Paul Wilkes
Encyclopedia
Paul Wilkes is an American
writer
of Slovak origin and filmmaker who is best known for his focus on religion, especially Roman Catholicism and its monastic tradition.
He was born the youngest of seven children to immigrant parents, both Slovaks
, in Cleveland
, Ohio
, where he attended Cathedral Latin High School. At Marquette University
he received his B.A. in 1960. He then entered the U.S. Navy as a communications officer, serving from 1961 to 1964. In 1967 he completed an M.A. at Columbia University
.
Wilkes started his career as a writer for the Daily Camera
in Boulder
, Colorado
from 1964 to 1966. He joined the Baltimore Sun from 1967 to 1968, then worked as a book editor for Harper & Row in New York City
in 1969. The next year he joined Harper's Magazine
Press as a book editor.
He has taught writing at Brooklyn College
, the University of Pittsburgh
, Boston University
, College of the Holy Cross
, Clark University
, and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington
.
Wilkes has written for many magazines, including The New Yorker
, New York Times Magazine, Atlantic Monthly, America, and Commonweal
. In 1994 he published And They Shall be My People: An American Rabbi and His Congregation, the story of Congregation Beth Israel
of Worcester, Massachusetts
.
In 2000, he was a critic of the Holy Office's declaration Dominus Iesus
.
He is married to Tracy Gochberg. They have two children.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
of Slovak origin and filmmaker who is best known for his focus on religion, especially Roman Catholicism and its monastic tradition.
He was born the youngest of seven children to immigrant parents, both Slovaks
Slovaks
The Slovaks, Slovak people, or Slovakians are a West Slavic people that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is closely related to the Czech language.Most Slovaks today live within the borders of the independent Slovakia...
, in Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, where he attended Cathedral Latin High School. At Marquette University
Marquette University
Marquette University is a private, coeducational, Jesuit, Roman Catholic university located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1881, the school is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities...
he received his B.A. in 1960. He then entered the U.S. Navy as a communications officer, serving from 1961 to 1964. In 1967 he completed an M.A. at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
Wilkes started his career as a writer for the Daily Camera
Daily Camera
The Camera is a daily newspaper in Boulder, Colorado. It is owned by Prairie Mountain Publishing, a division of MediaNews Group.-History:Frederick P. Johnson and Bert Bell founded the weekly Boulder Camera in 1890, and it became a daily in 1891. Ownership has changed several times...
in Boulder
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
from 1964 to 1966. He joined the Baltimore Sun from 1967 to 1968, then worked as a book editor for Harper & Row in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1969. The next year he joined Harper's Magazine
Harper's Magazine
Harper's Magazine is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts, with a generally left-wing perspective. It is the second-oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. . The current editor is Ellen Rosenbush, who replaced Roger Hodge in January 2010...
Press as a book editor.
He has taught writing at Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College is a senior college of the City University of New York, located in Brooklyn, New York, United States.Established in 1930 by the New York City Board of Higher Education, the College had its beginnings as the Downtown Brooklyn branches of Hunter College and the City College of New...
, the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
, Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
, College of the Holy Cross
College of the Holy Cross
The College of the Holy Cross is an undergraduate Roman Catholic liberal arts college located in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA...
, Clark University
Clark University
Clark University is a private research university and liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts.Founded in 1887, it is the oldest educational institution founded as an all-graduate university. Clark now also educates undergraduates...
, and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington
University of North Carolina at Wilmington
The University of North Carolina at Wilmington, sometimes referred to as UNC Wilmington, is a public, co-educational university located in Wilmington, North Carolina...
.
Wilkes has written for many magazines, including The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, New York Times Magazine, Atlantic Monthly, America, and Commonweal
Commonweal
Commonweal is a American journal of opinion edited and managed by lay Catholics. It is headquartered in The Interchurch Center in New York City.-History:...
. In 1994 he published And They Shall be My People: An American Rabbi and His Congregation, the story of Congregation Beth Israel
Congregation Beth Israel (Worcester, Massachusetts)
Congregation Beth Israel is an egalitarian Conservative congregation located at 15 Jamesbury Drive in Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1924 as an Orthodox synagogue, it formally affiliated with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism in 1949, and describes itself as the "leading...
of Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
.
In 2000, he was a critic of the Holy Office's declaration Dominus Iesus
Dominus Iesus
Dominus Iesus is a declaration by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. It was approved in a Plenary meeting of the Congregation, and bears the signature of its then Prefect, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, and of its then Secretary, Archbishop Tarcisio Bertone, now...
.
He is married to Tracy Gochberg. They have two children.
Books
- Fitzgo: The Wild Dog of Central Park, nonfiction (Philadelphia: LippincottJ. B. Lippincott CompanyJ. B. Lippincott & Co. was an American publishing house founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1836 by Joshua Ballinger Lippincott.Formed by descendants of the Religious Society of Friends, Joshua Lippincott's company began selling a line of Bibles, prayer books and other religious works before...
, 1973) - These Priests Stay, biography (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1973)
- You Don't Have to Be Rich to Own a Brownstone, nonfiction (New York: Quadrangle, 1973)
- Trying Out the Dream: A Year in the Life of an American Family, nonfiction (Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1975)
- Six American Families, biography (New York: United Church of Christ, 1977)
- Merton: By Those Who Knew Him Best, biography (San Francisco: Harper, 1984)
- In Mysterious Ways: The Death and Life of a Parish Priest, biography (New York: Random House, 1990)
- Companions along the Way, essays (Chicago: Thomas More Press, 1990)
- My Book of Bedtime Prayers, children's (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1992)
- The Education of an Archbishop: Travels with Rembert Weakland, biography (Maryknoll: Orbis, 1992)
- Temptations, novel (New York: Random House, 1993)
- And They Shall Be My People: An American Rabbi and His Congregation, nonfiction (New York: Atlantic Monthly, 1994)
- The Good Enough Catholic: A Guide for the Perplexed, nonfiction (New York: Ballantine, 1996)
- The Seven Secrets of Successful Catholics, nonfiction (New York: Paulist Press, 1998)
- Beyond the Walls: Monastic Wisdom for Everyday Life, nonfiction (New York: Doubleday, 1999)
- Excellent Catholic Parishes: The Guide to the Best Places and Practices, nonfiction (New York: Paulist Press, 2001)
- Excellent Protestant Congregations: The Guide to the Best Places and Practices, nonfiction (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001)
- Best Practices from America's Best Churches, editor, nonfiction (New York: Paulist Press, 2003)
- In Due Season: A Catholic Life, memoir (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2009)
Films
- Six American Families, documentary, Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), 1977
- Men of Iron, drama, Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), 1978
- The Molders of Troy, co-writer, drama, Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), 1980
- Merton, documentary, Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), 1984