SR. THERESA MARIE CHAU NGUYEN, O.P., Ph.D.

Dominican Sisters of Mary Immaculate Province

Assistant Professor of Theology, University of St. Thomas ~ Houston
5250 Gasmer Drive ~ Houston, TX 77035
nguyench@stthom.edu ~ 713.525.6969

EDUCATION

Ph.D. in Systematic Theology

The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. January 2017
Dissertation: The Marian Mystery of the Church in the Theology of Henri de Lubac
Ph.M. in Systematic Theology October 2015
The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.
GPA 3.986/4.0
M.A. in Historical and Systematic Theology January 2010
The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.
GPA 4.0/4.0
B.A., Theology, major May 2005
Philosophy and English, double minor
University of St. Thomas, Houston, Texas
GPA 3.974/ 4.0 (summa cum laude)

TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Assistant Professor of Theology, University of St. Thomas 2017-present
Courses taught:
THEO 1301: Faith, Reason, Revelation
THEO 2301: Teachings of the Catholic Church
THEO 3331: The Catholic Church: Origin, Structure, and Mission
THEO 3336: Christian Spirituality
THEO 3339: Christ the Savior
THEO 3359: Theology and the Liberal Arts
THEO 3382: Triune God
THEO 4331: Revelation and Knowledge of God
THEO 5339: Christ the Savior
THEO 5382: God: One and Triune
YMD 6302: Christology

Instructor, Dominican Sisters of Mary Immaculate Province

Assistant Regent of Studies, St. Catherine Convent 2018-present

Provided theological instruction to Sisters in formation

Theology of the Triune God (guided independent study) 2017
Theological Virtues (Novitiate Sisters) 2017
Introduction to Moral Theology (Novitiate Sisters; intensive course 2010
Teaching Fellow, The Catholic University of America
Courses designed with the guidance of a faculty mentor; the classes were
independently taught and managed, with course evaluations by students
TRS 362: Theology of the Church 2015
TRS 201: Faith Seeking Understanding 2014
TRS 261: Enduring Questions in Catholic Theology 2013

Teaching Assistant, The Catholic University of America

Assisted the professor with the design and grading of assessments and term
papers; conducted weekly discussions and review sessions for examinations
TRS 333: Biomedical and Healthcare Ethics 2013
TRS 201: Faith Seeking Understanding 2012
TRS 261: Enduring Question in Catholic Theology 2012
TRS 280: The Religious Quest 2011

Catechist Formator & Retreat coordinator, Our Lady of Lavang 2012-2013

Catholic Church in Dundalk, Maryland. Planned and executed youth
retreats and provided instruction to the catechetical team

High School Religion Teacher, Mt. Carmel High School in 2005-2007

Houston, TX
Taught theology courses for Freshmen, Sophomore, and Junior classes;
served as faculty sponsor for the Theology club and faculty sponsor of
the Senior class of 2007

Director of Campus Ministry, Mount Carmel High School in 2005-2007

Houston, TX
Organized annual retreats for faculty and students; planned school-wide
liturgies and prayer services; oversaw various faith-based events such as
Catholic Schools Week activities

Instructor, Rite of Christian Initiation for Children, Saint Matthias 2008-2010

Catholic Church in Lanham, Maryland
Prepared children and young adults for the sacrament of baptism and full
communion in the Catholic Church

Faith formation Instructor and Retreat coordinator

Gave catechetical instruction and planned annual retreats for students in
the CCD program of the following Churches:
Our Lady of Lavang Catholic Church in Houston, Texas 2004-2005
Saint Anthony Catholic Church in Milwaukee, Wisconsin 2000-2003
Vietnamese Martyrs Catholic Church in Houston, Texas 1998-2000

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PUBLICATIONS
Book
1. The Splendor of the Church in Mary. Retrieving the Legacy of Henri de Lubac on
Mary and the Church at Vatican II. The Catholic University of America Press, September
2023. Link to catalogue

Book Chapter and Foreword

2. “Ignatius and Aquinas on Mary,” in Ignatius of Loyola and Thomas Aquinas. A Jesuit
Ressourcement. Edited by Matthew Levering, Justin Anderson, and Aaron Pidel. The Catholic
University of America Press; forthcoming in February 2024. Click here for description. Link
to catalogue

3. “Mariological Dimensions of an Ecclesiology of Communion: Reading Lumen

Gentium Anew” Published in The Ecclesiology of Communion Fifty Years after the Opening of Vatican
II (Dublin: Veritas Books, 2013), 748-758. Link to essay.

