Image courtesy of the Archives of the Franciscan Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe of Albuquerque – Father Anselm Sippel outside St. Michaels Mission c. 1948.
Archival Resources for Catholic Collections (ARCC) is an organization of individuals dedicated to ensuring the survival of Catholic archives for future generations. Our membership includes Catholic leaders, archivists and scholars with a vested interest in the preservation and use of these vital historic materials.
Our vision is to assist and support both women’s and men’s religious communities primarily in the following ways:
- Synthesize and present as an integrated whole the unique perspectives of Catholic religious leaders, archivists, and scholars to provide communities struggling with their archives reliable professional advice on how to best care for their records.
- Provide robust educational opportunities for archives, archivists, and related personnel to assist with the development of professional run archives.
- Focus primarily on US and Canadian based communities with an eye to international implications and cooperation as the North American Catholic Church is inextricably tied to the global Church.
- Provide a centralized forum for knowledge and resource sharing and facilitated discussion through this website.
Boston College Conference
Through the generous support of its president, Reverend William P. Leahy, SJ, Boston College hosted a first of its kind conference in July 2018 titled Envisioning the Future of Catholic Religious Archives: A Working Conference. For three days, Catholic archivists, leaders and scholars gathered to discuss the preservation of Catholic communities, orders, societies and diocesan archives. 165 individuals from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Italy participated in defining the present precarious landscape of Catholic archives, affirming the importance of preserving the irreplaceable documentary legacy of the organizations they represented and imagining various paths forward to secure the future of Catholic archives.
After the conference, a working committee gathered and synthesized knowledge gained through speaker presentations, interactive break-out sessions and conference feedback. The result of their efforts is the working paper titled Preserving the Past, Building for the Future. It provides a broad outline of the major areas of concern for Catholic religious leaders, scholars and archivists who are invested in the long term preservation and use of these valuable collections as well as suggestions on ways to move forward together in this important work. The working committee recommends that this paper be used as a framework for considering possible solutions to specific challenges faced by each religious community and as a tool to encourage cooperation and collaboration among the three constituencies.
Resources
The Boston College conference website is available at: https://catholicarchives.bc.edu/
Please download a copy of the working paper Preserving the Past, Building for the Future here.
Video recordings of the four main sessions are now available as a YouTube Playlist on the Boston College Libraries’ YouTube channel. See the Program page for additional details.
Join Us
Archival Resources for Catholic Collections (ARCC) is a member supported organization offering a virtual gathering place for everyone with a vested interest in the preservation and use of Catholic religious archives. The hope is that by connecting the talents, perspectives, experiences and resources of Catholic leaders, archivists and scholars we may together as a community ensure a thriving future for the Catholic history, experience, and worldview entrusted to our care.
Please join the ongoing conversation in our Google group or consider volunteering your time and talents through ARCC to help your fellow Catholic archives community members. Our email is archivalrcc@gmail.com.