Dr. Ish Ruiz is an assistant professor of Latinx and Queer Decolonial Theology at Pacific School of Religion and holds a PhD in Theology and Ethics from the Graduate Theological Union. He is also the coordinator of the Latinx Roundtable of the Center for LGBTQ+ and Gender Studies in Religion housed at PSR.
A native from Puerto Rico and a queer Catholic theologian, Ish’s research interests explore the intersection between Catholic moral theology, queer theology, Latinx theology, ecclesiology, sexual ethics, liberation, human rights, and Catholic education. He is the author of LGBTQ+ Educators in Catholic Schools: Embracing Synodality, Inclusivity, and Justice (Rowman & Littlefield, fall 2024) and a co-editor of Cornerstones: Sacred Stories of LGBTQ+ Employees in Catholic Institutions (New Ways Ministry, fall 2024). He has published several academic and public theology articles in the field of Catholic theological ethics and has ministered in Catholic schools and parishes on matters of LGBTQ+ and Latinx inclusion throughout the nation.
Prior to his appointment at the Pacific School of Religion, Ish was a post-doctoral fellow at Candler School of Theology at Emory University and an adjunct professor at the University of Dayton. He also worked at the secondary school level for 11 years, chaired the Marianist LGBTQ+ Initiative team, served as a union activist to protect the rights of LGBTQ+ Church employees, and presented in various pastoral conferences throughout the US. Through his teaching, research, and service, Ish hopes to see a world where Catholicism (and, more broadly, Christianity) embrace the diversity of gifts people of all ethno-racial backgrounds and sexual identities bring to society and the Church.
