Theodore “Ted” Scharle, age 85, passed away at 3:30 a.m. on Monday, September 10, 2018 with his wife, Katie, and daughter, Meg, at his side. As he stated in his very first lecture as a philosophy professor at Loras College in 1962, “the innermost desires of my heart were always to be a teacher,” and he fulfilled those desires by completing his 56th year of teaching last spring at the University of Portland.
Ted was born on April 6, 1933 in Dubuque, Iowa, son of Dr. Theodore Scharle Jr. and Sarah Elizabeth (McMillan) Scharle. Ted received a B.A in Philosophy from Loras College in 1954, a B.A. and S.T.G. in Religious Education and Theology in 1958, and an M.A. in Religious Education in 1960 from the University of Louvain, Belgium, during which he spent the summer of 1955 studying French literature at the University of Grenoble, France. He was ordained a Catholic Priest in 1958. He began his doctoral studies in Rome in 1959, and studied German literature with his brother Tom at the University of Vienna, Austria in the summer of 1960. In 1962 he earned his Ph.D. in Philosophy from the International University of St. Thomas (Angelicum) in Rome, Italy with his doctoral dissertation, “The Development of Ludwig Feuerbach’s Humanist Weltanschauung in 1839-1843.”
He began his teaching career in 1962 at Loras College, where he taught for seven years. In 1969, after Rome accepted his request to be released from the canonical obligations of the priesthood, he moved to Peoria, Illinois, where he was a philosophy professor at Bradley University for 36 years. While at Bradley, Ted met Catherine Moira Quiery, and they married on June 26, 1971. They gave birth to their only child, Margaret “Meg” Elizabeth, in 1973. Undeterred by his lack of formal training in carpentry or electrical work, he spent his summers learning from books how to build two major additions to their house and a freestanding three-car garage. His beloved Springer Spaniel, Lassie, was always at his side. During the school year he taught a wide range of topics in philosophy: ethics, bioethics, history of philosophy (ancient Greek, Roman, medieval, modern, and 19th century), philosophy of religion, and existentialism. His interest in bioethics led him to 29 years of continuous service on medical review boards at several area hospitals, as well as at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria.
In 2004, when his daughter, Meg, and son-in-law, Dan, called from Portland, OR to announce their pregnancy, Ted exclaimed, “We are moving!” While in Portland, he taught for two years at Portland State University and for eight years at the University of Portland. He rejoiced in his grandchildren and spent several summers painstakingly building a dollhouse for them out of the kit he had intended to build for his daughter, Meg, in 1979. His grandkids loved to build Legos, play chess, and do magic tricks with him. Always a thoughtful gift-giver, he delighted the children with science kits, fun mathematics books, and, most recently, the surprise hit of a bread machine.
He opened his first lecture at Loras College in 1962 by saying to the students, “I am totally and exclusively devoted to your interests. I have no other hopes or ambitions than to be a good teacher – if I were to die tomorrow I would have accomplished all I desired if I served you faithfully.” It is profound in its purity and, one might say, idealism, but Ted lived this directive his whole life up until the end of his teaching career last spring at the University of Portland. The doctors’ best estimate is that his brain tumor began growing just after the close of the spring semester, and that is the moment that he was no longer able to fulfill “the innermost desires of his heart.” God mercifully called him home after he “accomplished all he desired” by “serving his students faithfully.” A man of principle and humility, Ted explicitly rejected all opportunities to gain worldly rewards or recognition. He often told the story of the philosopher Diogenes, who was eating bread and lentils for supper. He was seen by the philosopher Aristippus, who lived comfortably by flattering the king. Said Aristippus, “If you would learn to be subservient to the king you would not have to live on lentils.” Diogenes replied, “Learn to live on lentils and you will not have to be subservient to the king.” What distinguishes Ted was less the brilliance of his mind, and more his comprehension of its purpose, which gave him the courage to teach his entire life, completely undeterred by advancing age and weakening physical condition. Certain of his vocation until the end, his mind remained in the service of God his entire life.
Ted is survived by his loving wife of 47 years, Katie; their daughter, Margaret Scharle; her husband, Daniel Gehred; and three grandchildren, Theodore, Andrew, and Sarah Kate Gehred. He is also survived by his brother, Thomas Scharle. A funeral mass will be held Saturday, September 15 at 10 a.m. at St Mary Magdalene Catholic Church (3123 NE 24th Ave. Portland, OR 97212) with luncheon following in the Parish Hall.
To honor his devotion to first-year college students and his life-long passion for books that generated an extensive personal library, the family has established the Theodore Scharle Book Scholarship Fund for low-income, first-year students at the University of Portland. A link to donate electronically is below. Alternatively, checks designating this fund in the memo line can be sent to:
University of Portland
Office of Development
5000 N. Willamette Blvd.
Portland, OR 97203 .
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