4. Foreword to Lectio Divina: A Ladder Toward God. An Introduction to a Patristic

Approach to the Sciptures by Rev. Dempsey Rosales-Acosta. RiL Academia Española,
July 2019. ISBN 9789560106940. Link to foreword.

Articles in Academic Journals

5. “Encountering Truth: A Study of the Theological Method of John Henry Newman’s
An Essay on the Development of Doctrine” Published in Newman Studies Journal 8, no. 1
(2011): 40-55. Link to Newman Studies Journal 8.1.

6. “Mary as the Sacrament of the Sacrament of Salvation: A Study of the Marian Doctrine
of Lumen Gentium and Henri de Lubac” Published in Marian Studies 64 (2013): 14-35.
Link to Marian Studies 64.

7. “Mary and the Nuptial Dimension of the Constitution of the Church in the
Eucharistic Sacrifice according to Hans Urs von Balthasar” in Marian Studies 68, issue 10
(2017): 179-202. Link to ms.

8. “The Gardens of Salvation: A Meditation on the Mystery of Redemption” Published in

Verbum: Casopis Pre Krestansku Kulturu 30:1 (2018), Catholic University of Slovakia. Translation
into Slovak by Rev. Pavol Hrabovecký, STD. Link to Verbum 30.1.

9. “Sacramental Ecclesiology in a Marian Key” Forthcoming in Marian Studies 69. Link to ms.

10. “Preservation of ‘Type’: Holiness and Ressourcement of Newman and de Lubac”

Newman Studies Journal 17:2 (2020): 22-40. Link to Newman Studies Journal

11. “Renewed Perspectives on Lumen Gentium’s Marian-Ecclesiological Synthesis”

Maria: A Journal of Marian Studies 1:1 (2021). Link to Maria Journal

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 12. “Mary, Pearl of the Cosmos in Teilhard’s Theory of Christogenesis” Maria: A Journal of
Marian Studies 2:2 (2022). Link to Maria Journal

13. “With Opened Eyes and Hearts Aflame” Teaching the Faith, an initiative of The Fellowship of
Catholic Scholars, April 2023. Link to article.

Current Projects and works under review

14. Article: “Mary and the Figural Exegesis of the Song of Songs.” Forthcoming in Marian
Studies.

Selected Publications for a General Audience

Theological reflections published by the USCCB in The Secretariat for Religious Liberty Blog,
God’s Servant First and The Religious Freedom’s Newsletter, as a resource for parishes nationwide:
 “Our Lady of Guadalupe” (December, 2019) Link to USCCB OLGuadalupe
 “Long Live Christ the King!” (November, 2019) Link to USCCB Viva Cristo Rey.
 “The Sacred Heart of Jesus – A Reign of Love” A Theological Reflection. (June,
2019) Link to USCCB Sacred Heart.
 “Lord of History, King of Love” A Theological Reflection. (November, 2018) Link
to USCCB Christ King; or en español.

Invited publications in The Texas Catholic Herald, Youth and Young Adults Column. These
articles appeared in both the printed newspaper and the Archdiocese’s webpage.
 “The Bible and Holiness” (October, 2020) Link to article in TCH
 “The Heartbeat of the Rosary” (October 2021) Link to article in TCH
 “Holy Souls of Purgatory” (November 2022) Link to article in TCH
 “Fidelity: The Path of Happiness” Link to article in TCH

CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
“Contemplating the Contemplative Posture of Mary, Sedes Sapientiae” Sedes Sept. 2023
Sapientiae Symposium, KU Leuven, Belgium

“Corpus Verum, Corpus Mysticum: The Ecclesial Dimension of the Real March 2023
Presence” Symposium on Transforming Culture, Benedictine College (Atchinson, KS)

“Trinitarian Mysticism as Essentially Theótokos” Sacra Doctrina Project, Thomas June 2022
Aquinas College, New England campus (Northfield, MA)

“Mary, Pearl of the Cosmos and Teilhard de Chardin’s Theory of Evolution” July 2021
The Center for Marian Studies, 25th Anniversary Conference, London, UK

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“Mary and the Figural Exegesis of the Song of Songs.” May 2021
The Mariological Society of America, 2021 Annual Meeting

“Thomas and Ignatius on Mary” Invited speaker to Matthew Levering's Center Nov. 2020
for Scriptural Exegesis, Philosophy, and Doctrine 2020 Conference on Ignatius, the
Thomist, at Mundelein Seminary (Mundelein, IL).

