Coleman died Dec. 14, 2014, following a long illness. He was a professor of philosophy and religion at Colgate University from 1970 to 1999 and also served as chaplain from 1974 to 1989.
Coleman came to Princeton from Evanston, Ill., where he was born and went to high school. He graduated magna cum laude with a degree in history and received the Pyne Prize. Coleman was class president for three years and accomplished many things; among them was ensuring that every student had a spot in an eating club.
Coleman received a master’s degree and a Ph.D. from Union Theological Seminary in New York City in 1959 and 1979, respectively. Ordained to the Presbyterian ministry, he served throughout the 1960s in an inner-city church in Chicago, where he was active in the civil-rights movement and clergy protests against the Vietnam War.
At Colgate, students described his courses as life-changing, and the University Church that he led welcomed “seekers, believers, and doubters,” as he often said. Coleman won numerous teaching awards at Colgate. In 2007, he received the Unitas Award from Union Theological Seminary and an honorary degree from Ursinus College. He received a Princeton ’56 Distinguished Classmate Award in 2010.
Coleman is survived by his wife, Irene; his children Justin, Susan ’84, Bradford, and Joshua; 10 grandchildren, including Isaiah Brown ’16; brother David ’59; and cousin John Cheeseman ’61.