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The Archival Spirit, July 2002 (Summer Issue)
There will be a lot on the agenda at the ARCS meeting in Birmingham this year. We have an election this year for one at-large member of the Steering Committee. Lucinda Glenn Rand, of the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, Calif. has been on the Committee for the past two years. My how time flies! Lucinda has been key in the work of this Newsletter. She has been involved in editing many of the stories. She has been a reporter by looking for news amongst the ARC members and then encouraging them to write their stories. She has seen to it that the material is sent on to our publisher, Bob Shuster at Wheaton in a timely fashion. Lucinda, when all is said and done, you have been a major asset to this Section. Thank you. Involvement with any organization is time-consuming, but it is rewarding. But we hope to continue seeing Lucinda's involvement, in different ways, for some time to come with our Section. But for all that she has done for the Section in such concrete ways, we say thanks.
I encourage all of you to think of ways that you can become involved with the section. As we look at our election this year, ask yourself if you are ready to become more actively involved. But it doesn't have to be a big step to begin your involvement. Just coming to the meeting is a good beginning, and taking an active part in the meeting is even better. This year, as in the recent past, all those attending will have a chance to share and reflect. This year our section meeting program will focus on preservation issues and on uses of a web site. We want the program to be more than just a time of sharing of ideas. We want to begin to build a reservoir of practice and ideas. Take some time right now to make some notes about preservation issues at your archives. What is your current practice? Do you have any special preservation programs? Do you do workshops? Is your work focused on papers and photographs, or are you also tackling such thorny issues as film, video and digital preservation? Take some additional time to make similar notes concerning uses of a web site. How do you make use of the web? Is it information that you give out? Do you use forms for researchers and patrons? If so, how do you manage the forms? In what ways does your web site support the goals of your institution?
Not only do we want these ideas, and others, shared at the meeting. We are hoping to begin to share the results of these discussions in the pages of this Newsletter. For some this could be the next level of involvement. Are you willing to take a few extra minutes to describe some project, program, or policy of your archives, either around these topics or others, to share with the rest of our ARCS community? It could even be something as simple as how a workshop helped change a practice or policy at your archives; or put a new one in place. Just a simple review of a workshop could be of great significance for many in this Section. We all have limited budgets and time. To hear of something that was useful (or perhaps not) could help many in prioritizing their time and plans. So take a few minutes this Summer and make a some notes for the ARCS meeting this year. Share those ideas with us all. Become a little more involved. I am looking forward to seeing you in Birmingham and to hearing your ideas. Have a great Summer!
L. Dale Patterson
United Methodist Church
Archives
dpatterson@gcah.org
Those of us who are guardians of religious collections, especially if our holdings relate to religious denominations or institutions, can appreciate the description of ourselves as keepers of the memory of God's passage in our little corner of history. A document that highlights this function is "The Pastoral Function of Church Archives," promulgated by the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church, Vatican City, February 2, 1997 (published from Palazzo Della Cancelleria, 00120 Citta Del Vaticano). The contents include a set of statements that, turned into questions, can inspire as well as challenge us when we review and revise our policies:
Do our Collections reflect
a well-documented and unprejudiced study of our own past?
Are our Archives rich in
historical as well as spiritual meaning?
Do we agree on the urgency
of looking after the care of archives for current affairs?
Does our management mentality
conform to modern technologies? [e.g., Is EAD feasible or practical for
smaller institutions?]
Is our aim the conservation
and promotion of the cultural heritage of the major archival subject.
At the November 2001 meeting of the New England Archivists, Garrett Smith
spoke of a problem he encountered in his preparation of a history of Yale
University. That was the difficulty in tracing the ordinary life
of the institution, the day-to-day happenings in classes, the relationships
of students and professors. The University archives seemed richest
in the activities of administration, probably because those offices kept
the most detailed records. When we look at our own inventories, are
we strong in the documents of the governing structures, the biographies
of the designated leaders of the institute? Obversely, are we weaker
in the story of God's passage throughout the religious community, in its
faithful or doubting members, its relationships with other groups?
