- The focus of this edition is to offer a little more detail on how and what to consider in organising a historical archive in an ecclesiastical context. While our previous post has shown how archiving is a pastoral and administrative necessity, it is also sufficient to say that it is an art that is both biblical and patristic. As early as the 5th century BCE, between 450 and 400 BCE, when the Book of Ezra was written, archiving was used as a tool of governance, decision-making, and verifying authority. In Ezra 6:1-3, we read of the King’s command to search the archives of Babylon to find the original decree that allowed the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. King Cyrus had issued this decree, and it was critical for the rebuilding process to continue, as the Jewish people had faced opposition. Also, the First-Century Apostolic Father, St. Ignatius of Antioch (d. 107 AD), in his Epistle to the Philadelphians, presents a compelling theological perspective on the nature of Christian authority and truth. In Chapter 8, he addresses individuals who demand scriptural validation for the Gospel, stating: “But my archives are Jesus Christ; his cross and his death, his resurrection, and the faith which is through him, are inviolable archives, through which I desire to be justified by means of your prayers” (Early Christian Writings, Ignatius to the Philadelphians, 8:2). Thus, the art of archiving is rooted in Christian tradition and remains both as a administrative imperative and a pastoral necessity.
- There are various stages involved in creating a historical archive. The historical archives are the final stage or the long-term archives, where documentation is preserved and must be managed. There are several stages which must be observed in the life cycle of records. The first is record creation. Records are created to communicate and retrieve information. Records could be made in books or files. Some areas to develop records include church administration, records of decisions and policies, official transactions and agreements, letters, official communications, reports, and publications. It means that, for instance, in a parish setting, some of the records that must be filed include weekly bulletins that contain announcements, communications to the diocese or correspondences with other parishes or institutions, decisions reached at the parish pastoral council or pastoral decisions taken that have been written in a newsletter, etc. Such communications, if they were printed materials, should also have copies filed in the parish office. This means that, for record-keeping purposes, a fireproof cabinet is needed in the parish office to store files, catalogue them, preserve them, and facilitate easy retrieval.
- It is essential to distinguish between official records and personal records. Apart from official records, some personal records could be filed and archived. These include insurance and medical papers. It could also include a personal diary of the institution’s pastoral life. It is essential to note that every ecclesiastical institution should maintain pastoral diaries, which include daily records or logs of key events, a visitors’ logbook that documents pastoral or official visitation to the institution, personal calendars, and appointment schedules. Official records should be written on headed paper. It must also be dated, signed and sealed. When vital records are sent out, photocopies should be made and kept in the church office file. After a record is dated, it must also be assigned a number, which should be kept in the file in the sequence it was received. This would allow for easy retrieval and archiving. For photographs that are filed, the caption should be written behind, noting the date it was taken, the place, the event, and what is involved in it. Different folders should be created to categorise various types of records and facilitate easy retrieval. Additionally, they should be organised either by year or by the group to which they belong.
- The records created in a parish archive for daily use are current archives. There are, however, documents which are no longer in immediate recall for the daily life of the institution. Those records are temporarily transferred to the storage archive for a minimum of 10 years. Some of these records may include folders of people who have passed away, events and projects that have been completed, and documentation for a pastoral and fiscal year that has ended, among other items. These documents are not discarded, but are archived in a separate location where a catalogue is also maintained for easy retrieval over a specified period. Both the current archive and storage archive should have a clear inventory. Additionally, there must be a clear classification plan for records that allows another person to access them easily. Examples of classification plans which should be contained in a folder could be (1) Administration, (2) Property, (3) Human Resources, etc. Under the Administration folder, the following files could exist: General Correspondences, Minutes, Annual budgets, etc. Under Property, the following files could exist: Buildings, Land documents, Patents, etc. Under Human Resources, the following folders could exist: employees, job descriptions, training, etc.
- The last stage of archiving in the life of an ecclesiastical institution should be the historical archive. There should be a historical archive in every Diocese where all documents stored for over 10 years in the parish archives are transferred and archived. This documentation helps to keep an easy record of the events and activities of the Diocese. It is equally important that each diocese should have an archivist who helps to maintain the records of the Diocese. This should be different from the role of a Chancellor, who is the Diocesan Secretary and works with the current archives for the Diocese. A diocesan archivist may be a lay person or a priest who has been trained in the art of archiving. A historical archive is one in which the information needed can be located within minutes of a search. If information cannot be determined as to whether it is available or not in the historical records, then it cannot be regarded as an archive. The merit of an archive lies in its systematisation and easy retrieval of information. The diocesan archivist can also offer guidelines and regulations for the collection of records from parishes and other institutions, while being in charge of the historical archive for its care and consultation.
- The historical archives should also contain files that have been transferred from the chancery’s storage archives, such as files and records of deceased priests. These records would enable future research or studies, or be important if the causes of saints are being investigated for any reason. The absence of records is one reason there are fewer saints in Africa. Diocesan historical archives can also receive records from individual faithful or a private ecclesiastical juridical person (Cf. “The Pastoral Function of Church Archives”, 1997). It suffices to mention that the historical archive must be a separate building from the current archives. Dioceses or National institutions, such as the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, should have historical archives that are accessible to others, well-organised with modern digital operations and fireproof facilities. It suffices to state that there should exist at both the National (ecclesiastical) and Diocesan levels a commission for culture and historical sciences, which would incorporate concerns of cultural preservation and archaeology, as well as archiving, and libraries. This commission would help guide this essential pastoral process in the evangelising missions. In this way, the faith journey of the local church would have been preserved for future generations, just as we received it from those of generations before.
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