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Rev. Joseph Thomas Durkin, S.J. | |
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Personal details | |
Born | Joseph Thomas Durkin May 17, 1903 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Died | May 31, 2002 (Age 100) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
Rev. Joseph Durkin, S.J. (May 17, 1903 – May 31, 2002), was a Jesuit priest, professor, and author. He was a brother of the Mu Alpha chapter of Alpha Phi Omega.
Early life and education
Joseph Thomas Durkin was born on May 17, 1903, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
He entered the Society of Jesus at the age of 17. He studied theology at Woodstock College, a seminary in Maryland. He also earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Weston College in Massachusetts. He was ordained in 1933. About his reasoning for becoming a Jesuit, he would say "My answer is simple. I fell passionately in love with Jesus Christ and I stayed in love with him."
He received his Ph.D. in history from Fordham University in 1942.
Career
Father Durkin first taught at the University of Scranton.
He was a professor at Georgetown University from 1944 to 1972. He began his work at the university reluctantly, having hoped to be placed in the chaplain corps instead. Veterans of World War II were his favorite students during his time as a professor.
As a professor of American history, Father Durkin established the American Studies program at Georgetown and published 25 books. He was popular among students for his active teaching style, often acting in the role of a historical figure or jumping up on his desk to illustrate his points. One of his students, Ted Leonsis described Father Durkin by saying "his happiness flowed from his calling. His life wasn’t merely in service to the Lord—his mission was to help spark a calling among the young adults he mentored."
When he retired, Father Durkin's friends and colleagues set up an endowment fund in his name to purchase books for the Collection in American Studies at Lauinger Library, for which he selected the items until his death. Even after his official retirement, Father Durkin continued to be active in the Georgetown community. He gave tutorials and advised students until 1994. He served as the honorary chaplain of Georgetown’s Army ROTC unit. He was known for his ministry Alzheimer’s patients and local inmates.
Involvement with Alpha Phi Omega
In the spring of 1982, Father Durkin was named an honorary brother of the Mu Alpha chapter of Alpha Phi Omega.
Death
Aged 100, Father Durkin died of pneumonia on May 31, 2003, at Georgetown University Hospital. At the time, he was working on two final books, about Jesuit dance and rhetoric, respectively. He was interred at Georgetown’s Jesuit Cemetery.
There is a chapel in Wolfington Hall Jesuit Residence named for Father Durkin.