Graduate Faculty
The Master of Art in Religious Studies Program is currently undergoing some changes and applications are not being accepted at this time. Please contact Dr. Anastasia Wendlinder, for more information.
Dr. Anastasia Wendlinder
Co-Director, Graduate Program
wendlinder@gonzaga.edu
Dr. John Downey
Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6780
Office Location: Robinson House 110
Email: downey@gonzaga.edu
John K. Downey (Ph.D., Marquette) is Professor of Religious Studies (Foundational Theology & Political Theology) at Gonzaga University where he has taught for 20 years. Before coming to Gonzaga he taught in the Program in Religious Studies at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. He also served as Director of Education and Staff Theologian at the University of Illinois Newman Foundation. Other faculty appointments include Spokane Falls Community College, Mount Mary College, Cardinal Stritch College, and Marquette. Special interests: foundational theology and method, political theology, higher education and pedagogy, linguistic philosophy, human rights, interdisciplinary dialogue, liberation theologies, Francis of Assisi, Wittgenstein, Lonergan, Tracy, Metz.
Dr. Elizabeth Goldstein
Assistant Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6788
Office Location: Robinson House 010
Email: goldstein@gonzaga.edu
Elizabeth W. Goldstein (Ph.D. University of California, San Diego, 2010) is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies. She specializes in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament and Jewish Studies. She received her rabbinical ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 2001. She is a member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the Society of Biblical Literature, and the Association for Jewish Studies. Her dissertation is titled, "Impurity and Gender in the Hebrew Bible: Ideological Intersections in the Books of Leviticus, Ezekiel and Ezra" and she is currently working on its publication. She has published articles on the Book of Leviticus and gender in Embroidered Garments (Sheffield Phoenix, 2009, Ed. Deborah Rooke) and Jewish Blood: Metaphor and Reality in Jewish Torah: A Women's Commentary (Union of Reform Judaism Press, 2008, Eds. Tamara Eskenazi and Andrea Weiss). She has also served as the Book Review Editor of the CCAR Journal. Rabbi Goldstein has taught in many segments of the Jewish Community and in interfaith contexts. She has taught at the University of CA San Diego and at San Diego State University. Dr. Goldstein has been involved in interfaith work, dialogue and scriptural study. She initiated a pilot program between an Episcopal parish and a Jewish congregation in Poway, CA entitled, "Opening the Book: Jews and Christians Studying Scripture Together."
Fr. Patrick Hartin
Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6789
Office Location: Robinson House 105
Email: hartin@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Patrick Hartin, Professor of Religious Studies, is an ordained priest, previously of the Diocese of Johannesburg, South Africa and now of the Diocese of Spokane, Washington. He has been teaching New Testament Studies in the Religious Studies Department at Gonzaga University since 1995. Chair of the Classical Civilizations Department from 2002 through 2007, Patrick continues to teach classes for the Classical Civilization Department. Patrick studied theology at the Gregorian University in Rome (1967-1971). Born in South Africa, Patrick holds two doctorates in Theology from the University of South Africa (Pretoria) in Ethics (1981) and in New Testament (1988). His area of specialization is in the Letter of James as well as the traditions behind the Gospels, particularly the Sayings Gospel Q. He is currently co-convener of the Social-Sciences and New Testament Interpretation Task Force of the Catholic Biblical Association. Prior to coming to Gonzaga, Patrick taught New Testament at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and the University of South Africa, Pretoria. He was also chaplain to the Catholic Community at the Claremont Colleges, California. Author of twelve books, among which are his commentary James in the Sacra Pagina Series 14 (2003) and his most recent work Apollos: Paul's Partner or Rival? (2009) both published by Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press.
