Joseph Fessio
Encyclopedia
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
of the Jesuit order and the founder
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
and editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
of Ignatius Press
Ignatius Press
Ignatius Press, named for Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuit Order, is a Catholic publishing house based in San Francisco, California, USA. It was founded in 1978 by Father Joseph Fessio SJ, a Jesuit priest and former pupil of Pope Benedict XVI...
. He was the founding provost
Provost (education)
A provost is the senior academic administrator at many institutions of higher education in the United States, Canada and Australia, the equivalent of a pro-vice-chancellor at some institutions in the United Kingdom and Ireland....
of Ave Maria University
Ave Maria University
Ave Maria University or AMU is a private Catholic university in southwest Florida, United States, founded in 2003. The university moved to its permanent campus, situated in the planned town of Ave Maria, east of Naples, Florida, in August 2007...
until March 2007.
Education
Joseph Fessio attended high school at Bellarmine College PreparatoryBellarmine College Preparatory
Bellarmine College Preparatory is an all-male, private secondary school located in San Jose, California, USA. Founded in 1851, it is the oldest secondary school in California....
in San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, from 1954 to 1958. Before entering the Jesuit novitiate in 1961, he completed undergraduate studies in Civil Engineering at the University of Santa Clara, California. He entered the novitiate on September 7, 1961. Before his ordination as a Roman Catholic priest, he earned a B.A (in 1966) and an M.A. (in 1967) in Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
from Gonzaga University
Gonzaga University
Gonzaga University is a private Roman Catholic university located in Spokane, Washington, United States. Founded in 1887 by the Society of Jesus, it is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities and is named after the young Jesuit saint, Aloysius Gonzaga...
in Spokane, Washington
Spokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
. He was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest on June 10, 1972. By that time, he had also earned an M.A in Theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
from his studies in Lyons, France.
In 1975, he earned his doctorate in Theology from the University of Regensburg
University of Regensburg
The University of Regensburg is a public research university located in the medieval city of Regensburg, Bavaria, a city that is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university was founded on July 18, 1962 by the Landtag of Bavaria as the fourth full-fledged university in Bavaria...
, West Germany. His thesis director was Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
Benedict XVI. The subject of his thesis was "The Ecclesiology of Hans Urs von Balthasar
Hans Urs von Balthasar
Hans Urs von Balthasar was a Swiss theologian and priest who was nominated to be a cardinal of the Catholic Church...
".
Teaching and administrative experience
- 1966 - 1967 Taught Philosophy at Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington
- 1967 - 1969 Taught Philosophy at University of Santa Clara, California. Co-founder Director of Project 50.
- 1974 - Taught Systematic and Spiritual Theology, University of San Francisco, San Francisco, California
- 1976 - Founded the St. Ignatius InstituteSt. Ignatius InstituteThe Saint Ignatius Institute is an undergraduate program at the University of San Francisco , a private university operated by the California Province of the Society of Jesus in San Francisco, California....
, University of San Francisco, San Francisco, California - 1978 - Founder and Editor, Ignatius Press
- 1979 - Director, Religious Books on Tape, Audio Division of Ignatius Press
- 1987 - Fired from his position as Director, St. Ignatius Institute, the University of San Francisco, by Father President, John LoSchiavo, S.J., in a dispute over management of a $1,000,000 donation.
- 1987 - Peritus at Seventh Ordinary General Assembly of Bishops, at the Vatican, and delivers paper arguing that girls and women be excluded from the offices of Altar Server and Lector at Mass in the Catholic Church
- 1988 - 1991 Editor, 30 Days, In the Church and the World
- 1991 - Publisher, The Catholic World Report
- 1995 - Publisher, Catholic Dossier, Catholic Faith, Homiletic & Pastoral Review
- 1995 - Co-Founder, Adoremus: Society for the Renewal of the Sacred Liturgy
- 1998 - Founded the Catholic Radio Network
- 2002 - Founded Campion College of San Francisco and 'exiled' from San Francisco by Jesuit Order, although retains leadership of Ignatius Press
- 2002 - Chancellor, later provost, Ave Maria University
- 2007 - Fired from his position as provost of Ave Maria University. The reason given publicly was "irreconcilable differences over administrative policies and practices". He was reinstated as a theologian in residence the next day and remained an ardent supporter of the university.
- 2009 - Fired from his faculty position at Ave Maria University after expressing concern regarding the university's financial situation, which was taken as criticism of the administration's policies.