In 1864, wealthy Boston merchant James Stanworth acquired a farm on a hill in Brighton known as the Hildreth estate. Stanworth suffered losses in the Panic of 1873 and his heirs found he owed substantial debts. Archbishop John Joseph Williams purchased the Hildreth estate and construction of the Boston Ecclesiastical Seminary[3] began in 1881 and was completed in 1884. In 1883, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts granted a Charter to the Seminary to grant degrees in philosophy and divinity.[4] The Archbishop entrusted the seminary to his former teachers, the Sulpicians.[5] Students began classes on September 22, 1884.[6] The First rector was John Baptist Hogan.[7]
The Seminary was incorporated under the laws of Massachusetts in 1892. In 1911, the Sulpicians withdrew from the seminary at the request of Archbishop William Henry O'Connell,[5] who preferred a diocesan faculty more familiar with local conditions.
Grounds surrounding seminary
Saint John's Seminary adopted its present name in 1941.[3][8]
Merger with Cardinal O'Connell Seminary
Cardinal O'Connell Seminary, the archdiocesan minor seminary for high school students in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts, was merged with Saint John's Seminary in 1968.[3] In 1970 its[clarification needed] programs were relocated to a Foster Street site in Saint Clement's Hall.
Crisis and recovery after 2000 child sexual abuse scandal
St. John’s College Seminary, the division for students with a high school diploma but without an undergraduate degree, closed in 2002.[9]
In the wake of the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston sex abuse scandal enrollment declined from a peak of 86 students in the academic year 2001–02 to 34 for 2005-06. Two years later, the seminary recovered to a student population of 63.[10][11]
During the 2000s, nearly all the Seminary's land and buildings were sold to Boston College (BC), the neighboring Jesuit-run college. In 2001, Boston College leased St. Clement's Hall, formerly the site of the Seminary's undergraduate division, and it bought the property in June 2004.[12][13][14] In May 2007, the Archdiocese sold the Seminary's open land, its library building and several other structures.[15] Rector John Farren, OP resigned and protested the 2007 sale in a letter to Cardinal O'Malley.[10][14][16]
After the land sales, the campus of the Seminary consists only of Saint John's Hall.[15]
Sexual misconduct scandal and resignations
In August 2018, the rector of Saint John's was placed on administrative leave after two former seminarians claimed on social media that sexual misconduct occurred at the school.[17] The new allegations forced a new investigation by Archdiocese of Boston against Saint John's.[17] On November 22, 2019, the Archdiocese of Boston and former U.S. Attorney Donald Stern concluded that there was some accuracy to the 2018 allegations, such as the expulsion of two students in 2014 for inappropriate sexual conduct, an incident from 2015 where six students received anonymous sexual text messages, and excessive drinking at a 2015 bachelor party which was held on campus.[18][19] Despite also criticizing Saint John's for having poor leadership, poor financial oversight, and inadequate human formation of seminarians,[18] the joint investigation also concluded that the sexual misconduct which occurred at the seminary was not unlawful.[18][19] In December 2019, Stephen Salocks, who was named interim rector when the investigation started, replaced Msgr. James Moroney as the Rector of Saint John's Seminary.[20] In addition to promoting Salocks, Boston Archbishop Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley also named Fr. Thomas Macdonald as the new Vice Rector.[20]
In the academic year of 2014-2015, Saint John's began receiving seminarians from the Diocese of Rochester, New York. That same year, the Diocese of Portland, which encompasses all of Maine, resumed sending seminarians. Saint John's also serves as the seminary for a few men from dioceses outside the U.S.[24]
Statue of St. Patrick, patron of the Archdiocese of Boston
College-level seminary candidates for the Archdiocese of Boston reside at Our Lady of Providence Seminary College in Providence, Rhode Island and various other institutions.
Academics
St. John's Seminary exterior
Seminary programs
As a major seminary, an institution providing formation for the Catholic priesthood, Saint John's offers a four-year program leading to the Master of Divinity degree. There is also a program leading to the Master of Arts in Theology.[25]
In addition, "Saint John's Seminary offers a two-year program of initial formation for those candidates who are college graduates and have no prior experience of formal preparation for the sacrament of Holy Orders."[26] Those who complete the Pre-Theology Program may qualify to receive a Bachelor of Philosophy (B.Phil.).
Programs for lay students
The Seminary's Theological Institute for the New Evangelization offers programs for lay people wishing to work in Roman Catholic ministry, leading to the degrees Master of Theological Studies for the New Evangelization, and Master of Arts in Ministry (MAM). These programs are based at a separate campus in accordance with norms of the Holy See.[27] The MAM division of TINE also offers non-credit catechist training programs in evangelization and apologetics.[28]
Seminarians partake in sports including basketball, football, golf, softball, and soccer,[31] including intramural games with BC club teams. Twice a year St. John's Seminary competes in softball games against Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary (Weston, MA) and Our Lady of Providence College Seminary (Providence, RI). With access to the Margot Connell Recreation Center at Boston College, seminarians contend in intramural basketball and soccer leagues against Boston College students.[32]
Daily life
The daily schedule includes classes and services in chapel.[33] Seminarians have off-campus pastoral assignments at least once per week. Most seminarians also have a "house job", such as sacristan or bookstore manager. Each seminarian meets with his spiritual director twice monthly.
^Baquero-Degwitz, Andrea (24 February 2015). "History: Brighton Campus". The Torch: Boston College's Catholic Student Newspaper. Chestnut Hill, MA: The Torch, Inc. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
