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Throughout the more than 2,000-year history of Catholic Christianity, there have always been people who have had a very special, very noble devotion to the care of children. One such individual was an Irish-American priest named Edward J. Flanagan.
Edward J. Flanagan was born on July 13, 1886 in County Roscommon, Ireland. In 1904, Edward immigrated to the United States and became an American citizen in 1919. He attended Mount St. Mary University in Emmitsburg, Maryland where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1906 and Master of Arts degree in 1908. He then studied at St. Joseph Seminary in Dunwoodie, New York and continued his seminary studies at the University of Innsbruck in Austria. In Austria, he was ordained a priest in 1912.
Fr. Edward served as an assistant pastor in several churches in the Diocese of Omaha, Nebraska in the United States.
Though the Bishop of Omaha had misgivings, he allowed Fr. Edward to found a home for homeless boys in Nebraska. Soon, however, there was not enough room for to serve all the boys. So, in 1921, Fr. Edward established a Boys Town, ten miles west of Omaha. This “town,” built for boys ages 10 through 16, had its own boy-mayor, schools, chapel, post office, cottages, gymnasium, and other facilities. It even had an educational system that taught boys a trade.
One of the most striking things about Boys Town was that it did not believe in the “reform school” model that was common in those days. Fr. Flanagan was famous for saying, “There’s no such thing as a bad boy.”
At Boys Town, the boys were treated with respect and dignity and abundant love. Like a house built solidly on rock, Boys Town helped the boys develop lives where they could practice Christian virtues, especially faith, hope, and charity.
In 1938, American actor Spencer Tracy played Fr. Flanagan in the movie, Boys Town, for which he won the Best Actor award for his performance. A sequel – Men of Boys Town – also staring Spencer Tracy, was made in 1941.
In 1946, Pope Pius XII named him a Monsignor.
Msgr. Edward Flanagan, who was eventually on many boards and committees dealing with child welfare, authored many articles on the subject. Traveling around the world, he shared his wisdom – gained from the practical experience he gained serving over 10,000 boys – with officials in many nations.
Msgr. Edward Flanagan died on May 15,1948 of a heart attack in Germany where he was consulting.
In 1986, the United States Post Office issued a 4-cent stamp in his honor in the Great American series.
On March 17, 2012, St. Patrick’s Day, Msgr. Flanagan was given the title, “Servant of God,” the first step on his way to sainthood, in a prayer service at Boys Town.
