Heythrop College, University of London

Heythrop College, University of London

Motto	Nil Sine Fide
Motto in English	Nothing Without Faith
Established	1971 - Constituent College of University of London 1614 in Louvain, Belgium
Chancellor	HRH The Princess Royal (University of London)
Principal	Fr. Michael Holman S.J.
Students	950
Address	23 Kensington Square , Kensington, London , England
Website	www.heythrop.ac.uk

Heythrop College is the specialist philosophy and theology college of the University of London situated in Kensington Square, Kensington, London. The college offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in philosophy, theology and related subjects. Founded in 1614, by the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) Heythrop joined the University of London in 1971, whilst retaining a modern Catholic ethos, it offers an educational experience that respects all faiths and perspectives. Heythrop has an international reputation as a centre for interreligious dialogue and modern philosophical enquiry and is a member of the prestigious Cathedrals Group (CCUC) of UK colleges and universities.

History

Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria, an early patron of the College

The College was founded in 1614 by the Society of Jesus in Leuven, (present-day Belgium), then moved in 1624 to Liège. Whilst in Liège, the college received patronage from Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria, and the blue and silver on the College's coat of arms was adopted from Maximilian's own crest. During the wars surrounding the French Revolution, the college moved to Britain - philosophy was taught at Stonyhurst College in Lancashire and theology in St. Beuno's in North Wales. Tracing its history back almost 400 years, Heythrop is one of the oldest universities in England.

In 1836 the University of London came into being. Its charter of foundation enabled it to grant degrees not only to students of the two existing colleges, University College and King’s, but to students of other colleges around the country who had reached the required standard. Stonyhurst applied for recognition as an institution preparing for London degrees, and this right was granted it in 1840, allowing both lay and clerical students to prepare for London University degrees: the lay students were called "Philosophers", as had been the students at Liège back in the 1620s.

In 1926, the colleges came together in Heythrop Hall, Oxfordshire. At the time of moving to Heythrop, the college was awarding degrees from the Jesuit-run Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. However, the college sought to integrate itself fully with the British education system, and moved to London in 1970, becoming a college of the University of London in 1971, and began to award University of London degrees. Upon moving to London, the College retained the name of its previous location, and has been called 'Heythrop College' ever since. The College moved to its current Kensington location in 1993.

In 2014, Heythrop College will celebrate the 400th anniversary of its foundation. While the college still retains its original function as a centre for the education of future priests and ministers of the Catholic Church, its student body is now much larger, more international and more diverse.

Campus

Heythrop College and the Marie Eugénie Chapel

Heythrop's location is in Kensington Square, off Kensington High Street. The campus was previously in use by the Roman Catholic Religious of the Assumption, a religious order of sisters founded by Saint Marie-Eugénie de Jésus. A number of the sisters continue to live on the current site, and the Marie Eugénie Chapel is available for student use, where a College Mass is celebrated weekly, with the College choir. A chaplaincy is provided for all students, in addition to the University of London chaplaincy, as well as a Muslim prayer room.

Unlike many University of London colleges, which are divided among many campuses, the Kensington campus houses all Heythrop College facilities, such as the library, lecture halls, student's union, hall of residence, canteen, as well as housing the United States Jesuit College Fordham University's London Centre.

Academics

Heythrop has 950 students who prepare for a range of specialist undergraduate, graduate and research degrees. The college has five specialist institutes and centres which promote research, conferences and a variety of educational outreach activities. These are the Centre for Christianity and Inter-religious Dialogue, the Centre for Eastern Christianity, the Centre for Philosophy of Religion, the Religious Life Institute and the Heythrop Institute for Religion and Society.

Heythrop offers both full-time, and part-time courses. Teaching consists of a combination of lectures, seminars and tutorials. Significantly, Heythrop College, Oxford University and Cambridge University make up the only three universities in the United Kingdom to offer one-to-one tutorials after every assignment.

Department of Philosophy

The Philosophy Department offers a variety of specialist philosophy degrees, either as single honours or as joint honours with theology, ethics or religious studies. The College has a thriving postgraduate research community, with students often attached to one of the many Institutes or Centres at the College. Students are free to choose from a wide range of modules, embracing both the continental and analytic traditions, as well as the history of philosophy.

Department of Theology

The Theology Department offers a wide range of degrees. In addition to theology, religious studies and ethics, Heythrop is the first college in the world to offer undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses specifically focused upon the Abrahamic religions, a course led by members of each of the three Abrahamic faiths. The Theology department also offers a divinity program, but only to candidates for the Catholic priesthood, students not following a vocation are encouraged to take one of the broader theology courses.

Department of Pastoral and Social Studies

Heythrop College has a unique history and range of teaching in pastoral theology and allied disciplines, with a strong profile both in this country and internationally. The Pastoral and Social Studies Department currently offers degree programmes in the following fields: pastoral and practical theology, including sociology of religion; Christian spirituality; ethics; liturgy; canon law; and psychology, including a unique specialism in the psychology of religion.

