Catherine Keller (born 1953) is a contemporary Christian theologian and Professor of Constructive Theology at

Drew University Drew University is a private university in Madison, New Jersey. Drew has been nicknamed the "University in the Forest" because of its wooded campus. As of fall 2020, more than 2,200 students were pursuing degrees at the university's three scho ...

's Graduate Division of Religion. As a constructive theologian, Keller's work is oriented around social and ecological justice, poststructuralist theory, and

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

readings of scripture and theology. Both her early and her late work brings relational thinking into theology, focusing on the relational nature of the concept of the divine, and the forms of ecological interdependence within the framework of relational theology. Her work in

process theology Process theology is a type of theology developed from Alfred North Whitehead's (1861–1947) process philosophy, most notably by Charles Hartshorne (1897–2000), John B. Cobb (b. 1925) and Eugene H. Peters (1929-1983). Process theology and pr ...

draws on the relational ontology of

Alfred North Whitehead Alfred North Whitehead (15 February 1861 – 30 December 1947) was an English mathematician and philosopher. He is best known as the defining figure of the philosophical school known as process philosophy, which today has found applicat ...

, fielding it in a postmodern, deconstructive framework.

Education

Keller received a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

in Philosophy of Religion and Theology from

Claremont Graduate School The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) is a private, all-graduate research university in Claremont, California. Founded in 1925, CGU is a member of the Claremont Colleges which includes five undergraduate (Pomona College, Claremont McKenna Col ...

in 1984, a

M.Div. For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and di ...

from

Eden Theological Seminary Eden Theological Seminary is a seminary of the United Church of Christ in Webster Groves, Missouri, near St. Louis, Missouri. The seminary was established in 1850 by German pastors in what was then the American frontier. The pastors soon formed ...

in 1977, and a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) equivalent in Theology from

University of Heidelberg } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

in 1974.

Academics

Keller's work stresses an interdisciplinary approach, pulling from sub-fields such as feminist thought, environmental thought, and

Continental philosophy Continental philosophy is a term used to describe some philosophers and philosophical traditions that do not fall under the umbrella of analytic philosophy. However, there is no academic consensus on the definition of continental philosophy. Pri ...

. She has played a leading role in building interdisciplinary connections into, and out of, the field of theology. Since 2001 she has had a central role in directing and developing Drew University's Transdisciplinary Theological Colloquium. The colloquia seek to "foster a fresh style of theological discourse that is at once self-deconstructive in its pluralism and constructive in its affirmations". Recent colloquia have brought theology into conversation with movements such as Queer Theory and

Animal Studies Animal studies is a recently recognised field in which animals are studied in a variety of cross-disciplinary ways. Scholars who engage in animal studies may be formally trained in a number of diverse fields, including geography, art history, ant ...

, have offered novel perspectives on debates about

Religion and Science The relationship between religion and science involves discussions that interconnect the study of the natural world, history, philosophy, and theology. Even though the ancient and medieval worlds did not have conceptions resembling the modern u ...

, and have explored topics such as

political theology Political theology is a term which has been used in discussion of the ways in which theological concepts or ways of thinking relate to politics. The term ''political theology'' is often used to denote religious thought about political principled qu ...

. Notable scholars from outside the field of theology who have participated in the colloquia in recent years include:

William E. Connolly William Eugene Connolly is an American political theorist known for his work on democracy, pluralism, capitalism and climate change. He is the Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of Political Science at Johns Hopkins University. His 1974 work ''The Ter ...

Karen Barad Karen Michelle Barad (; born 29 April 1956) is an American feminist theorist, known particularly for their theory of agential realism. Biography They are currently Professor of Feminist Studies, Philosophy, and History of Consciousness at the ...

Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak (born 24 February 1942) is an Indian scholar, literary theorist, and feminist critic. She is a University Professor at Columbia University and a founding member of the establishment's Institute for Comparative Lite ...

Daniel Boyarin Daniel Boyarin ( he, דניאל בויארין; born 1946) is a Religion historian, Born in New Jersey, he holds dual United States and Israeli citizenship. He is the Hermann P. and Sophia Taubman Professor of Talmudic Culture in the Departments ...

, and Amy Hollywood. With

John Caputo John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

Roland Faber Roland Faber (born 1960) is an author and Kilsby Family/John B. Cobb, Jr., Professor of Process Studies at Claremont School of Theology and Professor of Religion and Philosophy at Claremont Graduate University. He is Executive Co-Director of the C ...

and others, Keller provides

leadership Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets view ...

in the field of

theopoetics Theopoetics in its modern context is an interdisciplinary field of study that combines elements of poetic analysis, process theology, narrative theology, and postmodern philosophy. Originally developed by Stanley Hopper and David Leroy Miller ...

Works

Books

*''From a Broken Web: Separation, Sexism and Self''. Boston: Beacon Press, 1986. Der Ich-Wahn: Abkehr von einem lebensfeindlichen Ideal. *''Apocalypse Now and Then: A Feminist Guide to the End of the World''. Boston: Beacon Press, 1996. *''Face of the Deep: A Theology of Becoming''. London: Routledge, 2003. *''God and Power: Counter-Apocalyptic Journeys''. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2005. *''On the Mystery: Discerning God in Process''. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2008. *''Cloud of the Impossible: Negative Theology and Planetary Entanglement''. New York: Columbia University Press, 2015. *''Political Theology of the Earth: Our Planetary Emergency and the Struggle for a New Public''. New York: Columbia University Press, 2018. *''Facing Apocalypse: Climate, Democracy and Other Last Chances.'' Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2021.

Edited

*''Process and Difference: Between Cosmological and Poststructuralist Postmodernisms'' (with Anne Daniell), N.Y.: SUNY, 2002. *''Postcolonial Theologies: Divinity and Empire'' (with Mayra Rivera and Michael Nausner), St. Louis: Chalice, 2004. *''Toward a Theology of Eros: Transfiguring Passion at the Limits of Discipline'' (with Virginia Burrus), New York: Fordham Press, 2006. *''The American Empire and the Commonwealth of God: a Political, Economic, Religious Statement'' (with David R. Griffin, John B. Cobb, Jr,. Richard A. Falk), Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006. *''Ecospirit: Theologies and Philosophies of the Earth'' (with Laurel Kearns), New York: Fordham Press, 2007. *''Polydoxy: Theology of Multiplicity and Relation'' (with Laurel Schneider), New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group (2011). *''Entangled Worlds: Religion, Science, and New Materialisms'' (with

Mary-Jane Rubenstein Mary-Jane Rubenstein is a scholar of religion, philosophy, science studies, and gender studies. At Wesleyan University, she is Professor of Religion and Science in Society. She is also affiliated with Environmental Studies and Feminist, Gender, ...

), New York: Fordham University Press, 2017.

References

External links

Keller's HomepageTHEOPOETICS(dot)NET
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Keller, Catherine American feminist writers Process theologians 1953 births Living people Drew University faculty Christian feminist theologians