Do we transcribe interviews that reveal the varied perceptions of participants
in the pews as well as the judgments of leaders in the pulpits?
Records management, historical memory, cultural preservation, motivating spirit - as Archivists of religious holdings, how do we balance these aspects with the present emphasis on electronic efficiency? Let us continue the dialogue.
Grace Donovan, S.U.S.C.
Holy Union Archives, U.S.A.
News from the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament
The Archives of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament have seen a considerable increase in activity since just before the foundress, Mother Katharine Drexell, was recognized by the Vatican on Oct. 1, 2000, for her life of heroic sanctity. After the media blitz the summer of 2000, students and biographers have requested information and photographs of Mother Katharine and the Sisters' missions. One children's book, "Katie from Philadelphia" by Sister Margaret Kerry, FSP, was published by the Pauline Books and reproduces a number of lovely drawings made by Sister Julius Hausmann, SBS. The centennial history of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, "Sharing the Bread in Service," by Sister Patricia Lynch, SBS, was revised and published in a two volume paperback edition. This includes a short but informative overview of each of the SBS mission sites, from Harlem to the Southwest, from Chicago to Xavier and Louisiana, as well as Haiti and Guatamala. More information on these and other publications can be found at the Sisters' website, www.katharinedrexel.org.
Stephanie Morris, Ph.D.,
C.A. Director, Archives, Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament
Jesuit Archives Conference and Guide
From October 22 to 28, 2001, 67 archivists from the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) met in Rome to discuss contemporary issues on preservation and access in the context of Jesuit and Catholic traditions. The meeting was judged a success and has led to the drafting of guidelines for archival practice in Jesuit repositories worldwide. These guidelines are currently under development and scheduled for release this summer as well as regular future gatherings of Jesuit archivists are planned. This first meeting was prompted by a 1997 letter, "The Pastoral Function of Church Archives" from the Vatican's Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church.
As part of the preparations an extensive 178-page international directory to Jesuit archives was compiled with entries arranged alphabetically by province with the Jesuit central Roman archives at the end. The entries summarize both the holdings and access to province archives and Jesuit colleges and university repositories within provinces, the level of detail varies markedly throughout. This directory titled, A Guide to Jesuit Archives, is available from the Institute of Jesuit Sources, www.jesuitsources.com, 3601 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63108-3393, Tel: 314-977-7257, Fax: 314-977-7263.
Mark Thiel, Marquette University
Archives of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts, Hawaii Province
The Provincial Archives of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary takes on new life on the eve of the 175th year of the Hawaiian Catholic Mission. The Catholic missions in the Hawaiian Islands had been synonymous with the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts since the first Catholic missionaries arrived at the Honolulu harbor in 1827. The Sacred Hearts Fathers, historically also known as the Picpus Fathers (after the location of their original Mother House in France), were the only Catholic priests who opened mission churches and schools in the Islands until 1927 when Bishop Stephen Alencastre welcomed the first Maryknoll missionaries to Hawaii. In 1941 Rome raised Honolulu from a vicariate into a diocese, and Bishop James Sweeney, a diocesan clergy from San Francisco, was appointed the first bishop.
With the evident dominance of the Sacred Hearts missionaries in the church life of the mission and the diocese, the significance of the Congregation's provincial archives in the history of the Church in Hawaii is incontestable. In addition to the above consideration, is the fact that among the prominent members of the Province was the Blessed Damien, also known as the apostle to the lepers of Molokai. This makes the SS.CC archives truly a "repository of the collective memory", not only of the members of the Province, but of the Church's mission history as well.
The mission's records preservation had always followed the Catholic Church's laws. But the many demands on the time and efforts of missionary personnel, as well as the tropical climate of the Islands, did not contribute to the ideal organization and conservation of the collection. Inactive records went into storage boxes with almost no organizational system nor defense against the elements.
