2023 Dunning Lecture: Frank Matera, "Preaching from the Cross"

St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute's 2023 Dunning Lecture by Rev. Frank Matera, "Preaching from the Cross: A Reflection on Paul’s Theology of Preaching," was held in Laubacher Hall on Wednesday, November 8th, 2023. Our 2023 Dunning Lecture also commemorated the 25th anniversary of the death of world-renowned Sulpician biblical scholar Raymond E. Brown, P.S.S., whose career began at St. Mary’s.

Fr. Matera is a leading New Testament scholar, a past president of the Catholic Biblical Association, and a priest of the Archdiocese of Hartford. Deeply interested in the theological dimensions of the New Testament and its meaning for the Church, Fr. Matera has written commentaries on Romans, Galatians, and 2 Corinthians; several books on New Testament ethics, Christology, and theology; and a Pauline theology. His ecumenical service includes being a member of the Plenary Commission of Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches from 1994 to 2000. Ordained in 1968, Fr. Matera spent ten years in pastoral ministry before receiving his Ph.D. from Union Theological Seminary in Virginia. He then taught at St. John’s Seminary in Brighton, MA before moving to Catholic University in 1988. Following his 2012 retirement from CUA, Fr. Matera returned to parish ministry. Now a senior retired pastor, he continues to teach, lecture, and do pastoral work.