My first meeting with theologian Fr David Tracy took place at Medici’s, a famous South Side Chicago pizzeria, in September 1979 when David was 40 and I was 24, writes Werner Jeanrond. I had just arrived in the “Windy City” as a doctoral student in the University of Chicago Divinity School, and this was my first encounter with my new supervisor.

In German tradition I politely called him Professor Tracy throughout our meal until he had had enough: “If you came here to work with me you must call me ‘David’.” That was not easy for me – having been brought up in a hierarchical academic and ecclesial milieu. But David helped me to appreciate that he wanted an intellectual relationship with me where exchanging stimulating thoughts counted and nothing else. He treated me as a fellow worker in theology, philosophy, literary criticism – and critical and self-critical thinking.