now"
Woodstock continues to honor the memory of John Courtney Murray in its permanent program in political philosophy. When J. Leon Hooper, S.J. joined the Woodstock team in 1987 he had just published a reworking of his doctoral dissertation, The Ethics of Discourse: The Social Philosophy of John Courtney Murray (Georgetown University Press, 1986). Since then he has published two volumes of collected works of John Courtney Murray with lengthy introductions and commentary. Following a major Woodstock project which David Hollenbach, S.J., directed, resulting in the publication, Catholicism and Liberalism: Contributions to American Public Philosophy, Leon directed a project on "Retrieving and Renewing the Public Philosophy of John Courtney Murray." The book will be published this coming year.
"Then"
In 1977, at the request of the provincials of the Maryland (J. A. Panuska, S.J.) and New York (Eamon G. Taylor, S.J.) Provinces, Woodstock undertook the publication of a collection of essays about the relationship of Christian faith to doing social justice. The provincials wanted a careful, scholarly, theological foundation and justification for the recently mandated mission statement for the whole Jesuit order, which was "the service of faith through the promotion of justice." Many Jesuits -- especially those in higher education -- were critical that the mission mandate meant that all Jesuits should go into direct, hands-on social action. A mark of the success of this effort is the fact that The Faith that Does Justice (Woodstock Studies, 2, 1977) remains the most widely read and broadly circulated publication of the Woodstock Center. It has become a "classic" among priests and religious far beyond the Jesuit world.
"And Now"
Woodstock carries on the tradition of The Faith that Does Justice with a permanent program for priests and other preachers of the Word. It is entitled, "Preaching the Just Word." Founded by Walter J. Burghardt, S.J., and coordinated by Father Raymond B. Kemp, the program is not only a workshop to improve preaching, but a spiritual retreat to open the eyes of participants to the fact that social justice is at the very heart of Christ's revelation and Christian faith. God's desire of the world and Jesus' mission in the world is, "That all may be one, as Thou, Father in me, and I in Thee, that they may be one in us." (John 17:21-22) To live as one family in the model of the Trinity is to treat one another with justice, in the full biblical meaning of the word. Through this permanent retreat/workshop program, "The Faith that Does Justice" continues to leaven the American Church.
"Then"
In the mid '70's, human rights emerged prominently into social and political consciousness. So, in 1977 Woodstock began an intensive series of conferences with scholars and specialists from North and South America on issues of human rights. There was special concern to expand discussion beyond the civil and political rights to social, economic, and cultural rights. Major conferences were held in Bogota, Santo Domingo, and Washington. Consultations involved literally hundreds of people. The final product was two volumes, both entitled, Human Rights in the Americas, one philosophical (The Struggle for Consensus), the other historical, political, and social (Basic Needs in the Americas). The former was edited by Alfred Hennelly, S.J., and John P. Langan, S.J., the latter by Margaret E. Crahan.
"And Now"
In a conscious effort to follow up on the north-south human rights project, Gap Lo Biondo, S.J., was recruited to Woodstock in 1991. He was asked to head up a permanent program area entitled, "The North-South Dialogue." The first project in that area deals with ethical dimension in development efforts for micro-business entrepreneurs in three countries in Latin American: El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Chile. But the North-South program will spread to include dialogues in Africa and East Asia in years to come. In fact there is some consideration of the need to have "North-South Dialogues" right here in major U.S. cities where "north people" and "south people" are sometimes on very tense speaking terms!
"Then"
In 1986 the U.S. Bishops issued their Pastoral on Catholic social teaching and the U.S. economy under the title, Economic Justice for All. So Woodstock, under the leadership of then-director Tom Gannon, S.J., gathered a group of economists, business leaders, sociologists, and theologians to write reflections on the Bishops' pastoral. The resulting publication was The Catholic Challenge to the American Economy. Among the contributors were Milton Friedman, Norman Birnbaum, Albert Gore, Jr., Thomas S. Johnson, Kurt Biedenkopf, and James E. Burke. John P. Langan, S.J., was much involved with this publication, as also with a variety of initiatives with business and financial leaders.
"And Now"
One day in 1987, Ambassador Henry Owen invited Jim Connor, S.J., to lunch to talk about fund-raising for Woodstock. Quoting the famous bank robber, Willy Sutton, Ambassador Owen said, "Let's go to the banks; that's where the money is." The upshot was not fund-raising but a Woodstock project on "Ethical Considerations in Corporate Takeovers," a project which launched a permanent Woodstock program area in business ethics. The second project in this program area was "Creating and Maintaining an Ethical Corporate Climate," while the third and most recent is "Ethical Considerations in the Business Aspects of Health Care." Building on this ethics program, another initiative began with the title, "The Woodstock Business Conference," a national program with chapters throughout the U.S. bringing business leaders together regularly to discover the relevance of religious faith to business practice. This program is coordinated by Jim Nolan. In support of these initiatives, an anonymous family foundation has pledged funding for the "Arrupe Program of Christian Social Ethics for Business," which is coordinated by J. Michael Stebbins. If Woodstock can generate a one-third match for this grant in each of three years, and if the program performs successfully, the family foundation has pledged an endowment of a million and half dollars to give permanence to this concentration in business life and ethics.
