Dominican Sister Named VP of Catholic Biblical Association of America

At the 85th International Conference of the Catholic Biblical Association of America, Carol J. Dempsey, OP, Ph.D., Professor of Theology (Biblical Studies) at the University of Portland, OR, and a member of the Dominican Sisters of Caldwell, NJ, was elected Vice President for 2023-2024 and President Elect (to assume that next stage of leadership in 2024-2025). Begun in 1936, the CBA currently consists of 1,116 members who participate annually in regional, national, and international conferences and gatherings. Besides being elected to this leadership position, Carol also serves on the editorial boards for two of the Society’s major publications: Old Testament Abstracts and The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, one of the two premier journals in Biblical Studies, among other editorial boards. In the CBA’s long history, only 10 women to date have served in the capacity of vice president, president elect.  

Throughout her professional career as an international biblical scholar, Carol has published and edited 18 volumes as well as many essays in collected volumes and presented more than 100 papers and keynote addresses to learned societies, the general public, and interreligious gatherings. Her latest essays include: “Exposing Roman Catholic Hegemonic Masculinity: A Feminist Analysis of Select Commentaries on Isaiah,” for Doing Biblical Masculinity Studies as Feminist Biblical Studies? Critical Interrogation. Ed. Susanne Scholz. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Academic (2023); “Interrogating the Book of Isaiah without Wearing Rose-Colored Glasses,” for The Bible Today, Dec. 2022, pp. 344-351; “Oppression, Resistance, and Reform: Revisiting the Catholic Discussion on Women’s Ordination” for Religion, Women of Color, and the Suffrage Movement: The Journey to Holistic Freedom. Ed. Simon Aihiokhai; Feminist Studies and Sacred Texts Series; Ed. Susanne Scholz. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2022, pp. 53-81, “The Bible and Justice,” The New Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Eds. John J. Collins, Gina Hens-Piazza, Barbara Reid, OP, and Donald Senior, CP. New York: Bloomsbury, T & T Clark, 2022, pp. 2009-2044; and “Catholic Androcentric Bible Translations as Global Missionary Tools?” for The Oxford Handbook of Feminist Approaches to the Hebrew Bible; ed. Susanne Scholz; NY: Oxford University Press, 2021, pp. 35-52. 

She is currently working on three manuscripts: Beyond Christian Anthropocentrism: What It Means to Be catholic in the New Diaspora; (Lexington Books); Responding to Climate Crisis: Hope at the Margins; Eds. Carol J. Dempsey, OP and Norah Martin; (Lexington Books), and Isaiah for the Wisdom Commentary Series (Liturgical Press). Carol’s specific area of research is OId Testament prophets, feminist studies, cultural studies, contemporary hermeneutics, and environmental studies. 

Congratulations, Carol!