In January 2001, upon the initiative and inspiration of the current provincial superior, the Very Rev. Clyde L.Guerreiro, SS.CC, the provincial council considered and approved a program for the professional organization of the archives. Sr. Maria Rita Ferraris, R.V.M., Ph.D.,C.A., who had just completed the organization of the diocesan archives of Reno, Nevada, was appointed provincial archivist. Facilities for processing and holding the collection were set up, and the archival program was implemented. The inactive records were appraised, a tentative arrangement scheme was developed, and an inventory is in process, with the goal of creating an in-house finding aid. Hopefully, a web page may be launched in the future.
The provincial archives program includes a plan to establish an oral history of the mission, "picked" from the memories of retired missionaries. The acquisition plans of the program will look into the possibility of requesting copies of provincial records that constitute a gap in the collection, but which may be extant at the Honolulu diocesan archives and the archives of the SS.CC. Generalate in Rome.
Access to the provincial records is restricted. However, the archives has custody of a special collection of Hawaiian language imprints that are listed in the Judd bibliography which will be of interest to and made accessible to linguistic researchers. While the Blessed Damian documents and artifacts are under the custody of the Damien Museum, the documentation for the cause of beatification are among the records of the province.
Sr. Maria Rita C. Ferraris, R.V.M.,Ph.D., C.A., Provincial
archivist
The New Religious Movements Research Collections at the Graduate Theological Union Archives
The GTU Archives in Berkeley, California, has completed a project, made possible by a grant from the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) through the California State Library, to organize, house, and make accessible the New Religious Movements Research Collections. The material was divided into four collections which are now open for research. To these four, two other major collections in the GTU Archives were added to form the NRM Research Collections. Complete information on the collections can be found on the website: www.gtu/library/nrm.html which provides links to each collection's extensive finding aid and explains how to access the collections in the GTU Archives.
The Collections are:
The Center for the Study of New Religious Movements Collection.
Founded by the GTU and operating 1977-1983, the Center's mission was
to undertake the academic study of growing religious phenomena in the United
States. The Center sponsored interdisciplinary conferences, symposia
and forums, and individual researchers. The collection contains over
30 print or audiotape proceedings, and over 450 individual research papers,
lectures, or articles. The Center, in cooperation with the GTU Library,
developed a resource library, a section of which became the New Religious
Movements Organizations Vertical Files Collection. The New Religious
Movements Organizations Vertical Files Collection. The GTU Library,
as part of a broader collection development in the area of new religious
movements which includes books, periodicals, and audio/visual material,
compiled information files on individual groups and organizations. From
1977 to 1983, this was done in cooperation with the Center for the Study
of New Religious Movements, then by library reference staff until collecting
ceased in 1998. The 44 linear feet of files represent over 900 organizations,
and are arranged alphabetically by organization name. The materials
were collected either from the organizations themselves or from other sources.
The files vary in amount and type of items, but may include such materials
as correspondence, newsletters, pamphlets, brochures, and flyers.
The William ("Will") Noffke Papers. Noffke produced and hosted radio shows on local San Francisco Bay Area public radio stations. He also owned Shared Visions, a bookstore and studio space in Berkeley, California. Through these venues, 1972-90, Noffke interviewed hundreds of spiritual leaders from those decades' broadest ranges of religious phenomena and philosophies. The collection contains 13 linear feet of documents, and approximately 2,000 audiocassettes and reel-to-reel tapes.
The Donald C. Stone, Jr. Papers. As part of his graduate work at the University of California, Berkeley, Stone worked on Robert Ornstein and Charles Swencionis' study of EST graduates' health and well-being: A Self-Study Survey: Preliminary Study of Participants in Erhard Seminars Training, 1975. Included in the 4 linear feet of Stone's collection are correspondence, research notes, questionnaires, reports, and graduate's interview transcripts. The transcripts are coded to insure confidentiality. There are also recorded and print lectures by Werner Erhard.
The Scientology at the Marina Collection. This collection contains records from the foundation in the early 1970s of a Church of Scientology mission in San Francisco, California's Marina district. The Collection includes 6 linear feet of the mission's administrative records as well as educational material from L. Ron Hubbard's and Scientology main offices.
