he editors and editorial board of The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory note with deep sadness and shared grief the death of Dr. Charles E. Winquist, Watson Professor of Religion at Syracuse University, on April 4, 2002.
A beloved friend, confidant, colleague of all us at the journal, as well as mentor to many, Charlie was also one of the founders of the JCRT and, until his death, served as chair of the editorial board. At the same time he is, and will remain forever, a towering figure in the development during the last several decades of postmodernist religious thought and philosophy.
He will be missed profoundly.
Our “prayers and tears,” to use the phrase of Jack Caputo, goes out to his entire family and the community of learning which he inspired, not just at Syracuse, but internationally.
As former executive director of the American Academy of Religion Charlie, we should remember, was the key force in the late 1970s and early 1980s who raised that now distinguished professional society out of obscurity and put it on the road to greatness.
The Journal is planning to do a special memorial issue on Charlie’s work some time in 2003. Ideas and submissions should be sent to the journal’s managing editor Clayton Crockett at cvcrock@bellatlantic.net.
A memorial service for Charlie will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4 in the Hendricks Chapel at Syracuse University.