Library

The College library sits at 180,000 volumes, which constitutes one of the largest Theology and Philosophy libraries in the United Kingdom. Students are also able to access the Senate House Library, and the libraries of the other colleges of the University of London. Through the University of London, Heythrop is also able to offer students access to a wide range of digital journals and learning resources, such as JSTOR.

Student life

Heythrop Students' Union

The Union is managed by a team of eleven officers, elected annually. Officers have individual responsibilities, including student welfare, entertainments, societies, communications, development, campaigns and mature students. The team is headed up by the sabbatical President and the sabbatical Vice-President, students who have either completed their studies or have taken a year out in order to fill this full-time position.

The Lion Newspaper

The Lion Newspaper was started in 2010 to provide the students of Heythrop with an independent source of information about the college as well as providing a platform for discussion and debate. The Lion is operated by 8 students editors, including 2 Senior Editors and an Editor-in-Chief. The Lion is a founding newspaper of the London Student Journalism Support Network, which won the NUS "Best Student Media" Award in 2011.

Student housing

Heythrop has its own on-site hall of residence, the Alban Hall, which houses 96 students. Housing is also available through the University of London Intercollegiate Halls, and the University of London housing service.

Notable people

Notable alumni

Gerard Manley Hopkins

• Mor Polycarpus Augin (Eugene) Aydin (1971— ), Metropolitan and Patriarchal Vicar for the Archdiocese of the Netherlands of the Syriac Orthodox Church
• The Hon. William Bentinck, Viscount Woodstock (1984— ), writer, social entrepreneur and heir to the Earldom of Portland
• The Rev. Fr. Brendan Callaghan, SJ (1948— ), Jesuit priest and psychologist of religion
• The Rev. Fr. Gerald O'Collins, SJ, Jesuit priest, author, academic, and educator
• The Rev. Fr. Frederick Copleston, SJ, CBE (1907-1994), Jesuit priest, philosopher and historian
• Cpt. Ralph Coverdale (1918-1975), soldier, behavioural psychologist, management consultant and trainer
• Msgr. Bernt Ivar Eidsvig (1953— ), Roman Catholic Bishop of Oslo
• The Rev. Fr. Mark Elvins (1939— ), Warden of Greyfriars, Oxford
• The Rt. Rvd. Michael Charles Evans (1951-2011), Roman Catholic Bishop of East Anglia
• Fr. Gerard Manley Hopkins, SJ (1844-1899), Jesuit priest, poet and professor of classics
• The Rev. Fr. Gerard J. Hughes, SJ, Jesuit priest and theologian
• The Rev. Fr. Peter Levi, SJ (1931-2000), Jesuit priest, poet, archaeologist, travel writer, biographer, critic and Professor of Poetry at the University of Oxford
• The Rev. Fr. Bernard Lonergan, SJ (1904-1984), Jesuit priest, philosopher and theologian
• Fr. John Anthony McGuckin (1939— ), Orthodox Christian priest, academic and poet
• The Rev. Fr. Peter Milward, SJ (1925— ), Jesuit priest and literary scholar
• Martin Newland (1961— ), journalist and editor of The National (Abu Dhabi)
• The Rt. Rvd. Malcolm Patrick McMahon (1949— ), Roman Catholic Bishop of Nottingham
• Very Rev. Michael Anthony Moxon (1942— ), Anglican Dean of Truro Cathedral
• The Rev. Fr. James J. Quinn (1919-2010), Jesuit priest, theologian and hymnwriter
• The Rev. Fr. John A. Saliba, SJ, Jesuit priest and professor of religious studies
• The Rev. Fr. Frederick Turner, SJ (1911-2001), Jesuit priest, archivist, librarian and former headmaster at Stonyhurst College
• The Rt. Rvd. Lindsay Urwin (1956— ), Anglican Bishop of Horsham
• The Rt. Rvd. Dominic Walker (1948— ), Anglican Bishop of Reading, currently Bishop of Monmouth

Notable faculty and staff

• Elizabeth Burns, Lecturer in philosophy of religion
• Alan Carter, former head of the philosophy department
• Dan Cohn-Sherbok, visiting research fellow
• John Cottingham, professorial research fellow
• The Rev. Fr. Frederick Charles Copleston, SJ, taught as lecturer in philosophy
• Richard J. George, former professor-in-residence
• The Rev. Fr. Michael Holman, SJ, current Principal of Heythrop College
• The Rev. Fr. Kevin T. Kelly, former lecturer in moral theology
• Stephen Law, senior lecturer in philosophy
• Joanna Collicutt McGrath, senior lecturer in psychology
• Martyn Percy, professorial research fellow
• The Most Rev. George Stack, former governor
• Peter Vardy, former Vice-Principal and senior lecturer in philosophy
• Miguel Vieira, former research assistant to the Dean of Research

Similar schools

The Munich School of Philosophy is a specialist college in philosophy in Munich, Germany.

See also

• Third oldest university in England debate
• University of London
• List of the oldest schools in the world
• List of University of London people

External links

• Official website
• Heythrop: A Detailed History
• Heythrop Students Union
• The Lion Newspaper