Dr. Robert Hauck
Associate Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6777
Office Location: Robinson House 012
Email: hauck@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Robert Hauck, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, has a B.A. in history from Seattle Pacific University, an M.A. in Church History from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and Ph.D. in history of Christianity from Duke University. He is the author of a book and several articles and papers on early Christianity, and is working on a project on the ways Christian apologists of the second and third centuries formulated notions of salvation in relation to Hellenistic philosophy and culture. He has taught at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, the University of Virginia, the University of Oregon, and taught for ten years at Converse College in South Carolina, where he was R.L. Maclellan Professor of Religion and chair of the Department of Religion and Philosophy. Prior to coming to Gonzaga, he was Dean of Liberal Arts at Spokane Community College. A native of the Seattle area, he is married and has two children.
Fr. Steve Kuder, S.J.
Associate Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6778
Office Location: Robinson House 015
Email: kuder@gonzaga.edu
Steve Kuder, S.J., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Religious Studies and Rector of Gonzaga University's Jesuit Community. His area of specialization is religion and literature with an emphasis in biblical literature. He also teaches homiletics, Christian leadership, and - in the MA program in Organizational Leadership - leadership and imagination. Fr. Kuder took his Bachelor's degree from Gonzaga University where he majored in classics, English, and philosophy. He received a Master's degree in English Literature from Boston College. Fr. Kuder received his Ph.D. from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA. His dissertation was titled "The Literature of Conversion: Religious Background and Literary Achievement in Dante Alighieri, John Bunyan, and James Joyce."
Dr. Ron Large
Associate Dean of Arts and Sciences and Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6767
Office Location: College Hall 232A
Emai: large@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Ron Large is Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Professor of Religious Studies. His area of specialization is Christian Ethics with an emphasis on Christian Social Ethics and peace studies. Dr. Large took his Bachelor's degree from the University of Virginia where he majored in Religious Studies. He received his Master of Divinity degree from Princeton Theological Seminary. His M.Div. thesis examined violence and nonviolence as methods of social change. Dr. Large received his doctorate from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA. His dissertation was on the connection between virtue and social change in the thought of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mohandas Gandhi. He teaches classes in Nonviolence, Christian Morality, Death and Dying, Sexual Morality, Religion and Film, and the Vietnam War. For the academic year 2000-2001, he was named Teacher of the Year at Gonzaga University. In the summer of 2006, Dr. Large was invited to attend a week long seminar on Global Peace and Security at the United States Institute of Peace in Washington DC. Dr. Large received a Fulbright Scholar Award in the Fall of 2009. He taught in the International Peace Studies Program at the Irish School of Ecumenics in Trinity College Dublin. He received Gonzaga University's Exemplary Faculty Award for 2009-2010.
Dr. Patrick McCormick
Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6715
Office Location: Robinson House 016
Email: mccormick@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Patrick McCormick, Professor of Religious Studies, earned his Masters of Divinity and Theology from Mary Immaculate Seminary in Northampton, PA. He completed his Licentiate and doctorate in Theology at the Gregorian University in Rome. Professor McCormick teaches courses in Christian Ethics, Medical Ethics, and Catholic Social Teachings and speaks, writes and directs retreats on issues of social justice. He is the author of Sin as Addiction, and A Banqueter's Guide to the All Night Soup Kitchen of the Kingdom of God, and the co-author of Character, Choices & Community: The Three Faces of Christian Ethics and Facing Ethical Issues: Dimensions of Character, choice and Community. He has also published over thirty chapters and essays on Christian Ethics and Catholic Social Teachings and has written a monthly column on Christianity and Culture for U.S. Catholic since 1994.
Dr. Kevin B. McCruden
Associate Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-5980
Office Location: Robinson House 109
Email: mccruden@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Kevin B. McCruden is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and specializes in the area of New Testament Interpretation and Criticism. Prior to his doctoral work at Loyola University Chicago, Kevin received both the M.Div and S.T.M. degree from Yale. Kevin's research interests span the Gospels, the Letters of Paul, and the Epistle to the Hebrews. His published work has appeared in such venues as Biblica, Biblical Research, and the Blackwell Companion to the New Testament. Kevin is the author of Solidarity Perfected: Beneficent Christology in the Epistle to the Hebrews. BZNW 159 (Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter, 2008). Current book projects include a co-edited volume entitled: Reading the Epistle to the Hebrews: A Resource for Students (SBL/Brill), and A Body You Have Prepared For Me: The Spirituality of the Epistle to the Hebrews (Collegeville: Liturgical Press).
