Broglio Discusses Jesuit Ed.

Rev. Timothy Broglio, archbishop of the U.S. armed forces and BC '73, called on Jesuit education to be a guide in providing discernment in an age of "sound bytes" at a lecture given in Fulton Hall Tuesday.

"We live in an age of pluralism and transition," Broglio said. "We are flooded with information … but what is its quality?"

Broglio referenced a recent study by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown. According to the study, 31 percent of students at U.S. Catholic colleges and universities change their attitudes toward the Church's teachings on abortion by the time they graduate.

The study also found that 32 percent of Catholic students at Catholic universities attend mass less often during their time at college.

"Something clearly must be adjusted," Broglio said. He said the history of higher learning in the United States can be taught in the context of religious institutions. "Most institutions of higher learning in this country began as confessional institutions," he said. "They sought excellence in learning and achievement … and were places where an immigrant population would be worthy of higher study."

Regarding the CARA study, Broglio said he would like other features of Catholic institutions to be highlighted. The effect of the Jesuit teaching of "men and women for others" and its effect on service performed by students should also be examined, he said. "The Jesuits' goal of forming persons for others should also be the object of a study."

Installed as archbishop in January 2008, Broglio previously served in clerical positions in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. In his current role, he has advocated for aid to U.S. soldiers returning from war. He said that stress and suicide are two problems within the U.S. armed forces that need to be addressed.

"Our returning troops are afflicted with the effect of post-traumatic stress syndrome," he said. "We have an obligation to assist in the healing process." He also highlighted the high rate of suicides on military bases. "We have failed in some way to respond to their helplessness."

After graduating from BC, Broglio studied at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, attaining a bachelor of sacred theology. He said that his time at BC differed from that of many current students.

"It is true that, as an undergrad on this campus, tempers flared," he said. "It was not an easy time." He said that following his graduation, he would not have imagined himself serving his current ministry.

"When I left 37 years ago, my path was pretty certain," he said. "Never in my wildest dreams did I think of spending Holy Thursday on a military base during a war in Iraq."
Broglio's lecture was sponsored by the Jesuit Institute as part of the Canisius Lecture Series, which sponsors one lecture each year.

Rev. T. Frank Kennedy, S.J., director of the Jesuit Institute and rector of the BC Jesuit community, said that Broglio's connection to Jesuits throughout his life served as one motive for bringing him to campus. "He knows Jesuits very well," Kennedy said. "He's been working with them for a long time."