Diana L. Hayes (born 1947) is an African-American Catholic theologian specializing in

womanism Womanism is a social theory based on the history and everyday experiences of Black women. It seeks, according to womanist scholar Layli Maparyan (Phillips), to "restore the balance between people and the environment/nature and reconcil human l ...

and Black theology. The first African-American woman to earn a

pontifical A pontifical ( la, pontificale) is a Christian liturgical book containing the liturgies that only a bishop may perform. Among the liturgies are those of the ordinal for the ordination and consecration of deacons, priests, and bishops to Holy ...

doctorate in theology, she is professor emerita of

systematic theology Systematic theology, or systematics, is a discipline of Christian theology that formulates an orderly, rational, and coherent account of the doctrines of the Christian faith. It addresses issues such as what the Bible teaches about certain topic ...

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

Biography

Hayes did undergraduate study at the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 18 ...

before gaining a Juris Doctor degree at George Washington University National Law Center. She gained a baccalaureate degree and a

licentiate in sacred theology Licentiate in Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Licentiatus; abbreviated STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theol ...

from the Catholic University of America, writing a dissertation on the theology of James H. Cone. She went on to gain a doctoral degree in religious studies, and a pontifical doctorate at

KU Leuven KU Leuven (or Katholieke Universiteit Leuven) is a Catholic research university in the city of Leuven, Belgium. It conducts teaching, research, and services in computer science, engineering, natural sciences, theology, humanities, medicine, ...

, where she wrote a dissertation on

liberation theology Liberation theology is a Christian theological approach emphasizing the liberation of the oppressed. In certain contexts, it engages socio-economic analyses, with "social concern for the poor and political liberation for oppressed peoples". I ...

. In addition to teaching at

, Hayes has also served on the faculty of the

Oblate School of Theology The Oblate School of Theology is a Catholic graduate school for theological studies in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1903 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Dr. Scott Woodward has served as its president since October 2020. Cam ...

and

Xavier University of Louisiana Xavier University of Louisiana (also known as XULA) is a private, historically black, Catholic university in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the only Catholic HBCU and, upon the canonization of Katharine Drexel in 2000, became the first Cathol ...

's Institute for Black Catholic Studies. Hayes is a member of the Black Catholic Theological Symposium, and has contributed to ''

National Catholic Reporter The ''National Catholic Reporter'' (''NCR'') is a progressive national newspaper in the United States that reports on issues related to the Catholic Church. Based in Kansas City, Missouri, ''NCR'' was founded by Robert Hoyt in 1964. Hoyt want ...

''.

Works

* ''Hagar's Daughters: Womanist Ways of Being in the World''. New York: Paulist Press, 1995. * ''Trouble Don't Last Always: Soul Prayers''. Liturgical Press, 1995. * ''And Still We Rise: An Introduction to Black Liberation Theology''. New York: Paulist Press, 1996. * ''Taking Down Our Harps: Black Catholics in the United States''. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 1998. * ''Were You There?: Stations of the Cross''. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 2000. * ''Many Faces, One Church: Cultural diversity and the Catholic Experience in the US'', Sheed and Ward, 2004. * (ed. with Peter C. Phan) ''Many faces, one church: cultural diversity and the American Catholic experience''. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2005. * ''Standing in the Shoes my Mother Made: a Womanist Theology''. Lanham: Fortress Press, 2010. * ''Forged in the Fiery Furnace; African American Spirituality''. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 2012. * ''No Crystal Stair: Womanist Spirituality''. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 2016.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hayes, Diana L. 1947 births Living people University at Buffalo alumni George Washington University Law School alumni Catholic University of America alumni KU Leuven alumni 20th-century American Roman Catholic theologians 21st-century American Roman Catholic theologians African-American theologians Women Christian theologians African-American women writers Georgetown University faculty African-American Catholics