CLGS Catholic LGBTQ+ Ministry SU26

Dr. Ish Ruiz is an assistant professor of Latinx and Queer Decolonial Theology at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA, and holds a PhD in Theology and Ethics from the Graduate Theological Union. A native from Puerto Rico and a queer Catholic theologian, his research interests explore the intersection between queer theology, Latinx theology, ecclesiology, sexual ethics, liberation, human rights, and Catholic education. He is the author of LGBTQ+ Educators in Catholic Schools: Synodality, Inclusivity, and Justice (Rowman and Littlefield), the editor of Cornerstones: Sacred Stories of LGBTQ+ Employees in Catholic Institutions, and the author of numerous academic articles.

Prior to his appointment at the Pacific School of Religion, Dr. Ruiz served at Candler School of Theology at Emory University and at the University of Dayton. He also worked at the secondary school level for 11 years, chaired the Marianist LGBTQ+ Initiative team, offered several workshops to Catholic schools on Catholic LGBTQ+ inclusion, served as a union activist to protect the rights of LGBTQ+ Church employees, presented in several pastoral conferences throughout the US, and has actively ministered to queer Catholics for over a decade. Through his teaching, research, and service, Dr. Ruiz hopes to see a world where Catholicism (and Christianity, more broadly) embrace the diversity of gifts people of all racial backgrounds and sexual identities bring to society and the Church.