Pietas Austriaca

Preface

PREFACE by William D. Bowman As with the publication of any book, many people have helped with the translation of Pietas Austriaca. My heartfelt thanks go to Anna Coreth. From the beginning she was an enthusiastic supporter of the project to prepare an English -language translation of her book. Of course, her original work was the inspiration for the project, but she also met with me several times in Vienna, where she still lives, to answer patiently and thoughtfully many inquiries. In addition, she replied to many questions through the mail. Without her help, translating many of the difficult sections in such an original and synthetic book would have been impossible. In Vienna, Ursula Huber from the Oldenbourg Press, which holds the German-language publication rights for Pietas, was instrumental in launching this project. She talked me through the initial difficulties of translation and gave me helpful encouragement even as the work took longer to finish than originally planned. Johann Weißensteiner of the Diocesan Archive in Vienna also encouraged the project from its outset and gave of his rich knowledge of church and religious history to provide background for Pietas Austriaca. Much of the credit for bringing this book to an English-speaking audience goes to Anna Maria Leitgeb, my co-translator. Through many hours of lonely work she persevered in bringing richness and nuance to an original translation of the text. Subsequently, we worked together on revising the translation in various versions. It was always a pleasure to work with her. Together, we hashed out some of the most troubling questions of translation over her kitchen table in Wilmington, Delaware. Throughout the project, Anna Maria has been a gracious and talented partner. She wishes to thank Karl Golser who lent his expertise to answer several of her technical questions about theological and religious subjects. Several colleagues and friends helped greatly in the later phases of this translation. Charles Zabrowski and Leslie Cahoon of the Classics Department at Gettysburg College gave freely of their time and energy to help with the ix translation of the Latin sections of the text. It is with great pleasure that I acknowledge their help. Three other friends, Robert Bireley, Robert Garnett, and John Theibault, read the entire text and made several suggestions for improving the translation. Their help was critical at an important stage of translation . Robert Bireley and John Theibault, both scholars of early modern Europe, helped with several questions of historical context as well as style. Rob Garnett, whose main field is English language and literature, read the text with an eye to making sure that not too many German expressions were still hidden in the translation. I would also like to thank Magdalena S. Sánchez, who read the copyedited version of Pietas Austriaca. A grant from the Gettysburg College Faculty Research Fund supported this translation at a critical juncture. Ms. Leitgeb and I wish to thank the college and its provost, Dan DeNicola, for helping bring this project to a successful end. At Purdue University Press, thanks go to Margaret Hunt, the original editor for this book. On account of illness, Margaret was unable to see this translation through to publication. She was always supportive and upbeat about the work. In Margaret’s place, Jennifer Tyrrell took over and guided this project. At the end stage of publication, Jessica Burdge at Purdue spent many hours copyediting the manuscript and working on it in its final form. Finally, I wish to thank Charles Ingrao of Purdue University. Charlie was not only there at the conception of the idea to translate Pietas, he was a guiding force behind the scenes in all phases of the work and has been a good friend and colleague. One of the small pleasures in working on this project was sitting with Charlie and Anna Coreth over coffee in her Viennese apartment and discussing Pietas Austriaca. For me, all of the importance of translating this book came into sharp focus on that afternoon. x  ...