Born in 1971, Klaus von Stosch is a world-renowned expert in comparative theology, specializing in Islam, and is regarded as a leading voice in international Catholic systematic theology. He enjoys excellent links in the European, Anglo-American and Islamic spheres. Some of his publications have been translated into several languages besides English, and his work has been honored by numerous international awards.
Religions have a major role to play on the world stage in tackling the big social, cultural, political and environmental challenges of our time. As a builder of academic bridges with a unique profile, Klaus von Stosch is better able than perhaps anyone else to grapple with key ethical, societal and political questions in a dialogue between different religions and cultures.
Before making the switch to Bonn, Klaus von Stosch was Professor for Catholic Theology (Systematic Theology) and its Didactics at Paderborn University, where he founded and leads the internationally renowned Centre for Comparative Theology and Cultural Studies.
The University of Bonn has been a University of Excellence since 2019 and is committed to furthering transdisciplinary research cooperation. Researchers at the University of Bonn collaborate on overarching topics in six Transdisciplinary Research Areas (TRAs) and six Clusters of Excellence, addressing issues of great future relevance and reach in terms of academia, science, technology and society. The University’s concept for the future also envisages the establishment of a number of chairs for particularly exceptional researchers, which are named after its famed philologist August Wilhelm Schlegel (1767–1845). The first of this kind is the Schlegel Professorship for Systematic Theology, which is being filled with the help of Excellence funding awarded to the University of Bonn.
Securing the position of Catholic theology in the face of international competition
Appointing Klaus von Stosch to the Schlegel Professorship forms a key part of the Excellence Strategy being pursued by the University of Bonn and its Faculty of Catholic Theology in a bid to secure the discipline’s position in the face of international competition and further improve the excellence of Catholic theology in Bonn.
The Excellence Professorship established within the faculty will focus on systematic theology and, in particular, on the challenges facing society. The Faculty of Catholic Theology is taking advantage of a significant opportunity with its Schlegel Professorship, explains its Dean Professor Jochen Sautermeister: “Klaus von Stosch is a proven specialist with an outstanding reputation in the field of comparative theology, especially in its dialogue with Islam, and one of the best-known and most influential global figures of Catholic theology. We’re delighted that he’ll be enriching the Faculty of Catholic Theology and the whole University of Bonn with his specific field of research, his expertise and his unique specialization.”
Studying inter-religious dialogue
Klaus von Stosch will take up his professorship on October 1, 2021. “I’m very much looking forward to my new duties in Bonn,” he says. “I want to do my bit to expand the University’s links with international top-level research in the field of theology even further. In particular, my comparative research in the area of inter-religious dialogue can help to draw more attention to how relevant theology is to society.”
And the members of University management are also happy to welcome Klaus von Stosch to Bonn, with Rector Professor Michael Hoch saying: “I’m really pleased that, in Klaus von Stosch, we’ve been able to attract one of the world’s leading researchers in his discipline to the University of Bonn. Appointing to this Schlegel Professorship as part of our Excellence Strategy will give a major, lasting boost to our Faculty of Catholic Theology, which will be drawing on its venerable tradition to advance its academic excellence for the future.”
Media contact:
Prof. Dr. Dr. Jochen Sautermeister, Dean
Faculty of Catholic Theology at the University of Bonn
Phone: +49 228 73-7614
Email: sautermeister@uni-bonn.de