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May 8, 2002
Dr. Carroll Classes Are History

Warren H. Carroll, Founding and First President of Christendom College and Chairman of its History Department for twenty-five years, has stepped away from his podium, put down his chalk, taken his final bow, and retired from active teaching at the College.

At lunch on May 7, 2002, Dr. O’Donnell made the announcement to the College community that Carroll would be teaching his last class later that afternoon. After O’Donnell thanked Carroll for his 25 years of faithful teaching and storytelling, the entire student body gave him a standing ovation which seemed to last for ten minutes.

Carroll has been a constant at the College for the last 25 years. He was one of the few teachers that every student had in common. For most, the memories of hearing Carroll’s interpretation and telling of history during History of Western Civilization I and II are unforgettable. There were the heroes: Constantine, Pelayo, Isabel of Spain, Athanasius, Don Juan of Austria, Our Lady of Fatima, Philip II, and Charlemagne; and the villains: Thomas Cranmer, Luther, Cecil, Lenin, Rasputin, Stalin, Mao, Ho Chi Minh, Queen Elizabeth I, Pope Alexander VI, Arius, Theodora, and Justinian.

His explanations of the historic D-Day invasions; the complications of Watergate and the Vietnam War; the Battle of Lepanto; the Crusades; the Inquisition; Henry II kneeling for three days in the snow before Gregory VII; the story of Charles the Fat and Charles the Bald; the missionary work of Matteo Ricci; the great theological battle over “homoousios vs homoiousios;”and the Robber Council of Ephesus could never be surpassed. And then there are the memorable phrases: “History can be summed up in five words: Truth exists. The Incarnation happened,” “You can never bribe a pope,” and “One man can make a difference.”

Over the years, Carroll has taught History of Western Civilization I and II, Classical History, History of Ireland, History of Britain, American History, American History, History of Hispanic Peoples, Causes and Effects of the French Revolution, Causes and Effects of the Communist Revolution, and History and Theology of Pope John Paul II.

His love of teaching history naturally spilled over into writing history: The Founding of Christendom, The Building of Christendom, The Glory of Christendom, The Cleaving of Christendom, 1917: Red Banners White Mantle, Isabel of Spain, Our Lady of Guadalupe, The Rise and Fall of the Communist Revolution, The Last Crusade, and The Guillotine and the Cross.

Warren Carroll will continue his writing of history, particularly, the fifth and sixth volumes of his series, A History of Christendom.

Thank you Dr. Carroll!
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