Roman Catholic to head Harvard Divinity School

Christian Century, August 25, 1999

Bryan Hehir has been appointed as the new head of Harvard Divinity School, the first Roman Catholic priest to lead the prestigious institution. Hehir, currently professor of practice in religion, has headed the institution on an interim basis since the resignation of Dean Ronald F. Thiemann for "conduct unbecoming" of the divinity school's chief administrator. School computer technicians found thousands of pornographic sites on Thiemann's persona computer at his university residence after he requested technical assistance in transferring files.

Hehir will not be called dean of the divinity school but instead will serve as chair of its executive committee to allow him to continue his role with Catholic Relief Services and this pastoral commitments as a priest. Best known for his work with the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, Hehir was instrumental in drafting the bishops' influential 1980s pastoral statements on nuclear weapons and economic policy.-RSN