Theology Department Faculty
David G. Hunter
Margaret O'Brien Flatley Chair of Catholic Theology
David G. Hunter
Contact
Stokes Hall 319N
Telephone: 617-552-0436
Email: hunterde@bc.edu
Education
- Ph.D. University of Notre Dame
- M.A. University of St. Michael’s College, Toronto
- M.A. The Catholic University of America
- B.A. The Catholic University of America
Research Interests
Hunter's research interests lie in the field of Patristic studies, with special emphasis on the writings of Augustine, Ambrosiaster, Jerome, Ambrose and other Latin writers. He has written extensively on issues pertaining to marriage, celibacy, and asceticism in ancient Christianity. Current work includes a monograph on the origins of priestly celibacy and translations of the Pauline commentaries of the Ambrosiaster.
Office Hours
Tuesday and Thursday, 8:30--9:00, 10:30--11:30
Selected Publications
Marriage, Celibacy, and Heresy in Ancient Christianity: The Jovinianist Controversy. Oxford Early Christian Studies. Oxford University Press, 2007.
Marriage and Sexuality in Early Christianity. Ad Fontes: Early Christian Sources. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2018.
The Oxford Handbook of Early Christian Studies. Co-edited with Susan Ashbrook Harvey. Oxford University Press, 2008.
Suffering and Evil in Early Christian Thought. Co-edited with Nonna Verna Harrison. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2016
Brill Encyclopedia of Early Christianity: Authors, Texts, and Ideas. Co-edited with Paul van Geest and Bert Jan Lietaert Peerbolte. Leiden: Brill (multi-volume reference work; online publication began in 2018).
Articles
“Augustine of Hippo,” chapter 4 in Christianity and Family Law: An Introduction. Edited by John Witte, Jr. and Gary S. Hauk. New York: Cambridge University Press. 2017. Pp. 69-84.
“Family Matters: Augustine’s Letters as a Source for his Views on Marriage and Family Life,” Scrinium Augustini. The World of Augustine’s Letters. Edited by Przemysław Nehring, Rafał Toczko, and Mateusz Stróżyński. Turnhout: Brepols, 2017. Pp. 41-56.
“Rivalry between Presbyters and Deacons in the Roman Church: Three Notes on Ambrosiaster, Jerome, and The Boasting of the Roman Deacons,” Vigiliae Christianae 71 (2017): 495-510.
“Augustine’s Doubts on Divorce: Reconsiderations on Remarriage,” Augustinian Studies 48 (2017): 161-182.
“Wedding Rituals and Episcopal Power: ‘Consecrating’ Marriage,” in The Oxford Handbook of Early Christian Ritual. Edited by Risto Uro, Juliette Day, Richard E. DeMaris, and Rikard Roitto. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018. Pp. 627-643.
“Did the Early Church Absolutely Forbid Remarriage after Divorce?” Vergentis: Revista de Investigación de la Cátedra Internacional conjunta Inocentio III 6 (2018): 45-64.
“Ambrosiaster,” chapter 11 in Law and Christianity in the West: The First Millennium. Edited by Philip Lyndon Reynolds. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2019. Pp. 252-265.
“Ambrosiaster and Damasus: A Presbyter’s Perspective on Clerical Misconduct,” Sacris erudiri: Journal of Late Antique and Medieval Christianity 58 (2019): 255-265.
“Single Marriage and Priestly Identity: A Symbol and its Functions in Ancient Christianity,” in The Symbolism of Marriage in the Middle Ages. Edited by Line Cecilie Engh. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2019. Pp. 111-130.
“Between Discipline and Doctrine: Augustine’s Response to Clerical Misconduct,” Augustinian Studies 51 (2020): 3-22.
Recent Articles
“The Specter of Jovinian in the Pelagian Controversy: The Uses of a ‘Heretic’,” in Nos sumus tempora: Studies on Augustine and his Reception Offered to Mathijs Lamberigts. Edited by Anthony Dupont, Wim François, and Johan Leemans. Leuven: Peeters, 2020, 143-158.
“Books 21 & 22: The End of the Body, Heaven and Hell in the City of God,” in The Cambridge Companion to Augustine’s City of God. Edited by David Vincent Meconi, S.J. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2021, 276-296.
“From Rigor to Reconciliation: Cyprian of Carthage on Changing Penitential Practice,” in Changing the Church: Transformations of Christian Belief, Practice, and Life. Edited by Mark D. Chapman and Vladimir Latinovic. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021, 13-20.
“Historical Theology and the Problem of Divorce and Remarriage Today,” Journal of Moral Theology 10 (2021): 34-59.
“‘Neither Poverty nor Riches’: Ambrosiaster and the Problem of Clerical Compensation,” Zeitschrift für Antikes Christentum 25 (2021): 93-107.
“Priestly Celibacy: An Apostolic Tradition? The Theological Stakes of a Historical Argument,” in Married Priests in the Catholic Church. Edited by Adam A.J. DeVille. Notre Dame, IN: Notre Dame University Press, 2021, 3-20.
“Marriage and Martyrdom in Roman North Africa: Augustine and Crispina of Tebessa,” in Death and Rebirth in Late Antiquity. Edited by Lee M. Jefferson. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books/Fortress Academic, 2022, 139-157.
“Early Christian Marriage Liturgy and the Reception of the Bible,” in Liturgical Reception of the Bible: Dimensions and Perspectives for Interdisciplinary Research. Edited by Harald Buchinger and Clemens Leonhard. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2022.