“Holiness in ‘Type’: The Ressourcement of John Henry Newman and Henri October 2019
de Lubac The National Institute for Newman Studies, Fall Symposium, Pittsburg, PA

“Mary and the Consecrated life: A Model for Holiness” – Respondent and May 2019
panel speaker. The Mariological Society of America, 2019 Annual Meeting

“Trinitarian Communion and the Bridging of Human Relations” October 2018

Invited lecture for Dallas Ministry Conference, 2018

“Full of Grace: A Marian Key to the Relationship of Nature and Grace” June 2018
Catholic Theological Society of America, Annual Convention, Indianapolis, IN

“De Lubac and Teilhard with Mary in the Nature-Grace Conflict” June 2018
Catholic Theological Society of America, Annual Convention, Indianapolis, IN

“The Marian Subjectivity of the Church and the Sacraments” May 2018
The Mariological Society of America, 2018 Annual Meeting

“Spiritual Exegesis and the Joy of the Gospel” October 2017

Invited lecture for Dallas Ministry Conference, 2017

“Mary and the Nuptial Dimension of the Constitution of the Church in the May 2017
Eucharistic Sacrifice according to Hans Urs von Balthasar”
The Mariological Society of America, 2017 Annual Meeting

“The Sacramental Ecclesiology of Vatican II” October 2016

Dallas Ministry Conference, Dallas, Texas

“Contemporary Ecclesiological Questions in Light of Lumen Gentium and

the Marian Mystery of the Church” May 2015
The 9th Ecclesiological Investigations International Conference, Georgetown University

“You are my Sister, my Bride, a Garden Enclosed” (Song 4:12): A Marian May 2015
Embodiment of the Song of Songs
The 61st annual convention of the College Theology Society, University of Portland

“Christ: The Keystone of St. Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologiae” May 2014
The 49th International Congress on Medieval studies, Kalamazoo, Michigan

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 “The Eternal Feminine according to Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J.: A June 2014
Principle of Cosmic Unity”
Catholic Theological Society of America, Annual Convention 2014, San Diego, California

“Mary as the Sacrament of the Sacrament of Salvation: A Study of the Marian May 2013
Doctrine of Lumen Gentium and Henri de Lubac”
Mariological Society of America, Annual Meeting 2013

“Mariological Dimensions of an Ecclesiology of Communion: Reading June 2012

Lumen Gentium Anew”
The 50th International Eucharistic Congress, Theology Symposium in Dublin, Ireland

“Encountering Truth: A Study of the Theological Method of John Henry August 2010
Newman’s An Essay on the Development of Doctrine”
The National Newman Conference in Pittsburg, PA

SELECT SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS

“Ave, Corpus Verum – Divine Proof of Love” October 2023

Invited Keynote for the Eucharistic Congress of the Diocese of Orange County,
CA (Garden Grove, CA)

“National Eucharistic Revival” October 2023

MaxStudios, UST

“Contemplating the Mysteries of Christ in the Rosary” October 2023

Coffee House Talk, UST Campus Ministry: Celts at Cana Series

“At the Prolife School of Mary and the Eucharist” September

Speaker, Kick off of academic year for CFL’s first plenary meeting 2023

“Mary and the Eucharist” August 2023

Invited Keynote for the Eucharistic Congress of VEYM (Riverside, CA)

“The Formal Cause of our Redemption: Aquinas’ Soteriology April 2023

Invited lecture for the Houston division of Cursillo

“Why believe in the Church” October 2022

Invited lecture for RCIA, Sacred Heart Co-Cathedral, Houston November 2023

“Freedom and Virtue” September

Invited speaker for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, Vocation Office: 2022
Samuel Meeting 2022

“Recourse to Mary: The Miraculous Medal” May 2022

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Invited speaker for Young Adults of Galveston

“St. Thomas Aquinas on Faith” February 2022

Invited lecture for the Houston division of Cursillo

“Telling the Great Story” October 2021

Invited Keynote speaker for Diocese of Orange, CA
Diocesan Ministries Celebration

Peter, Mary, and Mysteries of the Rosary October 2021

St. Mary Seminary, Houston. Two one-hour long conferences given for to 50
seminarians and participating faculty and staff for their Day of Recollection

“Vocation Panelist” June 2021

Diocese of Beaumont Youth Convention

“Missionary Discipleship” May 2021

Invited lecture for the Houston division of Cursillo
“Enkindling the Fire of Chaste Love”
Invited lecture for Ongoing Formation Study Day at St. Catherine Convent April 2021

