Speakers Information
DUQUE, JOÃO is a distinguished scholar in Fundamental Theology, earning a PhD from the Phil.-Theologische Hochschule Sankt Georgen, Frankfurt, Germany, in 1996, with a thesis focused on Hans-Georg Gadamer. Currently, a Full Professor at the Faculty of Theology at the Portuguese Catholic University (UCP), João Duque has also held visiting professorships in prestigious institutions, including Santiago de Compostela, Vienna, Belo Horizonte, São Paulo, and Rio de Janeiro. From 2020 to 2024, João Duque served as Pro-Rector of UCP, and since 2024, he has been the Director of the Research Centre for Theology and Religious Studies (CITER-UCP). Additionally, João Duque is the Chief Editor of the Faculty's journal, Ephata. With a prolific academic output, João Duque has authored 14 books and over 200 articles and book chapters, focusing on the dynamic interplay between systematic theology and contemporary culture.
ECKHOLT, MARGIT pursued studies in Catholic theology, Romance studies, and philosophy at the University of Tübingen, earning her Doctorate in Theology in 1992. From 1993 to 1995, she was a visiting professor and postdoctoral researcher with the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation at the Pontificia Universidad Católica in Santiago de Chile. She completed her habilitation in dogmatics at the University of Tübingen in 2000. From 2000 to 2009, she held the chair of dogmatics at the Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschule of the Salesians of Don Bosco in Benediktbeuern. Since September 2009, she has been the chair of dogmatic theology (including fundamental theology) at the University of Osnabrück, where she also serves as the director of the Institute of Catholic Theology. Her current research focuses on the international reception of the Second Vatican Council, theology and women, synodality, and church. Prof. Eckholt is the President of ICALA (German-Latin American Cultural Exchange), former President of the European Society for Catholic Theology (2021–2023), and Chair of the Peter Hünermann Foundation (since 2023).
ELLUL, JOSEPH O.P. received his Licentiate in Arabic and Islamic Studies from the Pontificio Istituto di Studi Arabi e d’Islamistica in 1986. He then continued his studies in Ecumenical Theology at the Pontifical University of St Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) where he received his Doctorate in 1997. He is currently Extraordinary Professor at the Pontifical University of St Thomas Aquinas and Lecturer in the Faculty of Theology and in the Department of Middle Eastern and Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Malta. He has also published widely and participated in numerous international conferences. In 2017 Prof. Ellul was awarded the title of Magister Sacrae Theologiae by the Order of Preachers in recognition of his academic work. At present he is also the Chairman of the Commission for Interreligious Dialogue in the Archdiocese of Malta.
FARRUGIA, JONATHAN is Senior Lecturer and Head of Department of Church History, Patrology and Palaeochristian Archaeology at the University of Malta. He obtained his doctorate from the Augustinian Patristic Institute in Rome (2016) with a study on sin in the homilies of Gregory of Nyssa. He also holds a degree in Italian and a diploma from the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology. Farrugia currently holds the position of chairperson of the Malta Libraries Council, and is a committee member of the Soċjetà Patristika Maltija, the Maltese Augustinian Institute and the Archdiocese’s Doctrinal Commission. Within the patristic field he has edited books, published a number of studies and a monograph Gregory of Nyssa and the sins of Asia Minor (2023). He is also interested in local history and has published three books and many studies. His greatest achievement was a ground-breaking study which appeared in the book he edited Ir-Redentur. History, art and cult of the miraculous effigy of Christ the Redeemer at Senglea, Malta (2019) and with which he won the Nation Book Prize for Biographical and Historiographic Research in 2020.
JANDEJSEK, PETR is a lecturer in systematic theology at Protestant Theological Faculty of Charles University and (Salesian) Jabok College of Applied Social Studies, both in Prague. The confessional distinctiveness of the two workplaces is an important resource for his theological work. His research interests comprise Christian social work, Latin American liberation theology, contemporary Christology and theological anthropology. He lectures also on reconciliation and human rights. He published the book Christologie z pomezí [Christology from the margins]: Jacques Dupuis, Roger Haight a Jon Sobrino (Prague 2019). He is currently involved in the Charles University research project “Theological Anthropology in Intercultural Perspective”. As part of this and previous projects, he has published several articles and chapters in books on topics such as political aspects of theological anthropology, human growth and fragility, and human rights. He has been a member of European Society for Catholic Theology since 2013.
KIROUDI, MARINA is a research associate at the University of Bonn (Germany) at the Department for Religious Education within the Faculty of Catholic Theology. Additionally, she teaches Orthodox Theology in the context of the international program of the Master’s degree in Ecumenical Studies. She received a grant of the Argelander Program at the University of Bonn for the project “Religious identity formation in the diaspora and approaches from the children’s point of view.” Her current research also deals with children’s theology and spirituality from an Orthodox perspective. She is a member of various theological and religious education organizations and committees. She is involved in projects to mark the anniversary of Nicaea, e.g. the publication of a volume on religious education approaches to Christology and corresponding teaching material. Until 2022, she was the Orthodox Secretary in the Council of Churches in Germany.
