Santa Clara’s Jesuit School of Theology welcomed a distinguished moral theologian and ethicist as its new dean on July 1.
Santa Clara’s Jesuit School of Theology welcomed a distinguished moral theologian and ethicist as its new dean on July 1: Thomas Massaro, S.J., who comes to the graduate school’s Berkeley campus from Boston College’s School of Theology and Ministry, where he taught as a professor of moral theology.
Fr. Massaro is the author or editor of five books, a regular columnist for America magazine, and a sought-after public intellectual. He lectures frequently on the moral evaluation of public policies regarding domestic and international issues such as foreign policy, anti-poverty efforts, and globalization. His teaching interests include Catholic social ethics, theories of economic justice, sociology of religion, and the history of Christian political thought.
In coming to JST, he says, “For decades, it has been preparing men and women for learned ministry in a distinctive way, one that is culturally aware and intellectually rigorous. What a privilege it is to help prepare Catholic lay and religious leaders for tomorrow’s church.”
Fr. Massaro takes the leadership baton at JST from Associate Professor of Systematic Theology Kevin Burke, S.J., who played a key role in the integration of the school into Santa Clara University in 2009. JST, in turn, is central in the University’s commitment to serving as a national and international leader in theological study and service to the wider Catholic community