A priest of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, Rev. Bryan N. Massingale, S.T.D., will present “Spirituality for Racial Justice” at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 31, at Fairfield University’s Dolan School of Business Event Hall. This lecture event is free and open to the public; tickets are required.

Fr. Massingale is a professor of theological and social ethics at Fordham University, where he holds the James and Nancy Buckman Chair in Applied Christian Ethics and is a senior fellow in the Center for Ethics Education. He received his doctorate of sacred theology (S.T.D.) at the Alphonsian Academy in Rome, the pontifical institute for moral theology. A leader in Catholic theology, Fr. Massingale is the immediate past president of the Society of Christian Ethics. He is also a former president of the Catholic Theological Society of America and a former convener of the Black Catholic Theological Symposium.

"Bryan Massingale is a giant in the American Catholic Church,” said Professor Paul Lakeland, PhD, chair of the Center for Catholic Studies at Fairfield. “A distinguished practitioner of theological ethics, a fearless speaker, and a compassionate pastor, his work challenges all of us to face our complicity in the racism that so stubbornly remains in our American society, and to do what needs to be done."

The author of two books and more than 170 articles, book chapters, and book reviews, Fr. Massingale’s monograph, entitled Racial Justice and the Catholic Church, received a first place Book Award from the Catholic Press Association of the U.S. and Canada. He also authored a major document for Catholic Charities USA, entitled, "Poverty and Racism: Overlapping Threats to the Common Good. Fr. Massingale is an award-winning contributor to major Catholic thought vehicles such as U.S. Catholic, Commonweal, America magazine, The Tablet, and The National Catholic Reporter.

As a public intellectual, Fr. Massingale frequently addresses issues of racial and sexual justice in venues such as National Public Radio (NPR), ABC News, the PBS NewsHour, the Huff Post, Canadian Public Radio, the South African Times, and the Associated Press. His current writing projects explore the contributions of the Black radical imagination to Catholic theology and the intersections of race, sexuality, and faith.

In addition to four honorary doctorates, Fr. Massingale is the recipient of numerous honors and recognitions for both his academic scholarship and advocacy for justice, including The Ignatian Solidarity Network’s Faith Doing Justice Award, Dignity USA’s Risk Taker/Justice Maker Award for “advocating for justice for LGBTQI Catholics at great personal risk,” and Catholic Charities USA’s Centennial Gold Medal for leadership and service in the social mission of the Catholic Church.

Presented by Fairfield University’s Office of Mission & Ministry, Center for Catholic Studies, FUSA (Fairfield University Student Association), and the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts, Fr. Bryan Massingale’s lecture, “Spirituality for Racial Justice,” is free and open to the public. Tickets are required. The event will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 31, at the Dolan School of Business Event Hall, 1073 North Benson Road, Fairfield, CT 06824. To reserve your ticket to this event, please visit quickcenter.com.