1. PERSONAL DATA
Name : Leonardo Boff (literary and religious name)
Genezio Darci Boff (civil name)
Birth : 14th December, 1938
Place : Concórdia, SC.
Parents : Mansueto Boff and Regina Fontana Boff

 

2. CERTIFICATES & DIPLOMAS
1944/1949 Primary School in Planalto, municipality of Concordia, SC.
1950/1951 Complementary Primary School in Luzerna, municipality of Joaçaba, SC.
1951 Year of the Secondary School at São Luis de Tolosa Seminary, Rio Negro, PR.
1953/1958 Complete the Secondary and College at Santo Antônio Seminary, in Agudos, SP.
1959 Specialised Studies of Franciscan Spirituality in the apprenticeship of the Saint Francis of Assisi Convent.
1960/1961 Faculty of Philosophy (Major Seminary) of the Conception Immaculate Province, Curitiba, PR.
1962/1965 Franciscan Faculty of Theology in Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro.
1965/1970 Doctorate studies in Philosophy and Theology at the Ludwig-Maximilian University of Munich, Germany.
1968/1969 Postgraduated studies at the Universities of Würzburg (Germany) and Oxford (England), especialization in Linguistics and Anthropology.
1970 Presentation and defence of his doctoral thesis of theology, written in German under the title: "The Church as sacrament in the horizon of the world’s experience. Essay of a structural-functional fundamentalization of the eclesiology"; after written and oral examinations he obtained "summa cum laude" .
1970 Doctor of Philosophy of Religion at the Philosophy and Human Sciences Institute of Rio de Janeiro Federal University.

 

3. ACADEMIC PRODUCTION
Author and co-author of books and articles published in Brazil and foreign countries of South, Central and North Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa with translations in various languages (German, Austrian, Catalan, Chinese, Korean, Croatian, Spanish, French, Hungarian, English, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Serbian). Check bibliography annexed.

 

4. EXERCISE of TEACHING
1970-1991 Titular professor of Basic, Systematical and Ecumenical Theology at the Franciscan Philosophical & Theological Institute of Petrópolis, RJ.
1970/1980 Professor of Spiritual Theology and Franciscanism in the Franciscan Centers for Pastoral Studies for Latin America (CEFEPAL), Petrópolis, RJ.
1975-1990 Professor of Theology in the Centre for Theological and Spiritual Studies of the National Conference of Religious (CETESP), Rio de Janeiro.
1976 Visiting professor at the Catholic University of Lisbon: courses to postgraduates on Liberation Theology and the meaning of the Christ’s death.
1977-1978 Visiting professor in the Mexican American Cultural Center (MACC), San Antonio, Texas.
1980 Visiting professor at the University of Salamanca, Spain, "Chair Domingo de Soto", with courses about the spiritual way of Saint Bonaventure, Teilhard de Chardin and the cosmic mystique.
1987-1988 Visiting professor at the University of Basel, with a course on "Christology from Latin America" and a seminar on "Social incidences about the doctrine on the Holy Trinity".
1981-1993 Professor and co-founder of the Ecumenical Centre of Services for Evangelization and Popular Education (CESEP), São Paulo, and at the Theology summer course for agents of all Brazil, in partnership with the Pontifical Catholic University (PUC) of São Paulo.
1991 Invited professor to the course on Ecclesiology in the Faculty of Theology at the University of Lund, Sweden.
1991 Invited professor to the course on Base Ecclesial Communities (CEBs) and Liberation Theology in the Faculty of Theology at the University of Oslo, Norway.
1993 Visiting professor in the extension and specialization course on "Theory and Praxis of the Environment" in the Superior Institute for the Study of Religion (ISER), Rio de Janeiro.
1993 Visiting professor in the Philosophy and Human Sciences Institute at Rio de Janeiro State University, with a course on Society, Culture and Ethics.
1993 Full professor of Ethics in the Philosophy and Human Sciences Institute at Rio de Janeiro State University.
1996 Invited professor at Harvard.
1997 Intensive course for professors on “Ecology like new paradigm of knowledge”, in the Càtedra Ferrater Mora at the University of Girona.
1997 Visiting Professor in Barcelona.
1997-98 Visiting Professor at the University of Basel, Switzerland.
2000 Visiting professor at Juiz de Fora Federal University, MG. Course on Ecology, Globalisation and Spirituality.
2001 Visiting professor at the University of Heidelberg, Germany. Course on "Ecclesiology of Base Ecclesial Communities and Liberation Theology from Latin America" and a seminar on "Spirituality and new paradigm in the context of globalisation".

 

5. ASSESSORSHIPS
1970-1982 Theological Assessor of the Latin American Confederation of Religious (CLAR), Bogotá, Colombia.
1970-1983 Theological Assessor of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB).
1970-1990 Theological Assessor of the Conference of the Religious of Brazil (CRB).
1971-1993 Assessor of the Base Ecclesial Communities (CEBs), at national level.
1980-1993 Assessor and co-founder of the National Movement for the Human Rights, Brasilia, DF.

 

6. as redactor
1971-1986 Of “Revista Ecclesiástica Brasileira”, Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro.
1971-1993 Of the Brazilian edition of the International Journal for Theology "Concilium", published in several languages, Petrópolis, RJ, and of the writers staff of "Concilium" Central Committee, Nijmegen, Holland.
1978-1980 Of the Latin-American-Brazilian magazine "Puebla", published in Petrópolis and Bogotá.
1989-1992 Of the "Revista de Cultura Vozes", Petrópolis, RJ.
1992-1993 Of the "Cadernos de Fé e Política", Petrópolis, RJ.

