Heythrop College awards Honorary Doctorates

Fr Michael Holman SJ with Heythrop's new Honorary Doctors of Divinity

Heythrop College awarded four honorary doctorates at its graduation ceremony on Monday 2 December 2013.

The Principal, Rev Michael Holman SJ, said: “In its 400th year, the College is delighted to honour these distinguished individuals in recognition of their engagement with faith in scholarship, in public life and in the Church’s service of the poor and marginalised.”

The degree of Doctor of Divinity of the University of London, honoris causa, was awarded to:

- Ms Cathy Corcoran OBE, Chief Executive of the Cardinal Hume Centre, in recognition of her work on behalf of the Church for those who are most in need. Previously, Cathy was Head of the International Division at CAFOD and received an OBE for her work in 2002;

- Baroness Hollins, Emeritus Professor of the Psychiatry of Disability at St George’s University of London and Chair of the British Medical Association Board of Science, in recognition of her work as a teacher, writer, and psychiatrist, as well as her public life as a crossbench Peer, supporting the education and care of children and adults with learning disabilities and those otherwise disadvantaged or marginalised;

- Rev Professor Johannes Baptist Metz, Professor Emeritus at Westphalian Wilhelms University in Münster, in recognition of his contribution to the teaching and study of theology and to theological reflection on politics and society;

- and Rev Professor John O’Malley SJ of Georgetown University, in recognition of his contribution to the study of theology and church history, including the history of the Society of Jesus.

In 2014, Heythrop will celebrate its 400th anniversary with a series of events and celebrations. Since 1614, students at Heythrop College have studied the disciplines of theology and philosophy, enabling them to make a powerful contribution in the world of work and service. The modern day Heythrop continues these traditions, basing its learning on the Ignatian ethos of forming the whole person and linking the study of theology and philosophy to real world issues.

For more information about Heythrop, visit: www.heythrop.ac.uk