July 25, 2017 — Free, online access to some of the most foundational scholarly publications and sources about the Society of Jesus is now available, thanks to a project of the Boston College Institute for Advanced Jesuit Studies (IAJS).
The Portal to Jesuit Studies, now live, is meant to serve as a “Jesuit Google,” according to IAJS Director Fr. Casey Beaumier, SJ, strengthening the institute’s efforts to serve as a resource on the history, spirituality and pedagogy of the Society.
“As Boston College emerges as the foundation for the academic discipline of Jesuit Studies, it is crucial that we promote opportunities for serious research,” he said. “The institute offers fellowships, symposia, lectures and courses. Under the leadership of Associate Director Robert Maryks, we have invested … a great deal in the promotion of open access material.”
Maryks edits resources including the Journal of Jesuit Studies, the Boston College Jesuit Bibliography and Jesuit Historiography Online. “Our site’s main contribution is integrating these with the institute’s other digital initiatives, resulting in The Portal to Jesuit Studies as the gateway for accessing the growing content we believe researchers will need to engage this discipline,” explains Fr. Beaumier.
Some of sources the portal provides access to include: The Jesuit Online Library, nearly 100,000 pages of journals and books; essential documents in Jesuit history; presentations from the annual International Symposium on Jesuit Studies; the Journal of Jesuit Studies, which includes scholarly articles, interviews and book reviews; and Jesuit Sources, a compendium of important texts and studies in Jesuit history, spirituality and pedagogy.
Fr. Timothy Kesicki, SJ, president of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States, believes that “the promotion of deep and serious study of the Society’s history, spirituality and pedagogy will magnify its future mission. The Portal to Jesuit Studies will help to promote this important work.”
Visit the Portal to Jesuit Studies at jesuitportal.bc.edu.
[Sources: Boston College News, Boston College Portal]
