Monsignor
Monsignor (; ) is a form of address or title for certain members of the clergy in the Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" can be abbreviated as Mons.... or Msgr. In some ...
Robert Sokolowski (born 3 May 1934) is an American
philosopher
Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...
and
Catholic priest
The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' refe ...
who serves as the Elizabeth Breckenridge Caldwell Professor of Philosophy at
The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...
.
Sokolowski's philosophical research is focused primarily on the discipline of
phenomenology
Phenomenology may refer to:
Art
* Phenomenology (architecture), based on the experience of building materials and their sensory properties
Philosophy
* Phenomenology (Peirce), a branch of philosophy according to Charles Sanders Peirce (1839� ...
and interrelated sub-disciplines, though he has also written works from a theological perspective. He is known for his interpretation of
Husserl
Edmund Gustav Albrecht Husserl (; 8 April 1859 – 27 April 1938) was an Austrian-German philosopher and mathematician who established the school of phenomenology.
In his early work, he elaborated critiques of historicism and of psychologism in ...
, commonly known as "East-Coast Husserlianism" in academic circles.
Sokolowski has throughout his career maintained that philosophy begins with good
distinctions.
Life
Early life
Sokolowski was born on May 3, 1934, to Stanley A. Sokolowski and Maryann C. Drag of
New Britain, Connecticut
New Britain is a city in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is located approximately southwest of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. The city is part of the Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut, Capitol ...
.
Sokolowski entered seminary formation at Theological College after being awarded a Basselin scholarship (named after
Theodore B. Basselin), earning his bachelor's degree in philosophy from The Catholic University of America in 1956 and a master's degree in 1957. He then went to the
Catholic University of Leuven
University of Leuven or University of Louvain (; ) may refer to:
* Old University of Leuven (1425–1797)
* State University of Leuven (1817–1835)
* Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968)
* Katholieke Universiteit Leuven or KU Leuven (1968 ...
, where he earned his
S.T.B in Theology (1961) and his
Ph.D. in Philosophy (1963). His dissertation was titled "The Formation of Husserl's Concept of Constitution." His dissertation was written under
Fr. Herman Leo Van Breda, the man who saved Husserl's writings from destruction by the
Nazis
Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
, and who subsequently founded the Husserl Archives at the Leuven
Higher Institute of Philosophy
The Institut supérieur de Philosophie (ISP) (French for: Higher Institute of Philosophy) is an independent research institute at the University of Louvain (UCLouvain) in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. It is a separate entity to the UCLouvain School ...
.
Academic posts
Since earning his Ph.D. his entire teaching career has been at The Catholic University of America, with visiting posts at
The New School for Social Research
The New School for Social Research (NSSR), previously known as The University in Exile and The New School University, is a graduate-level educational division of The New School in New York City, United States. NSSR enrolls more than 1,000 stud ...
,
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...
,
Villanova University
Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Saint Thom ...
, and
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
.
References
External links
Curriculum Vitae and bibliographyAudio from appearance on The Partially Examined Life
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sokolowski, Robert
American philosophers
20th-century American philosophers
Catholic University of America School of Philosophy faculty
Catholic University of America alumni
21st-century Roman Catholic theologians
1934 births
Living people
Presidents of the Metaphysical Society of America
Catholic University of America faculty
American Roman Catholic priests
American people of Polish descent
Phenomenologists