Catholic Charities USA President to Speak at University of San Diego and Stanford Graduation Ceremonies

Catholic Charities USA
Monday, 19 May 2003

Fr. Hehir to receive honorary doctorate of humane letters from the University of San Diego

Catholic Charities USA President Rev. J. Bryan Hehir will deliver the commencement address at the graduation ceremonies of the University of San Diego on Sunday, May 25. In recognition of his distinguished career, Fr. Hehir will also receive an honorary doctorate of humane letters.

The University of San Diego is an independent Catholic institution of higher learning overlooking San Diego's Mission Bay. Chartered in 1949, the school enrolls more than 7,000 students and is known for its commitment to teaching, the liberal arts, the formation of values, and community service.

On June 14, Fr. Hehir will address undergraduate and graduate students during Stanford University's Multifaith Baccalaureate Celebration. Baccalaureate is a student-led celebration that acknowledges the spiritual and religious contributions to the education of Stanford graduates. The Baccalaureate service is comprised of music and readings from a variety of religious traditions, reflecting on this important life passage.

Fr. Hehir has served as president of Catholic Charities USA since 2001. He also serves as distinguished professor of ethics and international affairs at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service.

Fr. Hehir's academic and policy work over the last 30 years has focused upon Catholic social teaching and social policy, the role of religion in world politics and in American society, and the role of ethics in international politics and U.S. foreign policy.

His writings include: "The Limits of Loyalty" (Foreign Policy,, 2002); "International Politics, Ethics and the Use of Force" (Georgetown Journal, 2002); "Catholicism and Democracy: Conflict, Change and Collaboration" (Christianity and Democracy: Past Contributors and Future Challenges, 1993), and "The Social Role of the Church: Leo XIII, Vatican II and John Paul II" (Catholic Social Thought and the New World Order, 1993).

Before assuming his post at Catholic Charities USA, Fr. Hehir served for two years as head of the Harvard Divinity School, the first Roman Catholic to hold that position. He became a member of the school's faculty in 1992, teaching on the practice of religion in society. He also served as a counselor to Catholic Relief Services between 1996 and 2001.

From 1973 to 1992, Fr. Hehir was assigned to the U.S. Catholic Conference in Washington, DC, where he held positions as director of the Office of International Affairs; secretary of the Department of Social Development and World Peace; and counselor for Social Policy. From 1984 to 1992, he also served on the faculty at Georgetown University, holding teaching positions as the Joseph P. Kennedy Professor of Christian Ethics in the Kennedy Center for Ethics and as research professor of ethics and international politics in the School of Foreign Service. He was named a MacArthur Foundation Fellow in 1984.

Fr. Hehir has received more than 25 honorary degrees from American colleges and universities. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, the Council on Foreign Relations, and the Catholic Theological Society.

Fr. Hehir received his BA and MA from St. John's Seminary, Boston, and a Th.D. in applied theology from the Harvard Divinity School.

For more information, or to contact Catholic Charities USA, see their website at: www.catholiccharitiesusa.org