Sophia Institute Press
| Status | Active |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1983 |
| Founder | John Barger |
| Successor | Charlie McKinney, President |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Headquarters location | Bedford, New Hampshire |
| Publication types | Books, magazines |
| Nonfiction topics | Catholicism |
| Revenue | US$2 million (2014) |
| No. of employees | 18 |
| Official website | www |
Sophia Institute Press is a non-profit publishing company based in Bedford, New Hampshire.
It publishes Catholic books, the opinion journal Crisis Magazine, the website CatholicExchange.com, and catechetical materials for teachers. It serves as the official publishing division of two Catholic colleges, Thomas More College of Liberal Arts and Holy Spirit College.
Since 2012, the president of the organization has been Charlie McKinney.[1]
Mission
Sophia Institute publishes and distributes books that nurture the spiritual, moral, and cultural life of souls and spreads the Gospel of Christ in conformity with the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. In addition to publishing books, Sophia Institute operates several Catholic apostolates including Sophia Institute for Teachers, Crisis Magazine, and CatholicExchange.com.
History
Sophia Institute was founded in 1983 by John L. Barger, then a philosophy professor at Magdalen College, located in Bedford, New Hampshire, along with his student Paul DiIulio.[2] Under Barger's direction, the Press published over 200 titles and 2.5 million books. [1]
In April 2011, Thomas More College of Liberal Arts in Merrimack, New Hampshire and Holy Spirit College in Atlanta reached an agreement with Sophia Institute, which became the publishing division of the two colleges. The two colleges, in turn, appoint representatives to the board of directors of Sophia Institute.[1][3]
In 2012, Barger retired from directing Sophia Institute and the Institute's board selected Charlie McKinney, then the chief operating officer, as its new president.
Projects since 2012
In 2014, Sophia Institute began a project to aid Catholic religion teachers, offering lesson plans, instructional videos, and teacher formation workshops.[4][5] As of 2016, the project "Sophia Institute for Teachers" had partnered with 21 Catholic dioceses nationwide, and had trained over 6,000 teachers.
In 2015, Sophia Institute Press formed a joint venture with the international Catholic television service EWTN to establish EWTN Publishing, a new entity that publishes books by the network's foundress Mother Angelica and other hosts of EWTN programming. [6]
Crisis magazine
In 1982 at Notre Dame, theologian Michael Novak and philosophy professor Ralph McInerny founded an opinion magazine under the title Catholicism in Crisis, as a voice of Catholic neoconservative political and cultural thought.[7] In 1986 its title was changed to Crisis. From 1995 to 2011 Deal Hudson was the magazine's publisher. In late 2007, the magazine ceased print publication and its content moved to its companion website under the title "Inside Catholic". After Thomas More College acquired the magazine in 2011, it resumed the name Crisis under the direction of editor Brian Saint-Paul.[8] The college transferred the magazine to Sophia Institute in 2012.[9][3]
References
- ^ a b c "Sophia Institute Press names new President". Catholic News Agency. November 14, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
- ^ David A. Bovenizer (April 1, 1994). "Sophia's Secret". Crisis. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ^ a b "After acquisition, Crisis Magazine re-launches website". Catholic News Agency. February 10, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
- ^ "Sophia Institute's New Project Aids Catholic Teachers". Catholic News Agency. Apr 29, 2014. Retrieved Feb 25, 2016.
- ^ "Sophia Helping Catholics Relearn the Importance of Catechesis". Cardinal Newman Society. October 24, 2014. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
- ^ "EWTN Forms New Publishing Group with Sophia Institute Press". National Catholic Register. Nov 4, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
- ^ Todd Scribner (2015). A Partisan Church: American Catholicism and the Rise of Neoconservative Catholics. CUA Press. p. 216. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
- ^ Michael Sean Winters (commentary) (May 10, 2011). "Crisis Magazine Returns". National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
- ^ Charlie McKinney (December 9, 2013). "The Future of Crisis Magazine (fundraising article)". Crisis. Retrieved June 13, 2016.