Arthur Carl Piepkorn Collection. Piepkorn, 1907-73, was the author of the four-volume Profiles in Belief: The Religious Bodies of the United States and Canada. Piepkorn collected material on hundreds of religious bodies and organizations in the preparation for his books. The volumes were published posthumously, 1977-79. Following the publication of the fourth volume, Piepkorn's collected material containing over 30 linear feet was given to the GTU Library. This collection has not yet been fully processed, but can be accessed by request.
For further information or assistance, please contact the Archivist,
Lucinda Glenn: 2400 Ridge Road, Berkeley, CA, 94709; Phone:
510-649-2507; Email: lglenn@gtu.edu.
Convegno degli Archivisti della Compagnia di Gesu
David Kingma, archivist for the Jesuit Oregon Province, joined fifty-eight Jesuit archivists and 8 other lay colleagues in Rome for a week last October. This was a first-ever conference of its kind, but also one that generated much enthusiasm for similar exchanges in the future. The conference originated with an overture circulated in January 1998 by Thomas McCoog, S.J., to all Jesuit Province archivists. "Within the Society of Jesus to my knowledge there has never been an attempt to gather Jesuit archivists together in some kind of conference, ... At such a meeting we could discuss issues [such as] access to archives and confidentiality, recommend policies regarding conservation, transfer of current files to archives and the role of the 'house historian,' formulate joint projects, ... etc., The first question then is: Do you think that such a meeting would be worthwhile?" In parallel to organizing the conference, Fr. McCoog's leadership also produced a new published reference resource, A Guide to Jesuit Archives (St. Louis: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 2001).
At the first session, Fr. Hans Zwiefelhofer, General Secretary of the Society of Jesus, welcomed all in attendance, and explained that they were now in the same "Aula" (hall) where seven Jesuit General Congregations have been held. Conference days typically began with a topical plenary presentation in this room, which was equipped with direct language translation capabilities. Those were followed by breakout into eight small working discussion groups, established by language: English, Spanish or Italian. The purpose of these groups was to generate ideas and content for a conference report to the Jesuit Fr. General, who will in turn distribute a summary letter to the whole Society. Afternoons included such varied activities as tours of the Vatican "Secret" Archives and the Archivum Romanum Societatis Iesu (ARSI), other presentations by attendees, and an occasional "power siesta" or two. Daily masses were available, within the Curia chapel, as well as special locations such as the restored original rooms of St. Ignatius and the beautiful Chiesa di Quirinale.
The conference concluded with a papal benediction in St. Peter's Square,
followed by an elegant reception and dinner at the Villa Grazioli,
a former summer palace south of Rome, overlooking the Roman plain.
This provided a final opportunity, in grand style, to enjoy the many new
friendships and acquaintances made throughout the week.
Mount Saint Mary's College Website Launch
Mount Saint Mary's College and Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, is the oldest private independent Catholic College in the United States. It was founded in 1808 by Father John DuBois, who arrived in America with a letter of introduction from the Marquis de Lafayette. Bishop John Carroll of Baltimore, the first American bishop, sent Father DuBois to Frederick County where he established a church and later a boarding school and seminary. He was soon joined by Sister Elizabeth Ann Seton, America's first native-born saint, who founded the Sisters of Charity in nearby Emmitsburg and retained close ties to her companion and his school. Known as the "Cradle of Bishops," the Mount provided the Catholic Church with many of its American leaders, and many of its alumni served as missionaries on the early frontiers.
The mission of the Mount Saint Marys Archives and Department of Special
Collections is to collect, arrange, and preserve the evidence of the founding,
development and growth, purposes, activities, philosophy, and policies
of the College and Seminary; and to describe these recordsand make them
available to faculty, administrators, seminarians, students, alumni, and
the public. The Archives maintains the historical record of the institution
founders, faculty, supporters, and alumni, as well as the community in
which it is based. The Archives supports the mission of the College
and Seminary by describing these records and artifacts and making them
available to faculty, administrators, seminarians, students, alumni,
and the community.
