Introduction

The Jurist 67 (2007) 3-4 INTRODUCTION R o n a l d G . R o b e r s o n , C.S.R* As one of his Paulist confreres, it is truly a pleasure to introduce this issue of The Jurist, dedicated by the editors to John E. Lynch, CSP, ad­ ministrator, teacher, scholar, and priest. Born in New York City in 1924, John Edward Lynch moved with his family ten years later to Washington, DC, where he would spend most of the rest of his life. He entered the Paulist novitiate in Oak Ridge, New Jersey, on July 1,1944 and, after completing his studies at St. Paul’s Col­ lege in Washington, was ordained a priest on May 1, 1951. After four years at the Paulist parish in Los Angeles, Fr Lynch moved to Toronto in 1955 for advanced studies at the Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies. He would defend his dissertation, a study of the theory of knowledge of Vital du Four (c. 1260-1327), in 1965. In the meantime, he returned to Washington in 1959 and took up a position at Saint Paul’s College where he taught until it was closed as an academic institution in 1972. In 1967 Fr Lynch began his long association with The Catholic Uni­ versity of America, which provided him with the environment in which his many academic achievements would unfold. Granted tenure in 1971, Fr Lynch was named a full professor of the History of Canon Law and Medieval History in 1974, served as the Chair of the Department of Canon Lawfrom 1974until 1983, and as Chair of the Department ofHistory from 1983 until 1986. In addition, he was Academic Vice President and Vice Provost for Graduate Studies from 1991 until 1998. To this day he continues to serve on the editorial board of The Jurist, and for many years he was active as its book review editor. He has been significantly involved in various academic and profes­ sional associations in history and in canon law. Among them one might note the American Catholic Historical Association, the American Soci­ ety of Church History, and the Medieval Academy of America. For many years, Fr Lynch has been a member of the Canon Law Soci­ ety of America. In 1972 he served as a member of the Board of Gover­ nors and in 1974-1975 he functioned as its vice-president. The esteem in * Associate Director, Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs United States Conference of Catholic Bishops 3 4 THE JURIST which he is held by his colleagues in canon law was evident in his selec­ tion in 1984 to receive the Society’s prestigious Role of Law Award. As a perusal of the long list of his publications and the courses he taught will reveal, Fr Lynch’s academic interests extend well beyond his original focus in canon law and medieval history. Indeed, he has ad­ dressed some of the major issues facing the Church today: clerical celibacy, diocesan and parish structures, the role of the bishop, commu­ nications in the Church, the exercise of power, divorce and remarriage, and the ordination of women are all included in his studies. In these mat­ ters Fr Lynch does not propose a return to some fanciful golden age of the past, but provides a sound historical and theological foundation to enable the Church to adjust to new situations, to the diverse social and cultural contexts in which the Church finds itself as it becomes a world-wide communion. This vision of the Church has also led Fr Lynch to address the major ecumenical questions of our times. He has examined interchurch mar­ riages, ecumenical guidelines, Protestant understandings of the office of bishop and church governance, and the Eastern Churches. When he re­ ceived the Canon Law Society of America’s Role of Law Award, Fr Lynch remarked that ecumenism is important because the “magnificent vision held out to us by the Second Vatican Council” is “a World Church in which all peoples feel at home and a Church which embraces all be­ lievers in Christ.” Fr Lynch has also offered his many gifts in service of the Paulist Fa...