Robert Louis Wilken

Robert Louis Wilken of Washington, D.C., died on June 6, 2026. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on October 20, 1936, he determined in childhood to become a scholar and a Lutheran minister. He attended Concordia College, graduating from Concordia Seminary with a B.A. and from the University of Chicago with an M.A. and Ph.D. After graduation, he taught at the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; Fordham University; and the University of Notre Dame. In 1985, Professor Wilken moved to the University of Virginia, where he became the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of the History of Christianity. He also held a visiting position at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

In 1994, Professor Wilken was received into the Catholic Church, and later conducted further studies at the Augustinianum and Anselmianum in Rome. At the University of Virginia, he founded the St. Anselm Institute for Catholic Thought, and continued to write numerous articles and books on the history of Christian thought in the ancient and medieval periods. He trained numerous doctoral students as scholars and teachers, and he extended generous help to colleagues in the United States and Europe.

An accomplished cook and avid reader in a broad range of literature, Professor Wilken enjoyed travelling across Europe and the Mediterranean, as well as spending summers at his family's cottage in Maine. He travelled frequently to New York City in connection with the journal First Things founded by his lifelong friend Richard Neuhaus, and lectured in colleges and universities across the country.

Professor Wilken is survived by his wife of 66 years, Carol Weinhold Wilken, and their sons Gregory and his wife Jennifer of Las Vegas; Jonathan and his wife Jody of Fredericksburg, Va., and three grandchildren, Hanna Wilken of Honolulu, Sarah Wilken of San Diego, and Lukas Wilken of Fredericksburg; and his brother, Donald and his wife Mary, of Albany, NY.

The funeral will take place on Saturday, June 13 at St. Peter's Catholic Church on Capitol Hill, with a graveside ceremony Tuesday, June 16th at 1:00 PM at the Congressional Cemetery.