William Joseph Kerby (1870-1936): The Approach To His Field of the First American Catholic Sociologist
After advanced theological studies at The Catholic University of America, William Joseph Kerby was appointed to its faculty in 1895, to occupy the first chair of sociology in an American Catholic institution. He prepared himself at Berlin, where he was introduced to the emerging science in a course...
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2000
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| In: |
American catholic studies
Year: 2000, Volume: 111, Issue: 1/4, Pages: 77-96 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | After advanced theological studies at The Catholic University of America, William Joseph Kerby was appointed to its faculty in 1895, to occupy the first chair of sociology in an American Catholic institution. He prepared himself at Berlin, where he was introduced to the emerging science in a course from George Simmel, and at the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, from which he received his doctorate in political and social science in 1897. He had widespread influence as a gifted teacher, a pioneer in the professionalization of Catholic charities, and a master of spiritual retreats. Sociology to him was a general social science that was both "descriptive" and "directive." Although he adopted no system, he credited the findings of contemporaries with producing important results, while he looked to Christian principles to guide social reform. His elucidation of basic concepts of social relations, the social self, and social processes is of continuing disciplinary interest, as would be his applications of these and other concepts in social work and spirituality. |
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| ISSN: | 2161-8534 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: American catholic studies
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