Father Andrew Greeley

He's a priest, distinguished sociologist and best-selling author. He is Professor of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago and the University of Arizona, as well as Research Associate at the national Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, whose current research focuses on the sociology of religion. He's Father Andrew Greeley, and on this edition of Chicago Stories, host John Callaway conducts a lively, provocative and no-holds-barred interview with the liberal Chicago cleric and prolific writer.

Callaway's interview covers a wide range of topics, including Greeley's views on the current state of religion in America and the art of creative writing, as well as reminiscences about his family and upbringing.

Father Greeley is the author of more than thirty best-selling novels and two autobiographies, Confessions of a Parish Priest and Furthermore! His latest novel is The Bishop and the Beggar Girl of St. Germaine.

He received the S.T.L. in 1954 from St. Mary of Lake Seminary and did graduate work at the University of Chicago, where he received the M.A. Degree in 1961 and the Ph.D. in 1962. He has written scores of books and hundreds of popular and scholarly articles on a variety of issues in sociology, education and religion. His column on political, church and social issues is carried by the New York Times Religious News Service.

In 1986, Father Greeley established a $1 million Catholic Inner-City School Fund, providing scholarships and financial support to schools in the Chicago Archdiocese with a minority student body of more than 50 percent. In 1984 he contributed a $1 million endowment, establishing a chair in Roman Catholic Studies at the University of Chicago. He has funded an annual lecture series on "The Church in Society" at St. Mary of the Lake Seminary.

His outreach is far-reaching. Father Greeley says, "I wouldn't say the world is my parish, but my readers are my parish. And especially the readers that write to me. They're my parish. And it's a responsibility that I enjoy."

Special Web Feature
Additional Q & A with Father Andrew Greeley
Transcript of further discussion between John Callaway and Father Greeley.

Links of Interest
Andrew Greeley's Web Page
Articles, messages, homilies, and a newsletter.
You will also find a complete list of Andrew Greeley's collected works, and can subscribe to the Father Greeley Reader Forum, a mailing list for people who enjoy his writings and want to discuss them.

Father Greeley at Beliefnet.com
Columns and articles by Father Greeley.

The Great Mysteries: An Essential Cathecism
Here is the electronic edition of the New Edition (1985) of Andrew M. Greeley's The Great Mysteries: An Essential Catechism.

"In fact, we are a Church of love"
This is the "platform" speech of the fictional contender for the papacy, Luis Emilio Cardinal Menendez y Garcia in Andrew Greeley's book, White Smoke, a novel about the next Papal Conclave.