Christopher D. Tirres

Christopher D. Tirres is an Associate Professor of Religious Studies at DePaul University.

A native of El Paso, Texas, Tirres earned his undergraduate degree from Princeton University, where he studied under Cornel West and David Carrasco. After graduating, Tirres spent a year studying in Mexico city on a Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholarship. (The trip began a day after he got married, amounting in "the most amazing 9-month honeymoon ever.") Upon returning to the U.S., Tirres completed a master's degree at Harvard Divinity School and a Ph.D. at Harvard University. His dissertation, directed by Francis Schüssler Fiorenza, critically assesses John Dewey's theory of religion.

Tirres's first book, The Aesthetics and Ethics of Faith: A Dialogue between Liberationist and Pragmatic Thought (Oxford, 2014), delineates the methodological connections between liberation theology and US pragmatism, and it shows how a critical conversation between these two traditions may contribute to a more robust theory of engaged faith praxis, especially when it is expressed in the form of religious ritual. Tirres is currently working on a second book entitled Portraits of Liberation Across the Latino/a Americas: Spiritual-Philosophical Profiles.

Tirres has received awards from the Ford Foundation, the Hispanic Theological Initiative, the Louisville Institute, the Fund for Theological Education, the Wabash Institute for Teaching and Learning, and Harvard University's Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning.

A committed teacher and mentor, Tirres has taught in a variety of educational settings, from universities and colleges (Harvard University, Harvey Mudd College, Claremont Graduate University, Catholic Theological Union, and DePaul University) to pastoral institutes and youth detention facilities. Tirres is honored to serve as mentor to a number of young scholars of color, and he volunteers with the Interfaith Committee for Detained Immigrants in the Chicago area.

Tirres is active in several scholarly associations including the American Academy of Religion (AAR; he is co-chair of the Latina/o Critical and Comparative Group), the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy (SAAP), and the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the U.S. (ACTHUS).

A husband and father of three, Tirres is also, de facto, the family chauffeur.