Ralph Matthew McInerny (February 24, 1929 – January 29, 2010) was an American author and philosophy professor at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

. McInerny's most popular mystery novels featured Father Dowling, and was later adapted into the '' Father Dowling Mysteries'' television show, which ran from 1987 to 1991. He sometimes wrote under the pseudonyms of Harry Austin, Matthew FitzRalph, Ernan Mackey, Edward Mackin and Monica Quill.

Academic career

McInerny wrote his PhD dissertation entitled ''The Existential Dialectic of Soren Kierkegaard'' under Professor

Charles De Koninck Charles De Koninck (29 July 1906 – 13 February 1965) was a Belgian-Canadian Thomist philosopher and theologian. As director of the Department of Philosophy at the Université Laval in Quebec, he influenced Catholic philosophy in French Canada a ...

at Laval University (Quebec). He was

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

Philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

, Director of the

Jacques Maritain Jacques Maritain (; 18 November 1882 – 28 April 1973) was a French Catholic philosopher. Raised Protestant, he was agnostic before converting to Catholicism in 1906. An author of more than 60 books, he helped to revive Thomas Aquinas fo ...

Center, and

Michael P. Grace Michael Paul Grace (1842 – September 20, 1920) was an Irish-American businessman who was a shareholder and chairman of the board of directors of W. R. Grace and Company shipping company of New York City and of Grace Brothers & Co. Ltd. of London ...

Professor of Medieval Studies at the

. He taught there from 1955 until his retirement in 2009. McInerny was also a Fulbright Scholar, receiving educational funds from the

Fulbright Commission Belgium The Commission for Educational Exchange between the United States of America, Belgium, and Luxembourg is located in Brussels, Belgium, with the office situated at the Royal Library Albert I. It is a not-for profit organization that is responsible f ...

. He served as President of the

Metaphysical Society of America The Metaphysical Society of America (MSA) is a philosophical organization founded by Paul Weiss in 1950. As stated in its constitution, "The purpose of the Metaphysical Society of America is the study of reality." The society is a member of the ...

in 1993. McInerny's brother Dennis, also a philosophy professor, believes that his brother's greatest legacy is not to be found in his novels, but in his adherence to scholastic and Thomistic beliefs.

Personal life

McInerny was a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He attended

Nazareth Hall Preparatory Seminary Nazareth Hall Preparatory Seminary (known also as Naz Hall) was a high school seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota serving the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. It was founded in 1923 by Archbishop Austin Dowling and was closed in 1971, be ...

for high school. He married the former Constance Kunert January 3, 1953, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She preceded him in death on May 18, 2002. The McInernys had four daughters and three sons, one of whom, Michael, predeceased Ralph. McInerny died of

esophageal cancer Esophageal cancer is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include difficulty in swallowing and weight loss. Other symptoms may include pain when swallowing, a hoarse voice ...

on January 29, 2010. Joseph Bottum
"Ralph McInerny (1929–2010)"
, ''First Things'', January 29, 2010 Those daughters who survived him were: Cathleen Brownell (North Barrington, IL), Mary Hosford (Baltimore, MD), and Anne Policinski (Wayzata, MN), and Beth McInerny (St. Paul). The surviving sons were David (Overland Park, KS) and Daniel (Waco, TX).

Bibliography

Fiction

Father Dowling

*'' Her Death of Cold'' (1977) *'' Bishop as Pawn'' (1978) *'' The Seventh Station'' (1977) *'' Lying Three'' (1979) *'' The Second Vespers'' (1980) *'' Thicker Than Water'' (1981) *''

A Loss of Patients A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes'' ...

'' (1982) *'' The Grass Widow'' (1983) *'' Getting a Way with Murder'' (1984) *'' Rest in Pieces'' (1985) *''

The Basket Case ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' (1987) *'' Slight of Body'' (1989; aka Abracadaver) *''

Four on the Floor ''Four on the Floor'' is a 1999 compilation album consisting of songs by bands on Panic Button Records. It features four tracks by four of the labels bands, Screeching Weasel, Moral Crux A moral (from Latin ''morālis'') is a message that is c ...

'' (1989) *''Abracadaver'' (1989) *''

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

'' (1991) *'' Desert Sinner'' (1992) *'' Seed of Doubt'' (1993) *'' A Cardinal Offense'' (1994) *''The Case of the Constant Caller'' (young adult) (1995) *''The Case of the Dead Winner'' (young adult) (1995) *'' The Tears of Things'' (1996) *''

Grave Undertakings A grave is a location where a cadaver, dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is burial, buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial ...

