List of famous theologians, with photos, bios, and other information when available. Who are the top theologians in the world? This includes the most prominent theologians, living and dead, both in America and abroad. This list of notable theologians is ordered by their level of prominence, and can be sorted for various bits of information, such as where these historic theologians were born and what their nationality is. The people on this list are from different countries, but what they all have in common is that they're all renowned theologians.
The list you're viewing is made up of many different people, including Martin Luther and Ian Bradley. Featuring German theologians, Christian theologians, Dutch theologians, modern theologians, great theologians, and more,
From reputable, prominent, and well known theologians to the lesser known theologians of today, these are some of the best professionals in the theologian field. If you want to answer the questions, "Who are the most famous theologians ever?" and "What are the names of famous theologians?" then you're in the right place.
Pope Benedict XVI Pope emeritus Benedict XVI served as pope of the Catholic Church from 2005 until his resignation in 2013. Benedict was elected on 19 April 2005 in a papal conclave following Pope John Paul II ...more
Albert Schweitzer Albert Schweitzer, OM was a German—and later French—theologian, organist, philosopher, physician, and medical missionary in Africa, also known for his historical work on Jesus. He was born in ...more
Martin Luther Martin Luther was a German friar, priest and professor of theology who was a seminal figure in the Protestant Reformation. Initially an Augustinian friar, Luther came to reject several teachings ...more
John Calvin John Calvin was an influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called ...more
John Wesley John Wesley was an Anglican divine and theologian who, with his brother Charles Wesley and fellow cleric George Whitefield, is credited with the foundation of the evangelical movement known as ...more
Desiderius Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus, known as Erasmus of Rotterdam, or simply Erasmus, was a Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest, social critic, teacher, and theologian. Erasmus was a ...more
Søren Kierkegaard Søren Aabye Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher, theologian, poet, social critic and religious author who is widely considered to be the first existentialist philosopher. He wrote ...more
Avery Cardinal Dulles Avery Robert Dulles, S.J. was a Jesuit priest, theologian, cardinal of the Catholic Church and served as the Laurence J. McGinley Professor of Religion and Society at Fordham University from ...more
Dietrich Bonhoeffer Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian, anti-Nazi dissident, and key founding member of the Confessing Church. His writings on Christianity's role in the secular world have ...more
Reinhold Niebuhr Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr was an American theologian, ethicist, public intellectual, commentator on politics and public affairs, and professor at Union Theological Seminary for more than 30 ...more
Ian Bradley Ian Campbell Bradley is a British academic, author, theologian, Church of Scotland minister, journalist and broadcaster. At the University of St Andrews, he is Reader in Practical Theology and ...more
Mary Daly Mary Daly was an American radical feminist philosopher, academic, and theologian. Daly, who described herself as a "radical lesbian feminist", taught at Jesuit-run Boston College for ...more
Nasir al-Din Tusi Khawaja Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Hasan Tūsī, better known as Nasīr al-Dīn Tūsī, was a Persian polymath and prolific writer: An architect, astronomer, biologist, chemist, mathematician, ...more
Pierre Abélard Peter Abelard was a medieval French scholastic philosopher, theologian and preeminent logician. He was also a composer. His affair with and love for Héloïse d'Argenteuil has become ...more
Mercy Oduyoye Mercy Amba Oduyoye is a Methodist theologian known for her work in African women's theology. She is currently the director of the Institute of African Women in Religion and Culture at Trinity ...more
Elizabeth A. Johnson Elizabeth A. Johnson is a Christian feminist theologian. She is a Distinguished Professor of Theology at Fordham University, a Jesuit institution in New York City. She is a member of the Sisters ...more
Johan Heyns Johan Adam Heyns, was an influential Afrikaner Calvinist theologian and moderator of the general synod of the Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk in South Africa. He was assassinated at his home in ...more
Karl Barth Karl Barth was a Swiss Reformed theologian who is often regarded as the greatest Protestant theologian of the twentieth century. His influence expanded well beyond the academic realm to ...more
Karl Jaspers Karl Theodor Jaspers was a German psychiatrist and philosopher who had a strong influence on modern theology, psychiatry and philosophy. After being trained in and practicing psychiatry, Jaspers ...more
Alister McGrath Alister Edgar McGrath is a Northern Irish theologian, priest, intellectual historian, scientist, and Christian apologist. He currently holds the Andreas Idreos Professorship in Science and ...more
Paul Tillich Paul Johannes Tillich was a German American Christian existentialist philosopher and theologian who is widely regarded as one of the most influential theologians of the twentieth century. Among ...more
Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards was a Protestant preacher, philosopher, and theologian. Edwards "is widely acknowledged to be America's most important and original philosophical theologian," and one ...more