The collection comprises approximately 40,000 manuscripts, 10,000 rare
books, photographs, slides, oral histories, artwork, scrapbooks, postcards,
artifacts, and 400 feet of archival records. The manuscripts provide
details of early college life and record as well the great issues and movements
which transfixed the country and state, such as the Civil War and World
War II. The holdings also include the only complete run of the oldest
student newspaper still in publication in the United States. Alumni
and genealogists make use of the extensive and carefully preserved
records of the College, local parishes, and the town of Emmitsburg.
The collection, in its entirety, documents the establishment, growth, and
development of the College and Seminary; preserves the history of the local
community; and provides insight into the development of the Catholic Church
in the area, state, and nation.
Mount Saint Mary's Archives and Department of Special Collections is
now on the web. The Archives' main page can be accessed through the
College's site at http://www.msmary.edu/studentsandstaff/library/archives.htm, or directly at
http://members.jenzabar.com.
Centennial Commemoration: Mother Joseph of the Sacred Heart
The staff of Sisters of Providence Archives, Seattle, has taken the lead in planning the commemoration of the Centennial of the Death of Mother Joseph of the Sacred Heart, 1902-2002. Born in Quebec, Mother Joseph led the Sisters of Providence to the Pacific Northwest in 1856 and is credited with establishing many of the region's first hospitals and schools. She has been recognized as one of the first architects of the northwest, and her masterwork, Providence Academy, in Vancouver, Washington, stands on the National Register of Historic Places. Mother Joseph represents Washington State in National Statuary Hall, Washington, DC, along with pioneer doctor Marcus Whitman, and the legislature has declared her birthday, April 16, as Mother Joseph Day in the state.
The year-long celebration began January 19, the anniversary of her death, with publication of a new biographical sketch and an online archival exhibit (www.providence.org/centennial), both featuring original research by archives staff. The Vancouver community - Mother Joseph's home for 45 years - celebrated her life and legacy with a memorial service, exhibit, and visit to her grave, sponsored by local historical societies. Other memorials were held in the healthcare and housing facilities sponsored by the Sisters of Providence in Washington, Oregon, Montana, Alaska, and California.
The archives staff has also prepared an online resource packet to assist the sisters, facility personnel, and teachers in planning centennial celebrations. The packet includes two quizzes, a selection of prayer services, quotations from Mother Joseph's correspondence, digital images, traditional French-Canadian recipes, and suggested service projects. Materials are posted online as Word documents, making it easy for people to access, download, or print whatever they wish to use.
Future projects include exhibits of Mother Joseph's artifacts and a map and guide to her travels throughout the region, which will be published in December. For more information about the Centennial, or if you would like to receive copies of any of the resources mentioned, please contact Providence Archives at 206-937-4600, or e-mail: archives@providence.org.
Terri Mitchell, Assistant Archivist
Nomination for Representative-at-Large
The Nominating Committee has placed in nomination the name of Diana Sanderson for ARCS Representative-at-Large. Diana is the Special Collections Archivist with the Presbyterian Historical Society in Montreat, NC where she has worked since 1987. She has served as an ARCS committee member and attended Steering Committee meetings for several years. Diana currently heads the Models and Resources Committee of ARCS.
Elections for the two year term of Representative-at-Large will take place at the annual business meeting in Birmingham. Nominations from the floor will also be welcomed at that time.
Mark J. Duffy, Nominating Committee Chair
The Editor would like to include in future issues news items about what American religious archives are doing and would be especially interested in hearing about new projects, notable acquisitions, and opinion pieces. Let us help you connect with others in the field. Send news and notes to Lucinda Glenn Rand lglenn@gtu.edu.
Archival Spirit is published three times a year by the Archivists of
Religious Collections Section of the Society of American Archivists. Feature
pieces as well as announcements of acquisitions and projects are welcome.
For membership information, contact SAA at: 527 South Wells, 5th Floor,
Chicago, IL 60607; (312) 922-0140; FAX: (312) 347_1452; e-mail: info@archivists.org.
[End of document. HTML document version prepared May 22, 2002.]