KOVÁCS, GUSZTÁV, born 1980 in Hungary, he is the rector of the Theological College of Pécs, the head of the Department for Human Dignity and Social Justice and professor for bioethics at the University of Pécs. He gained his Th.D in 2008 at the University of Vienna. Professor Kovács received his habilitation in philosophy at the University of Pécs in 2015, in theology at Babeș-Bolyai University in 2023. Since 2023 he is the president of the European Society for Catholic Theology. His field of research covers topics from philosophical ethics, social ethics and bioethics.
MCGRATH, ALISTER is a Senior Research Fellow in the Faculty of Theology and Religion at Oxford University. McGrath’s original academic studies at Oxford were in the natural sciences, and the exploration of the relationship between Christianity and science has been a major element of his academic writing and teaching. He recently retired as Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford, having previously served as Professor of Historical Theology. His recent book The Nature of Christian Doctrine: Its Origins, Development, and Function (Oxford University Press, 2024) explores the role of Christian doctrine in articulating the core vision of the Christian faith. He is best known for his theological textbooks, especially Christian Theology: An Introduction, now in its seventh edition, which has been translated into 21 languages.
RUHSTORFER, KARLHEINZ (b. 1963) studied Catholic theology, philosophy, and German in Freiburg, Munich, and Osnabrück. He earned his doctorate in 1997 with a focus on the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola and completed his habilitation in 2003, exploring the concept of human destiny in the works of Foucault, Nietzsche, Augustine, and Paul. Holding the Venia Legendi in dogmatics and Christian philosophy of religion, he currently serves as Professor of Dogmatics at the University of Freiburg. From 2015 to 2023, he chaired the German Section of the European Society for Catholic Theology (ESCT). Prof. Ruhstorfer is presently the Dean of the Faculty of Theology.
ŞAHİN, MUSTAFA, a distinguished archaeologist, began his academic journey in 1981 at Atatürk University, studying Classical Archaeology. He completed his undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral studies with theses focusing on bronze figurines, Hermogenes, and grave stelae. Şahin joined Selçuk University in 1990 and progressed to Professor by 2003. In 2002, he established Turkey’s first Department of Underwater Archaeology and later founded the Archaeology Department at Bursa Uludağ University. He also created two research centers and launched the Journal of Mosaic Research. Şahin has led excavations at sites like Myndos and Apollonia a.R., and he now oversees underwater excavations at the Basilica Church in Lake İznik. A recipient of prestigious scholarships, he conducted research globally and has published extensively. Şahin is an active member of international archaeological organizations and is the founder and president of the Archaeologists Association Bursa Branch.
SCERRI, HECTOR is a priest of the Archdiocese of Malta since 1993. He is a Professor in the Department of Fundamental and Dogmatic Theology, Faculty of Theology, University of Malta. Since 1998, he has lectured in christology, sacraments, theological anthropology and ecumenism. Since 2008, he is the President of the Diocesan Ecumenical Commission, Archdiocese of Malta. In 2014, Pope Francis appointed him Consultor to the Dicastery for the Promotion of Christian Unity. In 2024, the Holy See appointed him to the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. He is also the President of the Doctrinal Commission of the Maltese Episcopal Conference. He is the Founder-President of the Maltese Patristics Society. He has authored or edited sixteen books, the latest being Chiesa, Vieni fuori! "Un ospedale da campo" che si ricompone. Esdra, Neemia e Papa Francesco. Profezia antica e nuova (Edizioni Studium, Venezia 2024).
SCHEMBRI, KEVIN is a senior lecturer in canon law and pastoral praxis at the University of Malta and a visiting lecturer at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, within the Pontifical Oriental Institute. Schembri also serves on the Maltese Metropolitan Tribunal and the Safeguarding Review Board of the Maltese Episcopal Conference. His monograph on divorce and remarriage in the Orthodox tradition was awarded the Emerging Scholar Book Prize from the European Society for Catholic Theology.
ZAMMIT, MARK JOSEPH is a diocesan priest of the Archdiocese of Malta and the Head of the Department of Fundamental and Dogmatic Theology at the University of Malta. He holds a doctorate from the Universidad Pontificia Comillas in Spain, where his dissertation explored the ecclesiological and anthropological dimensions of Lucio Gera’s theology. Gera, a prominent Argentine theologian and a pioneer of the Theology of the People, profoundly influenced Pope Francis’s theological outlook. Zammit coordinates the Licentiate in Theology postgraduate degree (SThL) and lectures on diverse topics, including ecclesiology, theology of salvation, missiology, theology of culture, and pastoral theology. A member of the European Society for Catholic Theology, he is also entrusted with ministering to the Spanish-speaking Catholic community in Malta. Deeply interested in Vatican Council II and ecclesiology, Zammit’s work bridges theological scholarship with pastoral care, fostering dialogue and understanding within the Church and beyond.
