From past AWS president (1981-2014) Eric O. Springsted

Jane Doering first came to an American Weil Society meeting in 1981 which was held at the College of Wooster. After raising a family, she had just finished her Ph.D. at Northwestern University and was launching out into the beginnings of her own academic career. I remember well when I first met her. She was enthusiastic, as I soon came to know that she always is. But for that first paper presentation, while outwardly confidant, she was really nervous, and not sure how to deal with questions after giving her paper. With one question, she deftly punted by replying: “How would you answer your own question?” That nervousness did not last long, however, as she gave a paper for most the next thirty-three years for the colloquy, and asked and answered questions with the best of them. She was a wonderful colleague, and a recognized Weil scholar. She published numerous articles in both French and English on Weil. She co-edited with me The Christian Platonism of Simone Weil (2004), authored Simone Weil and the Specter of Self-Perpetuating Force (2010), and co-authored with Ruthann Johansen, When Fiction and Philosophy Meet: A Conversation with Flannery O’Connor and Simone Weil (2019). She will be long remembered for the annual colloquies that she hosted at the University of Notre Dame in 2001, 2012, and 2022. Each was a testimonial to her diligence in raising needed funds to bring off a large conference, and to her attention to details, and to her personal hospitality in always adding something extra to the meeting. On year she arranged for a group of her students to give a public reading of Stephanie Strickland’s poem “The Red Virgin”. Another year, she directed a student play of Weil’s time in New York. The 2001 colloquy brought to life a long-time aspiration of the Weil Society to do an international meeting with many of our most prominent colleagues from France, including simultaneous translation. Those who were there will not forget it. Her efforts in 2022, just as we all were recovering from the hiatus of in-person meetings due to COVID, made that recovery full. In addition, she was a regular attendee at the annual colloquies of l’Association pour l’étude de la pensée de Simone Weil in France, and kept the two societies linked.

What makes a good colleague is simple. A good colleague is one that a person can fruitfully and joyfully work with. I found that eminently the case with Jane. I especially remember the work we did together in editing and getting published the papers that came out as The Christian Platonism of Simone Weil. The grant that Jane had procured for the conference of that title was large enough to allow funds for me to travel to Notre Dame to work with her in editing the conference papers in the fall of 2001. Originally, we were delayed a bit, as I was to fly out to South Bend for our first meeting on September 12, 2001. Needless to say, nobody was flying that day. When I finally was able to get there, going through deserted airports filled with soldiers with guns, we sat down to work. Work meant the painstaking efforts of choosing the presentations we wanted, and making suggestions for improvement. It meant working carefully through translations of the presentations that were done in French. In some cases, it seemed pretty clear that the translator really didn’t know what the author was talking about. And it meant sorting out some academic word salads in English. The work was exhausting, yet rewarding, and we were both proud of it. At the end, after two more trips, we celebrated with a fine dinner cooked by Bernard Doering and a bottle of Mas de Libian, a Côtes de Rhone produced by Gustav Thibon!

While it comes out in the work, what underlies being a good colleague is character. Jane was personally a great person, willing to give of herself. For all the years of the Weil Society, she continually thought of “the young people,” as she always put it, i.e. the students of Weil’s thought, and the future generations of Weil scholars. She was a delight to be with, witty, an astute observer of people, a good raconteuse, and a sympathetic ear, as through the years many of us shared our personal and family joys and sorrows at each year’s meeting. That is what a great colleague is. In an age where thought as reflected in scholarly endeavors becomes more and more production oriented, and highly competitive and self-serving, Jane thought of the community. I hope her example inspires, because if it doesn’t, we will have truly lost something important.

Eric O. Springsted

From past AWS president (2014-2016) A. Rebecca Rozelle-Stone

I had the great privilege of being introduced to Professor E. Jane Doering 18 years ago. In 2006, I attended the American Weil Society Annual Colloquy for the first time, presenting a paper on Weil’s demanding idea of love. Although I was only a Ph.D. student, just beginning my dissertation, I remember Jane greeting me warmly, giving generous feedback on my paper, and encouraging me to continue my Weil studies. Her explicit support then, and in subsequent years, was critical to my work and motivation. More significantly, I benefitted immensely from her sharp mind and excellent scholarship on Weil’s notion of force, her ecumenical inspirations, and her influence on my favorite Southern writer, Flannery O’Connor. Jane’s passing is an incredible loss to the relatively small but growing community of Weil scholars. I feel so fortunate to have been nourished by her attentive readings and compassionate spirit.  

A.Rebecca Rozelle-Stone

From past AWS President (2016-2019) Bartomeu Estelrich 

One of the first things I did when I set foot in the United States twenty years ago, was to get in contact with the American Weil Society. In those days I was finishing my dissertation on Simone Weil, and some of the “big names” that populated my mind were members of that select group of people. Soon I discovered their annual gatherings -“The Colloquies”- and those inaccessible, often idealized names became people, faces, colleagues, and eventually friends. That was the case with Jane. Jane and her husband Bernard were not only “regulars” at the Colloquies, but an integral part of their fabric. Going to those gatherings became part of my annual ritual –a quasi-religious event to meet old friends, reconnect with my spiritual roots, and even refresh my own identity. I hope these scattered memories, though contextual, serve to express how I felt for the people who attended those Colloquies… and, conversely, how I feel about the loss of Jane. Jane was part and parcel of those gatherings.  She imprinted on them her tone and character. She was kind and gentle, meticulous and attentive. She knew what to ask and how to make people feel welcome. She was protective about the group’s mission, but tolerant of its new members. And she enjoyed all its aspects… its intellectual moments, but also its socials and jamborees. She was the first to arrive and usually the last to leave. She never said no to hanging out after lunch, or a good chat after dinner. She never refused a friendly conversation or a good glass of wine. She was a scholar and a friend. I will miss Jane dearly… for what she did, wrote, was, and represented.

Tomeu Estelrich

Aligned with her truly attentive, generous spirit and her fierce intellectual curiosity, the day before Jane’s passing, she sat on a panel for AWS member Kate Lawson’s book launch. In preparation for the launch, Jane spent time in conversation with Kate and political theorist Mary Witlacil. During these conversations, Jane shared a strong sense of optimism and hope for America in these tumultuous times and wanted to hear about “the young people” we had been teaching. She modeled not only Weilian attention but also Weil’s ability to find hope in the void. Throughout her career, Jane offered a bright intellectual light and acted as the heart of the American Weil Society. It is our deep hope that such a light continues to guide the AWS in the years to come.

-Kate Lawson, Webmaster