Jeffrey GrosFSC (7 January 1938 – 12 August 2013) was an AmericanCatholicecumenist and theologian. A member of theDe La Salle Christian Brothers, Gros had served as a high school history teacher, university professor, associate director of theSecretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs at theUnited States Conference of Catholic Bishops; director ofFaith and Order for theNational Council of Churches; and president of theSociety for Pentecostal Studies. He is the author or editor of over 20 books, 310 articles, and an uncounted number of book reviews. He died of pancreatic cancer inChicago, IL, on 12 August 2013 at the age of 75.
Born John Jefferson Gros inMemphis, TN, to Jeff Gros and Faye (Dickinson) Gros, he entered the novitiate of theChristian Brothers in August 1955 inGlencoe, MO. He made his perpetual vows in the same order in 1963 inPlano, IL. He has one sister, Sister Joye Gros.
He earned aBachelor of Arts degree (in 1959) and aMaster of Education focused in Biology Education (in 1962) fromSaint Mary's University of Minnesota; aMaster of Arts inTheology fromMarquette University inMilwaukee in 1965, with a thesis titled "Ministry and Orders in the United Presbyterian Church, USA". He was awarded aDoctorate inTheology fromFordham University,New York City, in 1973, for his dissertation "Transcendence and Community in Contemporary Social Theory: P. Berger and R. Bellah" under the direction of Wayne Proudfood.
He pursued graduate research in biology and the sciences at theUniversity of Colorado inBoulder, CO and at theIllinois Institute of Technology from 1961 to 1962. He continued graduate work in science atNorthwestern University in Chicago from 1962 to 1964.
Research and study grants took him to Hebrew Union College, Jerusalem (1968), Germany (1969), Costa Rica (1986), the Far East (1976), Latin America (1980, 2000), Africa (1988), Strasbourg Ecumenical Research Institute (1991), Columbia (2007) and Chile (2008).
Brother Jeff’s first responsibilities were as ahigh school teacher. He spent three years atSt. George High School inEvanston, IL (1959–1962), and then a year at theLa Salle Institute in Glencoe, MO, finally a year atChristian Brothers College High School (CBCHS) inSt. Louis, MO, before spending two years at Marquette to work on his MA in Theology.
On the completion of his master's degree, he spent a year each teaching at his order’snovitiate in Glencoe, MO; atLewis College inRomeoville, IL; back at CBCHS, and finally at theChristian Brothers College inMemphis, TN, before heading to Fordham for doctoral studies.
For two years (1970–1972), while writing hisdissertation, he also worked asDirector of Religious Education atSt. Augustine Parish in theBronx, NY. Upon completion, he was called back to Memphis to serve as a teacher in, then chair of, the theology department at Christian Brothers College (nowChristian Brothers University), where he served for nine years (1972–1981). From 1975, he concurrently taught atMemphis Theological Seminary. During these years, he also served as the director of diaconate formation for the diocese of Memphis.
In 1981, Gros was hired as the Executive Director of theFaith and Order Commission of theNational Council of Churches (NCC), then headquartered in the Bronx. At the same time, he assisted at theChurch of the Good Shepherd, inManhattan.
After a decade of leadership in the NCC, Gros was asked to serve as Associate Director of theSecretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of theUnited States Conference of Catholic Bishops (then called the National Conference of Catholic Bishops). He held this post, with responsibilities for ecumenical relations with the western churches and ecclesial communities (Anglican,Mainline Protestant,Evangelical,Pentecostal) until 2005.
At the age of 67, he “retired” touniversity andseminary teaching. He spent four years as Distinguished Professor of Ecumenical and Historical Theology atMemphis Theological Seminary, which is affiliated with theCumberland Presbyterian Church. In 2009, he accepted a one-year appointment to theFranciscan School of Theology, part of theGraduate Theological Union, inBerkeley, California, as Kenan Osborne Visiting Professor of Theology.
For the last two years of his life, Gros taught atLewis University inRomeoville, IL, as Catholic Studies Scholar in Residence. He served at the same time as an adjunct professor at theCatholic Theological Union in Chicago, and as President of theSociety for Pentecostal Studies.
Gros had served several times on the board of theNorth American Academy of Ecumenists, including a term as president. He was, since 1985, the dean of the USCCB Institute for Ecumenical Leadership, which provided training for diocesan ecumenical officers.
He had many professional memberships including theCatholic Theological Society of America (former Board Member),College Theological Society,National Association of Evangelicals,Catholic Association of Diocesan Ecumenical and Interreligious Officers (Associate).
He was deeply committed to the reception of ecumenical dialogues into religious education and pastoral practice, and worked tirelessly in developing and supporting new generations of ecumenists. He was known for having an “encyclopedic knowledge of ecumenism” and was invited as keynote speaker for dialogues and conferences around the world.
He is interred at Resurrection Cemetery, Romeoville, IL.
Gros published well over 300 papers and articles; He had book reviews published in over three dozen journals.[1]
His first article was "Self Acceptance and Religious Maturity" inSpiritual Life, in the Summer of 1967.
His last was probably "Appreciating the Past and Looking to the Future" which he sent toKoinonia, the Newsletter of the Office of Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue published by thePaulist Fathers, just ten days before he died in August 2013.
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