Initiated by Boston College President William P. Leahy, SJ, and begun in September 2002, The "Church in the 21st Century Initiative" was originally conceived as a two-year project aimed at examining the controversial issues raised by the sexual abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church. The most comprehensive response to the crisis, "C21" included academic symposia, conferences, public lectures, publications, video and audio streaming resources, reading lists, and programs for Boston College students, staff, faculty, alumni and the general public. It broke ground on a number of previously-taboo issues facing the church and coincided with the growth of Voice of the Faithful and other lay movements committed to church reform. In 2004, the Church in the 21st Century Center was established as a permanent research institute at Boston College. Following an international search, Timothy P. Muldoon, Ph.D. (BC '92) was selected as the center's inaugural director. C21 is led by an Advisory Committee composed of Boston College faculty, staff, students, and alumni, a Steering Committee drawn from the Advisory Committee, and selected subcommittees focusing on specific issues or activities. Since 2003, C21 has published blank">C21 Resources, a progressive journal of contemporary Catholic issues which has become the second largest Catholic publication in the _United States.
The center's three major areas of focus include:
