University mourns the loss of Rev. Robert Doran, S.J.

Marquette University mourns the loss of Rev. Robert (Bob) Doran, S.J., Ph.D., who passed away peacefully at the age of 81 on Thursday, Jan. 21.

Father Doran joined the Marquette community in 2006. He was the Emmet Doerr Chair in Theology in the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences and was known widely for his research on the works of the Jesuit theologian and philosopher Bernard Lonergan.

Father Doran was general editor of The Collected Works of Bernard Lonergan (University of Toronto Press), a set of twenty-five volumes, the last of which was published in November 2019. He was also co-founder and director emeritus of the Lonergan Research Institute and served as the director of the Marquette Lonergan Project.

“With Father Doran’s passing, a great light has gone out,” said Rev. Ryan Duns, S.J., Ph.D., assistant department chair and assistant professor of theology. “The lives of his friends and colleagues will be a little less bright, a little less warm, a little less oriented without him. No thinker better embodied John the Baptist’s words: ‘He must increase, but I must decrease.’ Despite his towering intellect, Bob’s entire life pointed away from himself and toward the God revealed in history through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Although his friends and admirers are saddened by his passing, we take comfort in the hope that Bob now stands in the company of the Lord he served so well.”

Read the full obituary. A funeral Mass will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 3, at 11 a.m. at the Church of the Gesu. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, attendance is limited but a livestream of the funeral will be available online.

Please remember Father Doran, his family and friends in prayer.