Dr. Joy Milos
Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6714
Office Location: Robinson House 116
Email: milos@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Joy Milos, CSJ is presently a Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Gonzaga. She is a Sister of St. Joseph of Carondelet from the Albany, NY Province. She received her Ph.D from the Catholic University of America in Christian Spirituality. She has taught a wide range of courses in spirituality, Christology, women and Christian spirituality, spiritual direction and comparative Christianity. Joy has published a number of articles, chapters and book reviews in such journals as The Way, Commonweal, Living Light, Sewanee Theological Review and Spirituality. Her most recent articles have been about the spirituality of Dr. A. Maude Royden. She has also directed retreats in various locations around the country, Canada, England and Ireland. In addition to her academic background, Joy is committed to an integration of spirituality and social justice, especially around issues related to adequate housing and women's concerns. She has taken numerous groups of Gonzaga students on Habitat for Humanity Global Village experiences to rural central Mexico.
Dr. Joseph Mudd
Assistant Professor of Religious Studies/Graduate Program Co-Director
Phone: 509-313-6799
Office Location: Robinson House 013
Email: mudd@gonzaga.edu
Joseph Mudd joined Gonzaga's faculty in 2010 as Assistant Professor in Religious Studies. Joe holds a Ph.D. from Boston College and a Masters of Divinity from Harvard University. A native of Montana, Joe received a B.A. in Religious Studies from The University of Montana where he also worked in campus ministry. His primary area of expertise is sacramental/liturgical theology. His dissertation, "Eucharist and Critical Metaphysics: A Response to Louis-Marie Chauvet's Symbol and Sacrament drawing on the works of Bernard Lonergan," explores the controversial place of metaphysics in classical and contemporary Eucharistic theologies. His other areas of interest include the philosophy and theology of Bernard Lonegran, S.J., Thomas Aquinas, political and liberation theologies, and spirituality. Before coming to Gonzaga Joe taught at Boston College, The College of the Holy Cross (Worcester, MA) and Sacred Heart University (Fairfield, CT).
Dr. Matthew Rindge
Associate Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6779
Office Location: Robinson House 115
Email: rindge@gonzaga.edu
Matthew S. Rindge (Ph.D., Emory University) joined the Religious Studies faculty in 2008, after teaching as an adjunct at Emory University, Columbia Theological Seminary, and in many Asian and Latin American countries. At GU he teaches "Life and Teachings of Jesus," "Bible and Film," and "Bible and Contemporary Ethics." His research interests include Jesus' Parables,the Synoptic Gospels and Acts, Wisdom Literature, Intertextuality, and various intersections of Bible and Contemporary Culture. He is the author of Jesus' Parable of the Rich Fool: Luke 12:13-34 among Ancient Conversations on Death and Possessions (SBL's Early Christianity and Its Literature series, 2011). He has published articles on diverse topics (Qoheleth, Jewish Identity, Mark's Gospel and Social Outcasts, Teaching the Bible and Film) in Journal of Biblical Literature, Catholic Biblical Quarterly, Teaching Theology and Religion, and Journal of Lutheran Ethics. He is currently co-writing The History of Biblical Interpretation to 1835: A Reader (Westminister John Knox Press.) He has also written for public outlets such as The Huffington Post, Prism, and Sojourners. In the Society of Biblical Literature, he serves on the steering committees for the Bible and American Popular Culture section and the Bible and Film Consultation. In 2011, Dr. Rindge received the Paul J. Achtemeier Award in New Testament Scholarship for his paper "Reconfiguring the Akedah and Lamenting God: Mark's Theological Narrative of Divine Abandonment."
