LOS ANGELES – Loyola Marymount University has faculty experts available to respond to media inquiries as Pope Francis next week marks his 10th anniversary as pontiff.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio, S.J., of Argentina was named Bishop of Rome on March 13, 2013, becoming the first Jesuit pope, the first from Latin America, and the first born outside of Europe in more than 1,000 years.
LMU professors are available to comment on a range of story topics related to Francis’ papacy, from his positions on immigration, the care of refugees, climate change, and LGBTQ+ Catholics, to his formative years in religious life. They can discuss his emphasis on synodality as part of his efforts to renew the Catholic Church, tensions within the Church, and how Pope Francis’ papacy differs from that of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI.
Email news@lmu.edu, or call our Media Line, 310.258.4636, to request an interview with these and other LMU faculty members:
Allan Deck, S.J., Distinguished Scholar in Pastoral Theology and Latino Studies
Father Deck is the author or editor of 11 books and more than 60 chapters on pastoral theology, Latino/a Studies, Catholic social teaching, spirituality and intercultural competence. The author of “Francis, Bishop of Rome: The Gospel for the Third Millennium,” Father Deck can comment on Pope Francis’ formative years in religious life and pastoral ministry, as well as tensions within the Church during his papacy.
Media: Los Angeles Times, San Jose Mercury News, CNN, Religion News Service, America, National Catholic Reporter.
Cecilia González-Andrieu, Professor of Theological Studies
González-Andrieu specializes in political theology, immigrant rights, theological aesthetics, and Christian and Latina/o/x theologies. She serves on the board of the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the U.S., and is co-founder of LMU’s initiatives with undocumented students. She publishes on Pope Francis and especially his lifting up of the religious sensibilities of the poor, and teaches a course on ecological theology centered on his leadership on climate change. She can comment on these themes of Francis’ pontificate: care of the environment and climate change, taking care of refugees and migrants, and the need to attend to the wisdom of the religious imagination and practices of the poor.
Media: Los Angeles Times, KPCC, Sacramento Bee, America, Ignatian Solidarity Network, National Catholic Reporter, Univision, Telemundo, NTN24.
Brett Hoover, Associate Professor of Pastoral and Practical Theology
Hoover teaches courses on ministry, immigration, faith and culture, and U.S. Catholicism. He regularly consults with parishes and teaches pastoral leaders locally and around the country, especially about ministry in culturally diverse parishes. He can speak about how the pastoral style of Pope Francis has proved to be familiar to Latinx Catholics, the pope’s concern with immigrants and immigration, the influences on his thinking from Argentinian theology and experience, and the motives behind the pope’s desire to reform the Curia or Church bureaucracy.
Media: National Catholic Reporter, U.S. Catholic, Commonweal, Ignatian Solidarity Network
Amir Hussain, Chair and Professor of Theological Studies
Hussain teaches courses on world religions and specializes in interfaith dialogue, the study of Islam, and Islam and Muslim lives in the United States and North America. He is president of the American Academy of Religion, the world’s largest scholarly organization for the study of religion, and the author of “Muslims and the Making of America.” Hussain can speak to Pope Francis’ impact on different faith communities.
Media: New York Times, Religion News Service, PBS, National Catholic Reporter, History Channel, National Geographic Channel.
Nancy Pineda-Madrid, Professor and T. Marie Chilton Chair of Catholic Theology/Theological Studies
Pineda-Madrid focuses her research interests on the problem of evil and violence; theories of salvation; U.S. Latino/a theologies; feminist theologies; political theology; North American pragmatism and theology. She can discuss how women view Pope Francis’ papacy, and how Pope Francis’ major writings direct a critique of violence against women – the topic of an upcoming keynote: “The Evil of Violence Against Women, and the Hope Manifest in Pope Francis’ Enduring Legacy.” She is vice president of the Catholic Theological Society of America and will be organizing a convention on the theme of “Social Salvation.”
Media: National Catholic Reporter, Religion News Service, America
Thomas Rausch, S.J., Emeritus T. Marie Chilton Professor of Catholic Theology
Father Rausch is a systematic theologian specializing in the areas of Christology, ecclesiology, and ecumenism. He has published 22 books, including “Pope Benedict XVI: An Introduction to His Theological Vision,” and more than 280 articles and reviews. He can discuss Pope Francis’ papacy in comparison to Pope Benedict XVI.
Media: Los Angeles Times, America, Slate, PBS, National Catholic Reporter.
