''Homiletic and Pastoral Review'' (''HPR'') is a religious journal, the first Catholic Clergy magazine to appear in the United States and has been the leading journal of its kind for over a century. The current editor-in-chief is the Reverend John Cush, professor of theology at Saint Joseph's Seminary (Dunwoodie) in Yonkers, New York. The Reverend Kenneth Baker, S.J., and the Reverend David Meconi, S.J., each hold the title of editor emeritus. Founded over one hundred years ago, ''Homiletic and Pastoral Review'' is one of the most well-respected pastoral journals in the world. At its height, the paper edition of the journal was carried by 191 university libraries. It has featutred noted contributors such as James V. Schall, S.J.,

Alice von Hildebrand Alice Marie von Hildebrand, Order of Saint Gregory the Great, GCSG (née Jourdain; 11 March 1923 – 14 January 2022) was a Belgian-born American Catholic philosopher, theologian, author, and professor. She taught philosophy at Hunter College fo ...

Paul Vitz Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

Kenneth Whitehead Kenneth Whitehead (born 11 April 1955) is a Canadian former soccer player who competed at the 1976 Summer Olympics. He played for Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a public research university in British Columbia, ...

, Donald DeMarco, Regis Scanlon, and John F. Harvey.

History

In 1900 Joseph F. Wagner decided to start a magazine for the Catholic clergy in the U.S.A. He called it ''The Homiletic Monthly and Catechist'', the name it carried until it was changed to the present name in 1919. The format was always simple: each issue included a sample

sermon A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. ...

for each Sunday and Feast Day along with some aids for teaching catechism to children. It stayed that way until 1919. Editor until 1916 was

Msgr. Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

John F. Brady of St. Joseph's Seminary in Dunwoodie, N.Y., the

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

of the

Archdiocese of New York The Archdiocese of New York ( la, Archidiœcesis Neo-Eboracensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church ( particularly the Roman Catholic or Latin Church) located in the State of New York. It encompasses the boroug ...

. He was succeeded by two Dominican

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ...

s, Fathers John A. McHugh, O.P. and Charles J. Callan, O.P. They changed the name of the periodical to ''The Homiletic and Pastoral Review'' (HPR) because they wanted to offer more than sermons. They expanded the scope of HPR, adding articles, official church documents, a "Questions Answered" section and book reviews. Their tenure was exceptional in the annals of Catholic journalism in the United States. Fr. McHugh was co-editor for 34 years when he died in 1950. Fr. Callan carried on as sole editor until 1957, when Father Adian M. Carr, O.F.M. Conv., started as associate editor. Beginning in 1957, Fr. Carr wrote editorials that appear on the last page of every issues; this tradition has remained in place until today. Fr. Callan retired in 1961 and Fr. Carr became the new editor. Callan's tenure had lasted 45 years. In addition to their editorial work, Callan and McHugh founded a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

in Hawthorne, N.Y. and taught at the Maryknoll Seminary in Ossining, N.Y. Both being scholars, they also published 30 books on

Scripture Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual pra ...

and

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. In 1970 Fr. Carr received permission to leave the

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

and join the

Trappist The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s in Monks Corner, S.C. (Within five years he was named Prior of the

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The con ...

, and a few years after that he was elected

Abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

.) The last issue of ''HPR'' he edited was April 1970. For three months there was no editor until John F. Wagner, president of the company, appointed Msgr. Vincent A. Yzermans of Freeport, Minn., who served as editor until 1971. Fr. Kenneth Baker assumed editorship in April 1971 and remained in this position until 2010.

Today

The journal is currently owned and published by

Ignatius Press Ignatius Press is a Catholic publishing house based in San Francisco, California, US. It was founded in 1978 by Father Joseph Fessio, a Jesuit priest and former pupil of Pope Benedict XVI. Ignatius Press also produces '' Catholic World Report'' ...

, which purchased it in 1995. In the spring of 2010, Fr. David Vincent Meconi, S.J., became editor of ''HPR'' and served as such for a dozen years until handing over the reigns in 2022. Notably, Fr. Meconi announced in October 2011 that the print version of the ''Homiletic and Pastoral Review'' would be discontinued at the end of the year. An online version continues. In September 2022, the Reverend John P. Cush was named editor-in-chief. He is joined by Sister Mary Micaela Hoffman, associate editor; Father Brian T. Mullady, O.P., contributing editor; Mr. Christopher Siuzdak, book review editor; and S.E. Greydanus, managing editor.

References

External links

{{commons category, Homiletic and Pastoral Review
Website for Homiletic & Pastoral Review

Website for Ignatius Press
Catholic magazines published in the United States Defunct magazines published in the United States Magazines disestablished in 2011 Magazines established in 1900 Online magazines published in the United States Online magazines with defunct print editions Religious magazines published in the United States