Costello Lecture Series
This lecture series in European history was established to honor the memory of Brother Casimir Gabriel Costello, one of many faculty from the order of the Brothers of the Christian School who have contributed over the years to the academic reputation of Manhattan College. Brother Gabriel came to Manhattan in 1949 with a new Ph.D. from Fordham to assume the chairmanship of the history department. Over his long tenure at the college, he built up the history department, earning the sobriquet "Mr. History." Brother Gabriel also served as Dean of the College, where he stressed that the college must offer a liberal education to all of its students, no matter what their area of concentration, declaring, "The College exists primarily for the cultivation of intellectual virtues and these can never yield primacy to either the functional or vocational." In this spirit, Brother Gabriel defended academic freedom, especially in the dark days of the McCarthy era. Following the Second Vatican Council of 1962-65, much of his time and energy went into adapting its teachings to the life and organization of the Brothers, both here on campus, in the province, and around the world. While Brother Gabriel respected tradition, he believed that it should not become a straitjacket, rather it should provide a starting point for progress. In that vein, he supported the Pacem in Terris Institute at the college, which has evolved into the Peace Studies Program. The lecture series is sponsored by one of Brother Gabriel's many grateful students: Roger Goebel, Professor of Law at Fordham University and Director of the Center on European Union Law there, who graduated from Manhattan College in 1957 with a degree in history.
Inaugurated in 2002, the series has attracted leading historians to Manhattan College, as the list below illustrates:
2002: Robert Darnton, Princeton University "What was Revolutionary about the French Revolution?"
2003: Theodore Rabb, Princeton University: "The Renaissance: Birthplace of the Modern World."
2004: Carolyn Walker Bynum, Institute for Advanced Study: "Did Medieval Women See Visions?"
2005: Stephen Cohen: Princeton University & New York University "'The Question of All Questions': Why did the Soviet Union End?"
2006: George Saliba, Columbia University: “The Influence of Islamic Science on the European Renaissance”. This lecture was co-sponsored by the Upsilon of New York Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, located at Manhattan College
2007 Lecture
Interests, Institutions, and Individuals:
A History of the European Union
presented by
Desmond Dinan
Desmond Dinan is Jean Monnet Professor at the School of Public Policy of George Mason University in Arlington, Virginia. A leading authority on transatlantic relations, the European Union, and international commerce, he is the author of nine books on European affairs. A member of Manhattan's History Department, Brother Gabriel was department chair from 1949 to 1953, and Dean of the College from 1953 to 1959.
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Desmond Dinan and Claire Nolte at the Costello lecture.
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Last updated by K. Balaj 11/18/07
