Aug. 11, 2021 – Fr. Joseph W. Koterski, SJ, was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on Nov. 28, 1953. He attended Bishop’s Latin High School in Pittsburgh, Pa. After receiving a degree in the classics from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Saint Louis University, he entered the Novitiate of St. Isaac Jogues in Wernersville, Pa., in 1984. He went on to earn a Masters of Divinity and a licentiate of sacred theology at Weston School of Theology in Cambridge, Mass., and was ordained a priest on June 13, 1992, at Loyola College in Baltimore, Md.
Fr. Koterski was an associate professor of philosophy at Fordham University, where he specialized in the history of medieval philosophy and natural law ethics. He was a respected teacher and scholar, as well as a veteran instructor for the Great Courses online learning platform. At Fordham, he was awarded the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching and the Graduate Teacher of the Year Award. He also served as the editor-in-chief of the International Philosophical Quarterly and was coeditor of the Fordham University Press Series in Moral Philosophy and Moral Theology. In addition to teaching, Fr. Koterski was a chaplain at Fordham University for 14 years.
He was also a distinguished writer, authoring and co-authoring several books on medieval philosophy, ethics, and faith.
Fr. Koterski passed away on Aug. 9, 2021, while directing a retreat at Enders Island, Conn. He was 67.