News

Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe nominated as ambassador to UN Human Rights Council
President Barack Obama nominated Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe (Ph.D. ’06) as U.S. ambassador to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, as a member of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. The nomination is subject to review by the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, which will make a recommendation to the full Senate, and the Senate will vote on the appointment.

Janet Ruffing, R.S.M. appointed to Yale Divinity School faculty
Janet K. Ruffing (Ph.D. ’86), a Sister of Mercy teaching at Fordham University, is the new professor of the practice of spirituality and ministerial leadership at Yale Divinity School (YDS), a position created to strengthen YDS offerings in ministerial studies.

Professor Martha “Marty” Stortz leaves GTU/PLTS after 25 years
Martha Stortz, professor of Historical Theology and Ethics, leaves Berkeley after 25 years for Augsburg
College in Minneapolis, MN, where she will be the Bernhard M. Christensen Chair in Religion and Vocation beginning July 1. “Marty will be a role model for our students of how a life of the mind and a life of faithful service in the world are linked,” says Augsburg President Paul Pribbenow.

Terrence Tilley named inaugural Dulles Chair in Catholic Theology
Fordham University named Terrence W. Tilley (Ph.D. ’76), professor and chair of the department of Theology at Fordham University, the first Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., Chair in Catholic Theology. Tilley is GTU’s 2008 Alumnus of the Year. Tilley says, “I can imagine someone...telling me, ‘You’re no Avery Dulles.’ I can only reply, ‘Indeed so. But, I hope to continue Dulles’ work.’”

Kang Hack Lee

Gaymon Bennett
SynBERC/University of California, Berkeley

Sean D. Burke
Luther College, Decorah, IA

Michele Connolly
Catholic Institute for Theology and Ministry, Sydney, Australia

Elizabeth Drescher
Church Divinity School of the Pacific/
Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley

Andrea Giovannoni
Holy Names University, San Francisco

Doo Hee Lee
Berkeley Christian College and Seminary, Berkeley

Kang Hack Lee
Berkeley Christian College and Seminary, Berkeley

Erica L. Martin
University of Puget Sound,  Tacoma, WA

Eliyahu Stern
Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies at the University of Oxford,
Oxford, UK

… by Kathleen Fischer, Ph.D. ’74

Loving Creation: Christian Spirituality, Earth-Centered and Just
Paulist Press
“How can we bring about the profound conversion of mind and heart that is necessary if we are to protect and preserve our planet at this critical point in history? Loving Creation shows that only when we are touched by God will we find new ways of relating to all other species and the Earth itself.” — Amazon

… by John Holt, MA ’73

Spirits of the Place: Buddhism and Lao Religious Culture
University of Hawaii Press
“A rare and timely contribution to our understanding of religious culture in Laos and Southeast Asia”
— Amazon

… by Noreen Herzfeld, Ph.D. ’00

Technology and Religion: Remaining Human in a Co-created World
Templeton Press
“Clearly written, rooted in real life, exploring ideas rather than offering quick judgments: this book is an excellent incentive for further reflection …”
— Willem B. Drees, editor of
Zygon: Journal of Religion and Science