Professor Stanisław Litak (1932–2010): A Contribution to a Scientific and Didactic Biography

Abstract

The scientific and didactic portrait of Professor Stanisław Litak includes a considerable area of research on the social and religious history of the modern era carried out during the many years of work at the Catholic University of Lublin in the years 1961–2005. In the period of his professional activity, Professor Litak co-created the Lublin environment of researchers dealing with the structures of the modern Church and historical geography and he represented it on the international forum. A parallel role in his scientific interests was played by the history of education of the pre-partitioning period. The fruit of those interests was a popular academic textbook written by him about the history of education and still used by students concerned with the issues referring to the history of education. The duality of research work is also reflected in the circumstances in which Professor Litak was employed both at the Institute of History and the Institute of Pedagogy of the Catholic University of Lublin. The aftermath of his work includes numerous scientific publications written within the convention of the adopted scientific research directions. The Professor’s legacy in the form of human capital, namely students from the seminar, scientific students and colleagues who undertake the effort to continue the research directions established by him, remains invaluable. Professor Litak established standards in research work which deserve to be followed. He was also known as a warm, modest but demanding university teacher and head of teams. What should be emphasized and appreciated are his merits for the Polish humanities, which are due to the value of his works, constituting a permanent element of historiography. Memory about him as a man of science who epitomized research values and maintained good human relationships also deserves to be kept alive in academic circles.