Faculty & Staff Directory

Miguel H. Diaz, PhD
Title/s: The John Courtney Murray, S.J., University Chair in Public Service and
Ambassador to the Holy See, Retired
Office #: Cuneo Hall 433
Phone: 773.508.8372
Email: mdiaz13@luc.edu
CV Link: Diaz CV
About
Miguel H. Díaz is the John Courtney Murray, S.J., University Chair in Public Service at Loyola University Chicago. Dr. Díaz served under President Barack Obama as the 9th U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See. He is a co-editor of the series Disruptive Cartographers: Doing Theology Latinamente. He is editor of the multi-authored volume one, The Word Became Culture (Orbis 2020) and the author of the third volume, Queer God de Amor (Fordham University Press, 2022). As a public theologian, Professor Diaz regularly engages print, radio, and television media. He is a contributor to the “Theology en la Plaza column for the National Catholic Reporter. He is a member of the Catholic Theological Society of America (CTSA), the American Academy of Religion (AAR), and a member and past President of the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the United States (ACHTUS). As part of his ongoing commitment to advance human rights globally, Díaz participates in several diplomatic initiatives in Washington, D.C., including being a member of the Atlantic Council, a member of the Ambassadors Circle at the National Democratic Institute (NDI), and a member of the Board and Senior Fellow for Religion and Peacebuilding for the Alliance for Peacebuilding (AfP).
Degrees
Ph.D. in Theology, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana Dissertation: “A Study in U.S. Hispanic Theological Anthropology, 1972-1999”
M.A. in Theology, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana
Doctor of Humane Letters, Honoris Causa, University of Portland, Portland, Oregon
Doctor of Humane Letters, Honoris Causa, St. Thomas University, Miami, Florida
Doctor of Humane Letters, Honoris Causa, Fordham University, New York, New York
Doctor of Sacred Theology, Honoris Causa, Florida Center for Theological Studies, Miami, Florida
Program Areas
Systematic Theology
Research Interests
Trinitarian Theologies, Queer Theologies, Liberation Theologies, Latinx/Latin American Theologies, Contextual Theologies, Theologies of Grace
Professional & Community Affiliations
Member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Hispanic/Latino Theology (JHLT)
Member of the Catholic Theological Society of America (CTSA)
Member of the Ambassadors Circle at the National Democratic Institute (NDI)
Awards
2013
Virgilio Elizondo Award for Distinguished Achievement in Theology on Dr. Miguel H. Díaz
2012
Award in Recognition to Service as U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, National Museum of Catholic Art and History, Washington, D.C.
2011
Premio Internazionale “Bonifacio VIII,” Anagni, Italy
2010
Blessed are the Peacemakers Award, Chicago Theological Union, Chicago, Illinois
2007
Recognized for service as president of the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians
Recognized for service to the Hispanic Theological Initiative on the 10th anniversary of the organization
Educational Trailblazer Theologian of the Year Award, Houston, Texas
2002
Hispanic Theological Initiative Book of the Year Award, On Being Human
Selected Publications
Recent Press and Public Engagements
Francisco Acepta Invitación para Dialogar con Jovenes Migrantes
NCR Columns: Theology en La Plaza
God's Word at the World's Borders
I was a terrified child migrant who became a theologian and U.S. ambassador.
Making America Inclusive Again: A “Catholic” Approach to Our Neighbors
Controversial Conversations: Faith and Public Life
Books
Queer God de Amor (Fordham University Press, 2022)
The Word Became Culture, opening volume of Disruptive Cartographers: Doing Theology Latinamente (Orbis Press, 2020). Ed. Miguel H. Díaz.
“The Word that Crosses: Life-giving Encounters with the Markan Jesus and Guadalupe,” opening chapter in The Word Became Culture, Disruptive Cartographers: Doing Theology Latinamente. Co-edited series by Orbis Books, 2021).
Disruptive Cartographers: Doing Theology Latinamente. Co-editor of series in Orbis Books. 2021.
Rondine’s Method in Youth-led Diplomacy, co-edited book with Charles Haus (forthcoming by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2022).
“On the Love of God and Neighbor: Hospitality and Rondine’s Transformative Method of Inter-Personal Human Encounters,” in Rondine’s Method in Youth-led Diplomacy, co-edited book with Charles Haus (forthcoming by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2022).
Loyola Law Journal, Vol. 50/1, Fall 2018, 50th Special Edition, Revised Conference Papers for the Spring 2018 Conference on the Question of Religious Freedom.
“Introduction to Essays from “The Question of Religious Freedom: From John Courtney Murray, SJ and Vatican II to the Present.”
“An Unfinished Project: John Courtney Murray, Religious Freedom, and Unresolved Tensions in Contemporary American Society,” 1-25.
On Being Human: U.S. Hispanic and Rahnerian Perspectives. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2001.
Co-Editor, From the Heart of Our People: Explorations in Catholic Systematic Theology. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1999.