feminist theologian
Feminist theology is a movement found in several religions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Neopaganism, Baha'i Feminism, Baháʼí Faith, Judaism, Islam and New Thought, to reconsider the traditions, practices, scriptures, and theologies ...
who is co-founder and co-director of the Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual (WATER) in Silver Spring, Maryland, US. A Catholic active in the women-church movement, she lectures and writes on theology and ethics with particular attention to social justice concerns.
Early life and education
Hunt grew up in an Irish Catholic family in Syracuse, New York, and attended parochial schools. In high school she volunteered at an inner city program and a Native American reservation. She witnessed what she later described as "grinding poverty" during two summer experiences with the Christian Appalachian Project in Kentucky.
Hunt earned her undergraduate degree in theology and philosophy from Marquette University in 1972.
She completed her master's in theological studies at Harvard Divinity School in 1974. There she was a student of the Catholic theologian
Rosemary Radford Ruether
Rosemary Radford Ruether (1936–2022) was an American feminist scholar and Roman Catholic theologian known for her significant contributions to the fields of feminist theology and ecofeminist theology. Her teaching and her writings helped est ...
, who introduced the issues of gender and sexuality into the curriculum. She also studied with Jesuit priest and liberation theologian
Juan Luis Segundo
Juan Luis Segundo (March 31, 1925, in Montevideo, Uruguay – January 17, 1996, in Montevideo) was a Jesuit priest and Uruguayan theologian who was an important figure in the movement known as Latin American liberation theology. He wrote numerous ...
, who introduced issues of economics and international relations.
In 1979, Hunt received a second master's degree in divinity from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley. In 1980 she received her Ph.D. from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California.
Career
In 1984 she was one of 97 theologians and religious persons who signed "
A Catholic Statement on Pluralism and Abortion
"A Catholic Statement on Pluralism and Abortion", alternatively referred to by its pull quote "A Diversity of Opinions Regarding Abortion Exists Among Committed Catholics" or simply "The New York Times ad", was a full-page advertisement placed on ...
", calling for religious pluralism and discussion within the Catholic Church regarding the church's position on abortion.
In 2018 she was one of many religious commenting on the church crisis of the sexual abuse of nuns by male clerics. She said the problem is one example of more profound and widespread "spiritual abuse" of women by the male-dominated church.''The Boston Pilot'', "Women Religious Openly Discuss Harassment, Abuse, Rape of Nuns by Clergy", February 1, 2019 /ref>
See also
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Elizabeth Farians
Elizabeth Farians (10 April 1923 – 21 October 2013) was an American religious studies scholar and feminist. She was an early member the National Organization for Women, National Organization of Women and is considered the first Catholic feminist ...
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Donna Quinn
Donna Quinn was a Catholic nun and a lifelong feminist activist who was known for her involvement with the National Coalition of American Nuns and association with
Women-Church Convergence (W-CC).
Catholic Statement on Pluralism and Abortion
In ...
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Margaret Traxler
Margaret Ellen Traxler, SSND, (March 11, 1924 – February 12, 2002) was a prominent American Religious Sister with the School Sisters of Notre Dame and a prominent women's rights activist. She was also a leader in developing institutions to help ...
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Marjorie Tuite Marjorie Tuite, OP (October 15, 1922 – June 28, 1986)Mary Hunt Papers in the Sophia Smith Collection, Smith College Special Collections