Dr. Linda Schearing
Professor of Religious Studies/Department Chair
Phone: 509-313-6797
Office Location: Robinson House 014
Email: schearing@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Linda S. Schearing is Professor of Hebrew Scriptures at Gonzaga University, where she has taught since 1993. Before coming to Gonzaga she taught at Luther College (Decorah, IA), Rhodes College (Memphis, TN), and Emory University (Atlanta, GA). She has co-authored two books, Eve & Adam: Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Readings on Genesis and Gender (Indiana University Press, 1999) and Those Elusive Deuteronomists: The Phenomenon of Pan-Dueteronomism (JSOT, 268; 1999), authored several articles, and has been a contributing writer for the Anchor Bible Dictionary, Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, The New Interpreters Bible Dictionary, and to Women in Scripture: A Dictionary of Named and Unnamed Women in the Hebrew Bible, The apocryphal/Deuterocanoncial Books and the New Testament. In addition to these publication activities, she has served as a consultant for various presses as well as a speaker in both local and national venues. Her research interests are Hebrew Scriptures, Biblical Interpretation, the Bible and popular cultures, and women's studies.
Dr. John Sheveland
Associate Professor
Phone: 509-313-6784
Office Location: Robinson House 009
Email: sheveland@gonzaga.edu
Dr. John Sheveland, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, received a Masters degree in Christian theology from Yale Divinity and a Ph.D. in systematic and comparative theology from Boston College. At Gonzaga he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses at the intersection of Christianity and the world's religions. His research interests include theological anthropology and Christian comparative theology, especially with Hindu and Buddhist traditions. John is a member of the American Academy of Religion, the Catholic Theological Society of America, and the College Theology Society, for which he serves as the world's religions area convener. On campus he organizes the annual "Being Religious Interreligiously" lecture series. John has contributed articles to several journals, including Studies in Interreligious Dialogue, The Expository Times, Louvain Studies, The Way, and Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection, and is the author of the forthcoming book Piety and Responsibility: Patterns of Unity in Karl Rahner, Karl Barth, and Vedanta Desika (Ashgate, 2011).
Dr. Cate Siejk
Professor of Religious Studies
Phone: 509-313-6776
Office Location: Robinson House 112
Email: siejk@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Cate Siejk, Professor of Religious Studies, received her Ph.D. in Theology and Education from Boston College in 1992. She began teaching at Gonzaga in fall, 1991 and regularly teaches courses in Feminist Christian Doctrine, Feminist Theologies, and Spirituality and the Adult Life Cycle. Dr. Siejk's research interests are in epistemology, feminist theory, and feminist theologies. She co-directs the Graduate Program in the Religious Studies Departmetn and is a faculty member in the Women's and Gender Studies Program.
Dr. Anastasia Wendlinder
Associate Professor of Religious Studies/Graduate Program Co-Director
Phone: 509-313-6786
Office Location: Robinson House 006
Email: wendlinder@gonzaga.edu
Dr. Anastasia Wendlinder is Associate Professor in the Religious Studies Department at Gonzaga University. She also serves as Co-Director of the Graduate Program. Dr. Wendlinder received her Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from the University of Notre Dame in 2004, where she wrote her dissertation on Thomas Aquinas and Meister Eckhart and served as Visiting Assistant Professor in the Theology Department. Anastasia received her M.A. in Systematic and Philosophical Theology from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California in 1993 and her B.A. from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1987 with a double major in Psychology and Sociology. Besides her concentration in Systematic Theology, Anastasia's areas of expertise include Sacramental and Liturgical Theology, the Second Vatican Council, Ecumenism and issues of Social Justice. Anastasia is a member of the College Theology Society, the Catholic Theological Society of America and the American Academy of Religion.