 

7. as editorial board member
1970-1986 Editor-in-Chief of Religious Editorial of Vozes Publishing House, Petrópolis, RJ.
1970-1986 Publications coordinator of "Centro de Investigação e Divulgação" (CID), a centre for research and divulgation, close to Vozes, Petrópolis, with publications in philosophy, theology, psychology, and other areas.
1971-1995 Of the Central Committee of the International Journal for Theology "Concilium", Nijmegen, Holland.
1978-1993 Of the assessors body of the magazine "Religion and Society", Rio de Janeiro, RJ.
1980-1993 Of the publishing council of the collection "Theology and Liberation", with forecast of fifty-five volumes in seven languages, with several already published by Vozes, Petrópolis, RJ.
1988-1993 Of the editorial board of "Time and Presence", Rio de Janeiro, RJ.
1989-1992 Of the editorial board of "Revista de Cultura Vozes", Petrópolis, RJ.
1988-1993 Of the editorial board of "América, la patria grande", México, D.F..
1993 Of the editorial board of "América Libre", Buenos Aires, Argentina.
1998 Of The Earth Charter Central Committee.

 

8. CO-FUNDATION & COORDINATION
1971-1980 Coordinator of the Brazilian Theology Weeks, Petrópolis, RJ, with acts published in the "Revista Eclesiástica Brasileira" of the respective year.
1979 Co-founder and Honorary President of the Centre for the Defence of Human Rights (CDDH) Petrópolis, RJ.
1981 Co-founder of National Movement for the Human Rights, with headquarters in Brasilia, D.F.
1988 Co-founder of Theology and Organic Assessorship (TAO), with headquarters in Petrópolis, RJ.
1989 Co-founder of the movement "Faith and Politics".
1990 Co-founder of Education and Popular Animation Service (SEOP), Petrópolis, RJ.
1992 Co-founder of the Bonn-Potsdam-Petrópolis Partnership with headquarters in Bonn (Germany) and Petrópolis.

 

9. CONGRESSES, SEMINARS, COURSES, LECTURES & MEETINGS

- Activity as lecturer in universities, congresses, groups of research and base movements in Latin America, US, Canada, several countries of Europe and Asia, particularly in China.

- Lecturer at the Academies of Sciences of Vilnius-Lithuania, Moscow, Beijing and Xian.

- Frequent participation in discussions, round tables and interviews on different channels of TV and radio in Brazil and abroad. Especially in Spain, Italy, Switzerland and Germany about religion and society subjects, North-South relations, the destiny of the world’s poor, the future of socialism and other questions about social justice, ecology and spirituality.

- 04-04-1992 Participation in the opera “Tierra”. Christoph Kolumbus und der Kampf um Macht, Gold und Seelen by Gershon Kingsley and Rainer Wallraf with the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra.

- 1992 Musikalische Begenung Leonardo Boff-Johann Sebastian Bach 500 Jahre America-eine Bussfeier für Europe, the Switzerland, German and Austrian televisions program, with choir and orchestra, broadcasted the 29 August 1992 on the meaning of the V† Centenary of Latin America.

- 1992 Ideator and co-organizer of the penitential european pilgrimage to Assisi, leaving Genoa, native land of Cristopher Columbus, on the new evangelization in the V† Centenary of Latin America context, with the participation of thousands of people coming from all over Europe.

- 26-06-1993 Public discussion in presence of 3000 people, in Dortmund, Westfallenhalle. Text published in "O São Paulo" 15/8/1993.

 

10. ACADEMIC honours & PRIZES
1974 Jésus Christ Libérateur, Paris, Du Cerf, prize-winner for religious book of the year in France.
1984 The Lord's Prayer, Quezon City, prize-winner for religious book of the year in Phillipines.
1985 Herbert Haag Preis Freiheit in der Kirche, prize for the freedom in the Church, Luzern, Switzerland.
1987 Passion of Christ, Passion of the World, New York, Orbis Books, prize-winner for religious book of the year in the US.
1987 International Prize Alfonso Comin, granted from the Alfonso Comin Foundation and the city hall of Barcelona, for his communitarian work in favour of the rights of impoverished and marginalised people.
1988 Prize of the religious book publishers in German language for the set of his work translated into German, in Frankfurt.
1991 Honorary Doctor of Politics at the Università degli Studi di Torino, the 26th November.
1992 National Prize of Human Rights in Brasilia, DF, granted from the National Movement of Human Rights, the 31st January.
1992 Honorary Doctorate of Theology at the University of Lund, Sweden, the 25th May.
1992 Prize Thomas Morus Medaille, der Thomas Morus Gesellschaft, for the firmness of conscience (Standfestigkeit des Gewissens).
1984 He was submitted to a doctrinal process by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (former Holy Office) in Rome, the 7th September, being judged by the cardinal Joseph Ratzinger concerning his book "Church: charism and power”.
1985 He was punished with "obsequious silence" (indeterminate time of silence reduced later to 11 months); removed from the theology chair in the Franciscan Theological Institute of Petrópolis; deposed of all his functions as editor and writer in the "Revista Eclesiástica Brasileira" and in the Vozes Publishing House; previous and double censorship of all his writings by the franciscan superior religious, by the local bishop and eventually by the CNBB.
1993 "Self-promotion to the lay state": due to the complete method of clipping the liberty of speech by the vatican doctrinal authorities, he resigned to the presbiteral ministry and he moved away from the Franciscan Order the 26th June.
1994 Prize Sergio Buarque de Hollanda conferred by the National Library - Ministry of Culture to the book Ecologia: grito da terra, gritos dos pobres, São Paulo, Ática Publishing House, as social essay of the year.
2001 RIGHT LIVELIHOOD AWARD. The Jury honours Boff for his inspiring insights into the links between human spirituality, social justice and environmental stewardship, and for his decades-long commitment to helping the poor and excluded realise these values in their lives and communities.