Fr Richard P McBrien, a retired professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame who was chairman of the university's theology department for 11 years, died on Sunday at age 78 in his native Connecticut.
An announcement by the university said Fr McBrien had died after a long illness, but did not specify the cause of death.
Notre Dame said a memorial Mass would be celebrated on its campus in the coming weeks.
In addition to his teaching, Fr McBrien wrote 25 books as well as a weekly syndicated column, "Essays in Theology," for the Catholic press for nearly 50 years.
His writings often raised hackles among Catholics from the pews all the way to Rome.
Among his books is Catholicism, first published in 1980. The US bishops' Committee on Doctrine said it was “confusing and ambiguous” in its treatment of some points of church teaching and said it was "not supportive of the church's authoritative teaching as would be expected" in such a book.
Fr McBrien weighed in on many topics affecting the church.
At a 1993 conference in Chicago, he said that without diminishing the pain suffered by victims of clergy abuse, those who claim that "we are the Church" must address the injustices committed against those who actively minister and work for the Church.
During a 1992 talk in Indianapolis that drew seven times its expected turnout, he criticised the "current discipline on obligatory celibacy and the ordination of women," and challenged Catholics to take far more seriously the teachings of the church on social justice, service, evangelisation and other aspects of Christian life.
Loading ...
