Francis Schüssler Fiorenza is an American
theologian
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
who currently holds the post of Charles Chancey Stillman Research Professor of
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
Theological Studies at
Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...
.
Biography
Born Francis Fiorenza in 1941, as a young man he entered
St. Mary's Seminary and University in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, from which he earned the degree of
Master of Divinity, even though he did not intend to pursue
ordination
Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform v ...
.
In 1963 he won a
fellow
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
ship to study theology in Germany under the
Jesuit theologian
Karl Rahner
Karl Rahner (5 March 1904 – 30 March 1984) was a German Jesuit priest and theologian who, alongside Henri de Lubac, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Yves Congar, is considered to be one of the most influential Roman Catholic theologians of ...
at the
University of Munich
The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's sixth-oldest university in continuous operatio ...
. Because that university would not accept doctoral candidates to work under Rahner, he instead enrolled at the
University of Münster
The University of Münster (german: Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, WWU) is a public research university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.
With more than 43,000 students and over 120 fields of stud ...
, where he eventually earned the degree of
Doctor of Theology, having studied under
Johann Baptist Metz
Johann Baptist Metz (5 August 1928 – 2 December 2019) was a German Catholic priest and theologian. He was Ordinary Professor of Fundamental Theology at the University of Münster, and a consultant to the synod of German dioceses. He is regarded ...
and Joseph Ratzinger (the future
Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...
). It was while studying there that he met his future wife,
Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza
Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza (born 1938) is a Romanian-born German, Roman Catholic feminist theologian, who is currently the Krister Stendahl Professor of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School.
Life
She was born Elisabeth Schüssler on 17 April ...
, a feminist Catholic theologian. Rahner transferred to Münster two years later, so he was able to accomplish his original goal.
Now Francis Schüssler Fiorenza as a result of his marriage, he returned to the United States with his wife, where they obtained teaching positions at the
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic university, Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin fo ...
in
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
. Subsequent to that, he taught at
Villanova University
Villanova University is a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1842 and named after Saint Thomas of Villanova. The university is the oldest Catholic university in Penns ...
in
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, and
The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U.S. ...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
In 1986, Fiorenza joined the faculty of the Harvard Divinity School, where his wife also became a professor. In 2021, he retired from active teaching duties and became a research professor.
His primary interests are in the fields of fundamental or foundational theology, in which he explores the significance of contemporary
hermeneutical
Hermeneutics () is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts. Hermeneutics is more than interpretative principles or methods used when immediate c ...
theories as well as neo-pragmatic criticisms of foundationalism. His writings on
political theology engage recent theories of justice, especially those of
John Rawls
John Bordley Rawls (; February 21, 1921 – November 24, 2002) was an American moral, legal and political philosopher in the liberal tradition. Rawls received both the Schock Prize for Logic and Philosophy and the National Humanities Medal in ...
and
Jürgen Habermas, and have dealt with issues of work and welfare. He has also written on the history of 19th- and 20th-century theology, focusing on both
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
and
Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
theologians.
Fiorenza was awarded the
Henry Luce III Fellowship for 2005-06 for research in the history of 20th-century
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
theology, namely, the direction known as the ''nouvelle théologie'' ("new theology"). This was a school of thought which originated at the Jesuit
seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...
of
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
s, France, and the work of the Jesuit theologian
Henri de Lubac
Henri-Marie Joseph Sonier de Lubac (; 20 February 1896 – 4 September 1991), better known as Henri de Lubac, was a French Jesuit priest and cardinal who is considered one of the most influential theologians of the 20th century. His writin ...
, and which sought to explore a perspective in theology from the earlier roots of the Church, prior to
Scholasticism and the theology of the
Council of Trent
The Council of Trent ( la, Concilium Tridentinum), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation, it has been described a ...
.
''Foundational Theology: Jesus and the Church'' is one of his earliest and best-known books. He has published widely, with more than 150 essays in the areas of fundamental theology, hermeneutics, and
political theology, as well as several other books.
Works
* ''Foundational Theology: Jesus and the Church'' (
Crossroad Publishing Company
Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to:
* Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet
Film and television Films
* ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa
* ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...
, 1984)
* ''Systematic Theology'', volumes 1 and 2 (
Fortress Press
1517 Media, formerly Augsburg Fortress Press, is the official publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), also publishing for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) as ''Augsburg Fortress Canada''. Headquarte ...
, 1991)
* ''Modern Christian Thought: The Twentieth Century'' James C. Livingston and Francis Schüssler Fiorenza, 2nd edition (Fortress Press, 2006)
* ''Systematic Theology: Roman Catholic Perspectives'', Francis Schüssler Fiorenza and John P. Galvin, editors, 2nd edition (Fortress Press, 2011)
* ''Rights at Risk: Confronting the Cultural, Ethical, and Religious Challenges'' (
Continuum, 2012)
* ''Political Theology: Contemporary Challenges and Future Directions'' Francis Schüssler Fiorenza, Klaus Tanner and Michael Welker, editors (
Westminster John Knox Press
Westminster John Knox Press is an American publisher of Christian books located in Louisville, Kentucky and is part of Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, the publishing arm of the Louisville, Kentucky-based Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
The P ...
, 2013)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fiorenza, Francis Schussler
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
St. Mary's Seminary and University alumni
University of Münster alumni
20th-century American Roman Catholic theologians
21st-century American Roman Catholic theologians
Lay theologians
Systematic theologians
University of Notre Dame faculty
Catholic University of America faculty
Villanova University faculty
Harvard Divinity School faculty
Political theologians