About

Summary - Academic, Catholic theologian, Apple geek. @drfluellen on all the socials. Husband to the fantabulous Emily. Fan of cats and coffee. All opinions presented are my own.

Bio - Coming from a Methodist family in upstate New York, I was received into the Roman Catholic church in 1986 as a sophomore at Georgetown University.

The Spirit’s main instruments in my conversion were philosophy and church history, amplified by the Oratorian campus minister. After graduation, I maintained the connection with Jesuit institutions by going to Boston College to study Christian and medieval political theory. That interest led to more theological concerns and so I took up additional work in theology, specializing in systematics and New Testament.

I came to Belmont Abbey College as an assistant professor in the fall of 1999, teaching theology and sometimes political science. In 2005, I received tenure as an associate professor and became chair of the theology department. In May 2015, I was named Vice President for Academic Affairs; due to an admin restructure in 2018, this changed to Vice Provost for Academic Affairs.

Off-campus, I’m often involved in diocesan programs or as a speaker on theological topics. Activities outside the classroom are an essential part of my self-understanding as a theologian, and I try to seek them out whenever possible, because theological study ultimately exists in order to serve the Church’s life and evangelization. There’s a book with my name on it, Receiving the Bible in Faith: Historical and Theological Exegesis, and a more full statement of my professional background is in my Curriculum Vitae (available upon request).

I live in the city of Belmont, with my wife Emily, our dog Lilly, and our cat George. (And still in spirit of happy memory: Loki, Cola, and Lola.) As this site indicates, I love playing with technology which helps me on tech-related college committees. I’m a long-time SF & fantasy fan, formed among other things by Tolkien, Fritz Leiber, and C.S. Lewis. I’ve acted with the Abbey Players theater company at the college; my roles have been Fluellen in Henry V, Perry Stewart in Royal Family, Artemidorus in Julius Caesar, Lucentio in Taming of a Shrew, Archbishop Cranmer in Man for All Seasons, Ross in Macbeth, John Graunt in The Living, and Adam in As You Like It.