“Pierre Teilhard de Chardin’s Theory of Christogenesis” March 2021

Invited lecture for UST’s Honor’s Colloquium

“The Ancient Order of Virgins” February 2021

Invited talk for Courageous Hearts, UST Women’s Household

“Called to the Dominican Life” January 2021

Invited talk for Radio Maria, “Think on These Things”
hosted by Dr. Dominic Aquila

“The Church” November

Invited lecture for RCIA, St. Michael’s Catholic Church, Houston 2019, 2020,
2021, 2022,
2023

“What is Missionary Discipleship?” November

Invited speaker for UST Households’ monthly mass and speaker series 2019

“Who are the Saints” October 2019

Invited reflection for the Vigil of All Saints at St. Catherine Convent

“Praying the Rosary: A School in Holiness” September

Invited speaker on Radio Maria’s hour-long program: The Gathering Place 2019

“The Feminine Genius” September

Invited lecture for Courageous Hearts, UST Women’s Household 2019

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 “Marian Dogmas”
Invited lecture for the Legion of Mary Retreat, Houston Curia January 2018

“Mysticism in Everyday Life” November

UST Honors Colloquium 2018

“Mary and the Sacraments”

Radio Maria, one-hour radio program hosted by the International Marian Research August 2018
Institute in Dayton, Ohio

“The Drama of Salvation and Human Transformation” March 2018

Invited lecture for the UST Lenten Lecture Series

“Tradition and Traditions: The Renewal of Religious Life” August 2017

Keynote speaker at The Marian Days Pilgrimage in Carthage, Missouri

“Breath of Mercy from the Cross” March 2016

Lenten lecture given at St. Matthias Catholic Church, Maryland

“Consecrated Celibacy and the Unicity of Love in the Song of Songs” August 2015
Invited talk given to the Dominican Scholasticate of Mary Immaculate
Province on the occasion of renewal of vows, Houston, Texas

“Theological Reflections on Catholic Manhood through the Lens of a Woman April 2015
Religious” Invited talk given to Esto Vir, an association of Catholic men of Catholic
University, committed to cultivating the virtues of prayer, brotherhood, chastity,
fortitude and self-sacrifice

“Fire”; “Come, Spirit, Come”; “An Advent of Mercy” 2012-2014

Invited speaker for two Confirmation retreats and Advent Assembly, at Our Lady
of Lavang Church in Dundalk, Maryland

UNIVERSITY SERVICE
Faculty Senator, Department of Theology 2022-present

Faculty Awards Committee 2019-2022; 2022-2025

Committee Chair, 2020-present

Faculty Development Awards Committee 2019-2022; 2022-2025

Admissions Committee, member 2021-2024

Pelplin-Gutenberg Inaugural Lecture, planning committee September 2023

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Served as liaison between Doherty Library and Dominican Sisters in
organizing this lecture event
Search Committee member 2023-2024
For the position of Assistant/Associate Professor of Scripture in the
Department of Theology

Search Committee member 2023-2024

For the position of Assistant Professor of Philosophy in the
Department of Philosophy

Search Committee member 2022-2023

For the position of Associate Director of the Center Semillero,
UST School of Arts and Sciences

Search Committee member 2022-2023

For the position of Director of the Donald Nesti Center for Faith and
Culture at UST

Synod on Synodality, Listening session participant May 2023

Invited participation in one of two four-hour listening sessions, comprised
of 100 theologians each to reflect on the North American Final Document
for the Continental Stage of the 2021-2024 Synod. The session took place
online and was sponsored by the USCCB.

Search Committee member, VPAA representative Spring 2019

For the position of Assistant Professor, in the Clinical Mental Health
Counseling Program, UST School of Education

Courageous Hearts, Household Advisor Fall 2019-2021

Celts for Life (student club), Faculty advisor Fall 2018-present

Pax Christi Theology Club, Faculty advisor Spring 2018-present

The Call Toward Tomorrow, Strategic Thinking Oversight

Committee (STOC), Committee member 2017-2018
Participated in the integrated planning process which achieved a vibrant
new roadmap moving the University forward

Ethos and Culture Workgroup (STOC), Committee member

Participated in the discussions and work of this subcommittee of the CTT
which defined key goals for the renewal of the University’s ethos and culture Spring 2018
based in its mission and Basilian heritage

V.J. Guinan Scholars Program, Interview Committee Spring 2020, 2021

Showcase Saturday Fall 2019

Provided sample lectures to prospective students visiting UST Spring 2019

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 Fall 2018
Spring 2018

Assistance offered to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions Multiple occasions

Hosted individual prospective students visiting UST; Undertook translation every semester
project for marketing materials in Vietnamese

PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES
Mariological Society of America, active member 2013-present
Catholic Theological Society of America, active member 2014-present
College Theology Society, active member 2015-present
Academy of Catholic Theology, active member 2019-present

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
UISG Women Religious Theologians Symposium, Nemi (Rome), 2023-2024 cohort.
I was selected to participate in this initiative by the International Union Superiors General
(UISG) which gathers 20+ women religious theologians from around the world for
monthly online meetings from November 2023 to May 2024, culminating in an in-person
week long symposium in Italy in June 2024.

