John_N_Jones_20121008

831 Chestnut Ridge Road Chestnut Ridge, NY 10977 Tel: (845) 517-0180 / Fax: (845) 517-0181 Email: geh@crossroadPublishing.com Website: www.crossroadpublishing.com

Publisher of Crossroad and Herder & Herder Books

JOHN N. JONES On the night of October 8, 2012, Dr. John Norman Jones, longtime Editorial Director of The Crossroad Publishing Company, passed away peacefully after a courageous battle with oral cancer. John met the illness – and the deep suffering it brought – with characteristic grace, a grace informed by the profound sense of hope he cultivated over decades spent studying mystical traditions and applying the wisdom he found there. All of us who surrounded him during his last weeks on earth experienced it as a grace; as death approached, John’s goodness and graciousness never waned – a powerful testament to his beautiful character.

Born in Richfield, Utah on May 22, 1964, John graduated summa cum laude with a degree in Religion from Claremont McKenna College in 1986. But he began his collegiate career at a community college, in order to be close to his recently widowed mother. That happy blend of intellectual excellence and personal generosity was to become a hallmark of John’s life.

Following his undergraduate studies, he traveled to Spain on a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship in order to pursue his interest in Spanish mysticism. John later earned a Master in Theological Studies at Harvard, an M.A. at Yale, and – with the successful defense of his dissertation on the Trinitarian theology of PseudoDionysius – a Ph.D. from Yale University in 1997.

Twelve years ago, John arrived at Crossroad, manuscript in hand and hoping to talk to an editor. We took him out to lunch near our office on 8th Avenue in Manhattan, and by the end of the meal, we had offered him a job as Marketing Manager for Crossroad’s theological program. We were that impressed with his learning, his kindness, and his obvious dedication to craftsmanship, and we hoped he would be able to use those gifts to sustain and enhance the Herder family’s 200-year tradition of publishing. We were not disappointed.

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As our Editorial Director, quietly, John did much to help shape the direction of Crossroad and Herder & Herder. He built long-term relationships with both established authors and new voices. He worked on important books by writers such as Meister Eckhart, Bernard McGinn, Francis George, Christoph Schonborn, Timothy Gallagher, Ronald Rolheiser, George Weigel, Gregory Popcak, Rowan Greer, Paula D’Arcy, Richard Rohr, Brian Robinette, Phyllis Zagano, and many others. But he also conceived and ran the Herder & Herder Young Theologians program. He worked hard to develop the manuscripts of first-time authors, though he rarely accepted credit for the role he played in the finished book.

Instead, his focus was on the work - the way it might energize the theological debates of the day and bring the reader further along in the search for truth.

Like a true mystic, he held his own life lightly even as he took it seriously. He owned little, and he spent long hours in meditation. Though an accomplished poet and scholar in his own right, he chose instead to work as an editor, placing his considerable gifts in service to the thought and writing of others. In both his personal and professional life, he sought the comfort and happiness of those around him, making sure their concerns were understood and addressed. But his worldly detachment and self-effacing manner were not an attempt to retreat from life. Rather, they enabled him to better engage it: to push forward without seizing the spotlight, to practice justice swathed in kindness.

Author Matthew Lickona was fortunate enough to visit John shortly before he died. He writes, “I think that in some ways, my experience with John helps to illustrate his character. After my second memoir failed to sell, a friend suggested I send it to John. He didn't accept it on the spot, but he said he would work with me on it. We set to work reshaping the book, and eventually, he offered me a contract. But after all that, I decided against publication. John was disappointed, but instead of washing his hands of me, he kept after me for years, pitching projects and entertaining my counter-pitches. When I set out to produce a graphic novel he helped to fund my initial work on it. My father has always told me that it is a luxury to be understood; John understood me. He was an outstanding editor, but also a friend and confidante. I will miss him terribly.”

We at Crossroad and Herder & Herder are grateful to have enjoyed John’s understanding, his friendship, his sympathy, and his simple presence in our lives.

And we too will miss him terribly.

Requiescat in pace!

Gwendolin Herder and staff of The Crossroad Publishing Company

John did not want a traditional funeral. Memorial gifts can be made to United Hospice of Rockland.

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