Mohammad Khatami Seyyed Mohammad Khatami is an Iranian scholar, Shia theologian, and Reformist politician. He served as the fifth President of Iran from 2 August 1997 to 3 August 2005. He also served as Iran's ...more
Michael Servetus Michael Servetus, also known as Miguel Servet, Miguel Serveto, Revés, or Michel de Villeneuve, was a Spanish theologian, physician, cartographer, and Renaissance humanist. He was the ...more
Leonardo Boff Leonardo Boff is a Brazilian theologian and writer, known for his active support for the rights of the poor and excluded. He currently serves as Professor Emeritus of Ethics, Philosophy of ...more
Rowan Williams Rowan Douglas Williams, Baron Williams of Oystermouth PC FBA FRSL FLSW is an Anglican bishop, theologian and poet. Williams was the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, Metropolitan of the Province ...more
Tariq Ramadan Tariq Ramadan is a Swiss academic, intellectual, philosopher and writer. He is the professor of Contemporary Islamic Studies in the Faculty of Oriental Studies at Oxford University and also ...more
Roger Williams Roger Williams was an English Protestant theologian who was an early proponent of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. In 1636, he began the colony of Providence Plantation, ...more
Karl Rahner Karl Rahner, S.J., was a German Jesuit priest and theologian who, alongside Henri de Lubac, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Yves Congar, is considered one of the most influential Catholic ...more
John Henry Newman John Henry Newman CO, also referred to as Cardinal Newman and Blessed John Henry Newman, was an important figure in the religious history of England in the 19th century. He was known nationally ...more
Walter Brueggemann Walter Brueggemann is an American Protestant Old Testament scholar and theologian. Brueggemann is widely considered one of the most influential Old Testament scholars of the last several
Hans Urs von Balthasar Hans Urs von Balthasar was a Swiss theologian and Catholic priest who was to be created a cardinal of the Catholic Church but died before the ceremony. He is considered one of the most important ...more
Francis Schaeffer Francis August Schaeffer was an American Evangelical Christian theologian, philosopher, and Presbyterian pastor. He is most famous for his writings and his establishment of the L'Abri community ...more
David Ray Griffin David Ray Griffin is a retired American professor of philosophy of religion and theology, and a political writer. Along with John B. Cobb, Jr., he founded the Center for Process Studies in 1973, ...more
David Jasper David Jasper is a theologian, currently Professor of Literature and Theology and Associate Dean for Postgraduates at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. He was a founder of the Conference on ...more
Donald Spoto Donald Spoto is an American biographer and theologian. He is best known for his best-selling biographies of film and theatre celebrities such as Alfred Hitchcock, Laurence Olivier, Tennessee ...more
Yusuf al-Qaradawi Yusuf al-Qaradawi is an Egyptian Islamic theologian, and chairman of the International Union of Muslim Scholars. He is best known for his programme, al-Sharīʿa wa al-Ḥayāh, broadcast on Al ...more
John Piper John Stephen Piper is a Calvinist Baptist preacher and author who served as Pastor for Preaching and Vision of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota for 33 years. His books include ...more
Rudolf Pesch Rudolf Pesch (1936-2011) was a German theologian and historian. Born in Bonn [Germany] in 1936, Pesch studied at the University of his native town. Since 1970, he was first Professor of Biblical ...more
Ibn Tufail Ibn Tufail was an Andalusian Muslim polymath: a writer, novelist, Islamic philosopher, Islamic theologian, physician, astronomer, vizier, and court official. As a philosopher and novelist, he is ...more
Peter J. Gomes Peter John Gomes was an American preacher and theologian, the Plummer Professor of Christian Morals at Harvard Divinity School and Pusey Minister at Harvard's Memorial Church — in the words of ...more
Edward Schillebeeckx Edward Cornelis Florentius Alfonsus Schillebeeckx was a Belgian Roman Catholic theologian born in Antwerp. He taught at the Catholic University in Nijmegen. He was a member of the Dominican ...more
John A.T. Robinson John Arthur Thomas Robinson was an English New Testament scholar, author and the Anglican Bishop of Woolwich. He was a lecturer at Trinity College, Cambridge, and later Dean of Trinity College ...more
Jon Sobrino Jon Sobrino, S.J. is a Jesuit Catholic priest and theologian, known mostly for his contributions to liberation theology. He received worldwide attention in 2007 when the Vatican's Congregation ...more
Matthew Fox Matthew Fox is an American Episcopal priest and theologian. Formerly a member of the Dominican Order within the Roman Catholic Church, he became a member of the Episcopal Church following his ...more
John J. McNeill John J. McNeill was ordained as a Jesuit priest in 1959 and now is a psychotherapist and an academic theologian, with a particular reputation within the field of Queer Theology.
Vine Deloria, Jr. Vine Victor Deloria, Jr. was an American Indian author, theologian, historian, and activist. He was widely known for his book Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto, which helped ...more
Arthur A. Cohen Arthur Allen Cohen was an American Jewish scholar, art critic, theologian, publisher, and author. Scholar David M. Stern has written of Cohen: "Though he was best known as a novelist and ...more
George Weigel George Weigel is an American author and political and social activist. He currently serves as a Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center. Weigel was the Founding ...more
