Boys Town was founded in 1917 by Father Edward J. Flanagan, a young, idealistic Irish-American priest. From the beginning, Father Flanagan was driven by his deep and abiding faith to save young homeless boys from the grim fate they typically faced more than a century ago.
Today, Father Flanagan’s spirit and spirituality still flow through Boys Town’s many campuses. And although Boys Town is not a religious institution, Father Flanagan’s faith-driven vision still guides us.
Father Flanagan is very famous for having said every boy must pray, how he prays is up to him. He said this, of course, back when Boys Town took care of just boys. We've had girls with us since 1979. And what he meant by that was faith and spirituality are really important in the lives of kids, but they need to be able to practice the faith that is theirs, that's unique to them. Everybody assumes because our national executive director has always been a Catholic priest that Boys Town must be a Catholic organization, right? But it's important for people to know that we are not a Catholic organization, have never been a Catholic organization by design. We are a faith based organization.
He very much welcomed all faiths and assured that all kids could practice their own faith. Boys Town today, it has as many kids of as many different faiths as ever. The kids come in pretty broken, and whether it's their family dynamic or them as individuals, and so to tell them that there is something bigger than themselves, and something that is constant, and that will never leave them, and that takes them just for who they are unconditionally, I feel like I believe that that is what points them to God and helps them to begin their healing process. So we are here just to help them learn to pray, help them learn to explore their faith, to read their Bible, to ask us questions. Right before I got here, my faith had kind of dipped. So I really thought, how could there be a higher power who lets bad things happen? Especially some things I went through, like it was really rough, and I struggled tremendously about if he's really there, then why did this happen, or why did I have to go through that?
But coming to Boys Town, they taught me that no matter what, everything happens for a reason. I really believe it just starts with that, just that mustard seed of faith is like, I'm going to give this a try, because everything else in my life has kind of not worked so well so far. I'm just going to try it, and usually if we can get them to just try it, it starts to transform their entire life.
Father Flanagan was a progressive and forward-thinking man, especially for the time in which he lived. He believed that all children deserved a loving home and a chance to succeed, regardless of their background or circumstances. He also believed a key element in helping children succeed was having them practice their faith and pray, although how they did that was up to them.
Today, as it has through more than 100 years of service, Boys Town accepts and cares for boys and girls of all faiths…and those of no faith.
The basic tenet of most faiths is love. Loving others is critical because we’re all in this together.
Sadly, many youth who come to Boys Town haven’t experienced love, so it must be taught and practiced.
Self-compassion and love of self are important, too. Taking care of
one’s physical, mental and spiritual needs is critical to dealing with
and overcoming life’s many obstacles.
