Notices
The 黑料门University Chicago community mourns the death of Robert Bireley, S.J., PhD, professor emeritus in the Department of History. He passed away on March 14 at St. Camillus Jesuit Community in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.
Father Bireley taught in the department for more than 40 years and retired from 黑料门in fall 2016. Over the years, he served the wider history profession in numerous ways, including a term as president of the American Catholic Historical Association in 2008 and as an editorial board member for the Catholic Historical Review (1979-1985) and Renaissance Quarterly (2000-2003).
Father Bireley was a prolific scholar in the field of European religious history with a special interest in the Reformation, Early Modern Catholicism, and the Jesuits. His numerous books extended from Politics and Religion in the Age of the Counterreformation (1981) through The Refashioning of Catholicism, 1450–1700 (1999), and The Jesuits and the Thirty Years War (2003). It concluded with Botero: The Reason of State (2017). Father Bireley’s scholarship was recognized by academic awards and grants, including those from the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, the National Humanities Center, and several from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
A Jesuit for nearly 70 years, Father Bireley entered the Chicago Province of the Society of Jesus in 1951. He was ordained in August 1964 in Frankfurt, Germany, and pronounced his final vows in August 1974 here at Loyola. Father Bireley integrated the Church’s intellectual apostolate through his scholarship, research, and teaching as well as with his love of the priesthood, celebration of the sacraments, and preaching.
Colleagues and fellow Jesuits say he enjoyed and invested in community life. He loved a lively discussion around the dinner table and, while strong in his opinions, always listened eagerly to those of others. Father Bireley lived his vocation with great balance, great passion, and a welcoming smile.
Funeral Service
Thursday, March 22
Madonna della Strada Chapel
Wake: 2 p.m.
Mass: 3 p.m.
Condolences may be sent to St. Camillus Jesuit Community, 10201 W. Bluemound Road, Wauwatosa, WI 53226.
Please remember Father Bireley and his family and friends in your prayers.