'' (2000) *'' Triple Pursuit'' (2001) *'' Prodigal Father'' (2002) *'' Last Things'' (2003) *'' Requiem for a Realtor'' (2004) *'' Blood Ties'' (2005) *''

The Prudence of Flesh ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

'' (2006) *'' The Widow's Mate'' (2007) *''

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and falls on the first day of Lent (the six weeks of penitence before Easter). It is observed by Catholics in the Rom ...

'' (2008) *'' The Wisdom of Father Dowling'' (2009) *''

Stained Glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

'' (2009) *''The Compassion of Father Dowling'' (short stories) (2011)

Sister Mary Teresa (all as Monica Quill)

*'' Not a Blessed Thing'' (1981) *''

Let Us Prey ''Let Us Prey'' is the fourth studio album by English doom metal band Electric Wizard. It was released through Rise Above Records in 2002 and was the last album to feature Electric Wizard's original line-up. After its release, Tim Bagshaw and Ma ...

'' (1982) *'' And Then There Was Nun'' (1984) *'' Nun of the Above'' (1985) *'' Sine Qua Nun'' (1986) *'' The Veil of Ignorance'' (1988) *'' Sister Hood'' (1991) *'' Nun Plussed'' (1993) *'' Half Past Nun'' (1997) *''

Death Takes the Veil Death is the Irreversible process, irreversible cessation of all biological process, biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whol ...

'' (2001)

Andrew Broom

*''

Cause and Effect Causality (also referred to as causation, or cause and effect) is influence by which one event, process, state, or object (''a'' ''cause'') contributes to the production of another event, process, state, or object (an ''effect'') where the cau ...

'' (1987) *'' Body and Soil'' (1989) *'' Savings and Loam'' (1990) *'' Mom and Dead'' (1994) *''

Law and Ardor The following is the list of episodes from the American prime time television soap opera '' Falcon Crest'', which aired for nine seasons on CBS from December 4, 1981 to May 17, 1990. Series overview Episodes Season 1 (1981–82) Season 2 ...

'' (1995) *'' Heirs and Parents'' (2000)

Notre Dame

*'' On This Rockne'' (1997) *'' Lack of the Irish'' (1998) *'' Irish Tenure'' (1999) *'' The Book of Kills'' (2000) *'' Emerald Aisle'' (2001) *''

Celt and Pepper The Celts (, see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-Europea ...

'' (2002) *''

Irish Coffee Irish coffee ( ga, caife Gaelach) is a caffeinated alcoholic drink consisting of Irish whiskey, hot coffee and sugar, which has been stirred and topped with cream (sometimes cream liqueur). The coffee is drunk through the cream. Origin Different ...

'' (2003) *'' Green Thumb'' (2004) *''

Irish Gilt Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

'' (2005) *'' The Letter Killeth'' (2006) *'' Irish Alibi'' (2007) *'' The Green Revolution'' (2008) *''

Sham Rock Sham Rock are a pseudo- folk band from Belfast, Northern Ireland, known solely for their 1998 single, "Tell Me Ma" (a pop version of 19th century children's song "I'll Tell Me Ma"). "Tell Me Ma" peaked at number 13 on the UK Singles Chart and ...

'' (2010)

Rosary Chronicles

*'' The Third Revelation'' (2009) *'' Relic of Time'' (2009)

Other novels

*'' Jolly Rogerson'' (1967) *'' A Narrow Time'' (1969) *'' The Priest'' (1973) *'' The Gate of Heaven'' (1975) *'' Rogerson at Bay'' (1976) *'' Romanesque'' (1977) *''

Spinnaker A spinnaker is a sail designed specifically for sailing off the wind on courses between a reach (wind at 90° to the course) to downwind (course in the same direction as the wind). Spinnakers are constructed of lightweight fabric, usually n ...

'' (1978) *''

Quick as a Dodo Quick, as an adjective, refers to something moving with high speed. Quick may also refer to: In business * Quick (restaurant), a Belgian fast-food restaurant chain * Quick (sportswear), a Dutch manufacturer of sportswear * Quick (automobile) ...

'' (1978) *'' Connolly's Life'' (1983) *'' The Noonday Devil'' (1985) *''

Leave of Absence The labour law concept of leave, specifically paid leave or, in some countries' long-form, a leave of absence, is an authorised prolonged absence from work, for any reason authorised by the workplace. When people "take leave" in this way, they are ...

'' (1986) *'' Frigor Mortis'' (1989) *'' The Nominative Case'' (as by Edward Mackin) (1990) *'' Easeful Death'' (1991) *'' The Search Committee'' (1991) *'' Infra Dig'' (1992) *'' The Red Hat'' (1998) *''As Good As Dead'' (2002) *'' The Ablative Case'' (2003) *'' Slattery'' (2004)

Collections

*'' Thou Shalt Not Kill: Father Brown, Father Dowling And Other Ecclesiastical Sleuths'' (with G. K. Chesterton and

John Mortimer Sir John Clifford Mortimer (21 April 1923 – 16 January 2009) was a British barrister, dramatist, screenwriter and author. He is best known for novels about a barrister named Horace Rumpole. Early life Mortimer was born in Hampstead, London, ...