"Then"
It was not a coincidence that the Woodstock Center was located in Washington by the founding Provincials. If the Center was to address issues and opportunities of social, political, and economic import, it could profit enormously from the resources offered by and gathered around the federal government. It could also collaborate with members of government in studying questions of national and international concern. So, right from the start, the original team of Woodstock fellows, individually and in groups, initiated interchanges with government officials. A team effort was eventually launched which issued in publication of Personal Values in Public Policy: Conversations on Government Decision-Making, edited by John C. Haughey. S.J., 1979. In that volume, presentations by Woodstock fellows are the basis for fascinating discussion by government officials.
"And Now"
Woodstock has just begun to focus programmatically once again on this important area of government and public policy. Over the past year, there have been a series of consultations about how, with whom, and on what issues Woodstock should return to values in public and political life. A new Woodstock fellow, R. Randall Rainey, S.J., will be responsible to coordinate further investigation into this area and help shape a permanent Woodstock program.
"Then"
In 1980 Woodstock fellow Thomas E. Clarke, S.J., originated a study of the way small communities struggling for social justice were trying to do theological reflection. A series of interviews with representatives of 16 organizations unearthed a wealth of rich experience. Based on this information and drawing on other sources, members of the Woodstock team wrote a collection of excellent essays entitled, Tracing the Spirit: Communities, Social Action, and Theological Reflection, edited by Jim Hug, S.J., and published by Paulist Press in 1983.
"And Now"
Since Woodstock itself was established to be a Center of theological reflection, the quest still continues to grasp and gain facility in this process, so that we can use it in each and every one of our projects and commend its use to the business executives, professionals, public and political leaders, clergy, educators, and others with whom we work. The whole Woodstock team meets regularly to share personal reactions to readings we've done in St. Ignatius Loyola's discernment and decision-making method, as amplified and grounded for our day by the theological reflection method of Bernard Lonergan, S.J. Woodstock is permanently committed to this modus opernandi as its characteristic feature or hallmark.
Finally, a one-person, single-handed "Then." and "And Now." has been going on at Woodstock since 1986 in a trilogy of studies and books on the Church by Tom Reese, S.J. It started with Archbishop: Inside the Power Structure of the American Catholic Church, which told the story of how archbishops run their archdioceses. This was followed by A Flock of Shepherds, the story of how the U.S. Bishops' Conference works. The final volume in the trilogy, Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church, will be published in the fall of 1996 by Harvard University Press. It describes and analyzes the organization and functions of the papal curia. Tom also convened and led symposia of scholars who offered constructive suggestions for the improvement of two major documents issued by the Vatican, one on the role of episcopal conferences, the other on the catechism for the universal church.
When Tom Reese and Jim Connor visited the Lilly Endowment on a "let's get acquainted" visit a few years ago, Lilly's basic question, after we had run down the menu of our current projects, was, "As interesting as each is, what holds all these things together?" This look-backward should have been our answer! A lot of continuity and consistency, a lot of gradual growth upon foundations long since laid, and a providentially guided evolution clearly "holds all these things together." And the principal "glue" binding together each and all is the selfsame methodology: the orderly, methodical, and passionate Ignatian drive for meaning and understanding, truth and value, decision and action. "Unless God builds the house, they labor in vain who build it!" (Psalm 127:1)
Return to Woodstock Home Page [Woodstock Report, October 1994, no. 39, p. 10]
Dear Brothers in Christ:
Last week a long process of investigation, consultation and reflection about a most important matter came to an end. The matter was, in effect, the reorientation by the two Provinces of the theological resources of Woodstock College beyond the close of the present academic year....
We have decided to inaugurate a center for theological reflection as a new ministry of the New York and Maryland Provinces. The details and most specifics of this decision must await the hard work and planning of the Center's director and board of advisors. Yet the purpose of this Center and its focus are already decided. By mandate, the Center will be aimed primarily at theological reflection in the Roman Catholic tradition, but with openness to dialogue with other traditions and other disciplines. We envision such a Center as responding to the need for a new development in theological method, which speaks clearly to the current situation. We hope this Center will respond to Father General's [Pedro Arrupe, S.J.] call for "theological reflection on the human problems of today," e.g., national and world justice, power, population, environment, consumerism, etc. These topics or themes are mentioned here only by way of example.
Beyond stating this mandate--in some ways so very general, but in others quite specific--for the Center, we do not wish to enlarge upon it at the present time. We have decided to leave more detailed determinations to the director and board of advisors as well as to the theologians and other scholars who will be consulted and/or involved in this new joint ministry of our two Provinces. We also prefer to leave to the future Center's director, board, and members the important specifics of the Center's structure, etc. We have, however, after much advice, decided on the following:
We admit to a sense of real excitement and joy in announcing this new ministry of the Provinces--a ministry potentially so responsive to the insistent call of both the Church and the Society to engage a world crying aloud for action that is illumined by contemporary, careful, yet urgent reflection on the Word. We make this decision in great hope, and we ask the prayers and hopes of all for the Center's success....
And now we have chosen. The Society, as we all know very well, has great reason for humility. It is a limited instrument of God's love for the world. Yet there is a greatness too in our Jesuit aspiration to intellectual excellence and professionalism, especially when that aspiration is fruitful in men and in projects that are deeply in touch with the actual problems and hopes of human life. May God grant the decision we have made His blessing and your peaceful and enthusiastic support. And may Christ Jesus be companion to the Jesuits and others who will labor in this new ministry of theological reflection.
Sincerely in Our Lord,
Eamon G. Taylor, S.J.
Provincial of the New York Province
J. A. Panuska, S.J.
Provincial of the Maryland Province