Joseph Koterski (1953-2021)
Joseph Koterski, a professor of philosophy at Fordham University, has died.
Dr. Koterski, a Jesuit priest, worked on topics in Catholic philosophy and the history of philosophy, especially Medieval philosophy. He was editor-in-chief of International Philosophical Quarterly. You can browse some of his publications here. He also worked as the master of one of Fordham’s residential colleges for two decades, serving as an academic adviser and counselor for first-year students.
Dr. Koterski joined the Fordham Faculty in 1992. He previously taught at Loyola College in Baltimore and the University of St. Thomas in Houston. He earned his Ph.D. from Saint Louis University and was an undergraduate at Xavier University in Cincinnati.
He died of a heart attack on August 9th.
Fordham has posted an obituary here.
Father Koterski also hosted a radio show called ‘Catholic Classics’ on Radio Maria. His wisdom and knowledge will be missed by many.
https://radiomaria.us/catholic-classics/
Condolences to the family. May he rest in peace
Condolences to his family. He ushered in my first publication, at IPQ, when every other venue I submitted to desk rejected it. Thank you, Professor Koterski.
I had the unique (if somewhat awkward) privilege of going to Fr Koterski for Confession while I was a grad student in the philosophy department. He was easily the best confessor I’ve had — kind, comforting, understanding, and non-judgmental. In those moments of vulnerability, Fr. Koterski showed his character. RIP.
Once it fell out that I was going to be in a position to support a vulnerable junior faculty member (not at my own institution, and not at Koterski’s–let me leave it at that.) I knew absolutely nothing about the situation, however, so the opportunity might easily have come and gone. I’m not sure how Fr. Koterski knew that I was going to be in a position to act, but he did know. He called me up, made sure I understood, and didn’t stop short at “take it or leave it” but, well, encouraged me to do the right thing. It’s not every day that senior faculty go so far out of their way to support junior faculty!
Any idea who will take over as editor of IPQ?