2012 Homily Contributors

Clarke E. Cochran, Ph.D.
Vice President, Mission Integration
Covenant Health System
Lubbock, Texas

Clarke E. Cochran, Ph.D., is vice president of mission integration at Covenant Health System in Lubbock, Texas, a position he has held since 2008. He was ordained a deacon for the Diocese of Lubbock in 1981 and directs the Diocese's Deacon Formation Program.

Clarke retired in 2007 as Professor of Political Science at Texas Tech University. He earned a bachelor of arts degree in political science from Brown University and his master of arts and doctorate degrees from Duke University. He is the author of numerous books and articles.

He and his wife, Anne, celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary in 2012. They have four children and eight grandchildren.

Fr. Gerald Coleman, SS, Ph.D.
Adjunct Professor
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, Calif.

Fr. Coleman is a member of the American Province, Society of St. Sulpice (Sulpicians). He completed his doctorate degree at the Institute of Christian Thought, University of St. Michael's College in Toronto, Canada. Fr. Coleman published Catholic Priesthood: Formation and Human Development, written primarily for bishops, seminarians and priests, which outlines basic questions regarding human formation and development. He is now working on a textbook on Catholic medical ethics. It includes such topics as abortion, stem cell research, HIV/AIDS and end-of-life issues. In addition, he has written numerous articles and been interviewed for two video productions. His recent course focused on ethics and moral theology.

Sr. Mary Aquin O'Neill, RSM, Ph.D.
Founder/Trustee Emerita/President of the Corporation
Mount Saint Agnes Theological Center for Women
Baltimore

Sr. Mary Aquin O'Neill is a Sister of Mercy, a specialist in the areas of theological anthropology and feminist theory, and the immediate past director of the Mount Saint Agnes Theological Center for Women. She co-founded Mount Saint Agnes after spending 20 years in higher education. Before teaching at the center, Sr. Mary Aquin taught at Convent of Mercy, Mobile, Mount Saint Agnes College, Vanderbilt University, Loyola College of Maryland, Salve Regina College and the University of Notre Dame in South Bend.

Invitations to lecture have taken her to several distant lands. She has also published in a number of anthologies and theological journals, including the prestigious Theological Studies. Articles of hers often appear in reading lists on college campuses. Sr. Mary Aquin currently serves as president of the Corporation and Trustee Emerita on the Board of Mount Saint Agnes Theological Center for Women. She earned her doctorate degree from Vanderbilt University.