) (1992) *'' Good Knights'' (2009)

Poetry

*'' The Soul of Wit: Some Poems'' (2005)

Anthologies edited

*'' Murder Most Divine'' (with

Martin Harry Greenberg Martin Harry Greenberg (March 1, 1941 – June 25, 2011) was an American academic and anthologist in many genres, including mysteries and horror, but especially in speculative fiction. In all, he compiled 1,298 anthologies and commissioned o ...

) (2000) *'' Murder Most Catholic'' (with

) (2002) *'' Great Mystery Series: 11 of the Best Mystery Short Stories from Alfred Hitchcock's And Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazines'' (with

Lawrence Block Lawrence Block (born June 24, 1938) is an American crime writer best known for two long-running New York-set series about the recovering alcoholic P.I. Matthew Scudder and the gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr. Block was named a Grand Mas ...

and

Mary Higgins Clark Mary Higgins Clark (born Mary Theresa Eleanor Higgins (December 24, 1927 – January 31, 2020) was an American author of suspense novels. Each of her 51 books was a bestseller in the United States and various European countries, and all of he ...

) (2000)

Non-fiction

Philosophy and theology

*''A History of Western Philosophy'' with A. Robert Caponigri (1963 - 1971) *'' New Themes in Christian Philosophy'' (1969) *'' Thomism in an Age of Renewal'' (1969) *''

St. Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas, OP (; it, Tommaso d'Aquino, lit=Thomas of Aquino; 1225 – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican friar and priest who was an influential philosopher, theologian and jurist in the tradition of scholasticism; he is known ...

'' (1977) *'' Miracles: A Catholic View'' (1986) *'' Art and Prudence: Studies in the Thought of Jacques Maritain'' (1988) *'' A First Glance at St. Thomas Aquinas: A Handbook for Peeping Thomists'' (1990) *'' Aquinas on Human Action: A Theory of Practice'' (1992) *'' The Question of Christian Ethics'',

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Catholic University of America Press The Catholic University of America Press, also known as CUA Press, is the publishing division of The Catholic University of America. Founded on November 14, 1939, and incorporated on July 16, 1941,Roy J. Deferrari ''Memoirs of the Catholic Univer ...

(1993) *'' Aquinas Against the Averroists: On There Being Only One Intellect'' (1993) *'' An Uncertain Legacy: Essays on the Pursuit of Liberty'' (edited by Edward B. McLean; includes an essay, "Medieval: The Grand Synthesis", by McInerny) (1997) *''Ethica Thomistica: The Moral Philosophy of Thomas Aquinas'', Washington:

(1997) *'' What Went Wrong with Vatican II?: The Catholic Crisis Explained'' (1998) *'' Aquinas and Analogy'', Washington:

(1999) * *'' Praeambula Fidei'', Washington:

(2006) *''The Writings of

. Volume One (edition and translation)'', with an introduction by

Leslie Armour Leslie Armour (9 March 1931 – 1 November 2014) was a Canadian-born philosopher and writer on social economics. He is the father of the cellist and impresario Julian Armour. Academic career Armour completed a BA at the University of British ...

and a biography by

Thomas De Koninck Thomas De Koninck (born 1934 in Leuven, Belgium) is a philosopher from Québec. After studying at Oxford (M.A.), Université Laval (Ph.D), and Freie Universität Berlin, he became professor at University of Notre Dame (1960–1964) in the Unit ...

, Notre Dame, Notre Dame University Press, 2008 *''The Writings of

. Volume Two (edition and translation)'', Notre Dame, Notre Dame University Press, 2009 *'' Dante and the Blessed Virgin'' (2010)

Biography

*'' The Very Rich Hours of Jacques Maritain: A Spiritual Life'' (2003) *'' I Alone Have Escaped to Tell You: My Life and Pastimes'' (2006) *'' Some Catholic Writers'' (2006) *'' The Defamation of Pope Pius XII'' (2001)

Instruction

*'' Let's Write a Novel'' (1993) *'' Let's Write Short Stories'' (1993) *'' Let's Read Latin: Introduction to the Language of the Church'' (1995) *'' Characters in Search of Their Author: The Gifford Lectures, 1999–2000'' (delivered at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

) (2001)

References

External links

*
McInerny Center for Thomistic Studies

- Daily Telegraph obituary
The University of Notre Dame, Jacques Maritain Center
- Obituary by John O'Callaghan
Ralph McInerny's articles
at Crisis Magazine
Biography and summary of Gifford Lectures
"Characters in Search of Their Author" (