The Four Major Prophets, a Bible Study Retreat led by Dr. John Bergsma July 2023
at the Christian Renewal Center, Houston

Riding the Tsunami-ChatGPT, Generative AI, & Digital Education. May 4, 2023
The Chronicles of Higher Education, webinar

Saint John Henry Newman and Catholic Modernism, Fall Symposium October 2022
of the National Institute for Newman Studies (Pittsburg, PA)

Catholicity as Gift and Task: The 75th Anniversary of Communio October 2022
A theological conference hosted by St. Bernard’s School of Theology and
Ministry (Rochester, NY)

“Alone of all her sex? A Marian Study Day on Mary and Gender” September 2022
A theological conference hosted by the Centre for Marian Studies and the
Institute of Theology and Liberal Arts of St. Mary’s University
(Twickenham, London)

“Mary in the Liturgy,” Mariological Society of America, Annual May 2022

Conference (Marytown, IL)

“What Students Wish Their Professors Knew,” The Chronicles of Higher September 2020
Education, Webinar

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 Since Spring 2020 (the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic), I have completed many hours
of online training via UST’s Online Learning Team, Ellucian training, as well as webinars offered
through The Chronicles of Higher Education.

USCCB, Committee for Doctrine, Theology Conference Fall 2018

“Teaching Undergraduate Theology: Connecting the
Disconnects” Washington, DC

Lumen Christi Institute, Graduate Seminar Summer 2017

“The Thought of John Henry Newman”
Merton College, Oxford University, UK

Lumen Christi Institute Seminar Summer 2016

“Aquinas’ Five Ways and Where They Lead”
Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Rome Italy

Methods in Distance Learning Fall 2014

The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.
An intensive six-week certification course for online instruction using
Blackboard and Panopto, with emphasis on effective pedagogy online using
blogs, discussion boards, lecture capture, and other online tools.

HONORS & AWARDS

TOAST (Teach Online and Spur Transformation) Award 2023
University of St. Thomas
St. Thomas Aquinas Excellence in Teaching Award, Nominee 2019, 2020, 2022
University of St. Thomas
Faculty Development Award, funds for conference travels 2017-2023
University of St. Thomas
Advisor of the Year 2020
University of St. Thomas, CSA Student Association
Hubbard Dissertation Fellowship 2015-2016
The Catholic University of America
“First Year Experience” Graduate Teaching Fellowship 2014-2015
The Catholic University of America
Dolores L. Christie Scholarship 2013
Catholic Theological Society of America
Virgil S. Crisafulli Scholarship, 2010
The Catholic University of America

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 Alpha Sigma Lambda Honor Society 2005
University of St. Thomas
Phil Sigma Tau Philosophy Honor Society 2005
University of St. Thomas
Theta Alpha Kappa Theology Honor Society 2005
University of St. Thomas
National Dean’s List 2002
Marquette University
Ignatius Academic Excellence Recognition and Scholarship 2001
Marquette University

REFERENCES
Dr. William Loewe, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus of Historical and Systematic Theology
School of Theology and Religious Studies
The Catholic University of America
Washington, DC 20064
loewe@cua.edu
Msgr. Paul McPartlan, STL, D.Phil
Carl J. Peter Professor of Systematic Theology and Ecumenism
School of Theology and Religious Studies
The Catholic University of America
Washington, DC 20064
mcpartlan@cua.edu
Dr. Christopher Ruddy, PhD
Associate Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology
School of Theology and Religious Studies
The Catholic University of America
Washington, DC 20064
ruddyc@cua.edu
Rev. Dempsey Rosales-Acosta, SSL, SThD
Director of the Center Semillero
Miller Chair of Catholic Studies
Full Professor, Theology Department, University of St. Thomas
drosale@stthom.edu

Sr. Maria Theresa Hong Nguyen, OP

Provincial Superior
Dominican Sisters of Mary Immaculate Province
5250 Gasmer Drive
Houston, Texas 77035

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713 723 8250

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