Following Elizabeth Cruciger from last week, the library is continuing to focus on Lutheran women who deserve to be recognized, and one student recommended Mary Jane Haemig, a renowned scholar and author who spoke at the seminary a few years ago.
With a dissertation titled "The Living Voice of the Catechism: German Lutheran Catechetical preaching 1530-1580," Haemig earned her Doctor of Theology (Th.D.) from Harvard Divinity School in 1996. She graduated magna cum laude from the University of Minnesota in 1977 and a Master of Theological Studies (M.T.S.) and Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D.) from Harvard Law School in 1981. From 1982 to 1989, she practiced law in Illinois before beginning her doctoral studies at Harvard.
She taught for nineteen years at Luther Seminary after spending five years at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. She has specialized on the pastoral elements of the German Lutheran Reformation, such as preaching, catechesis, and prayer instruction.
Haemig is an expert in the study of the Reformation, particularly the Lutheran Reformation and the prayer, catechesis, and preaching during that time. Because of this, she oversees Luther Seminary's Reformation Research Program. Haemig has delivered numerous church sermons and intellectual lectures, in addition to writing numerous articles and book reviews. She serves as the book review editor and associate editor of "Lutheran Quarterly," the associate editor of "Dictionary of Luther and the Lutheran Traditions," and a member of various other academic groups. She’s also one of the head authors of the Dictionary of Luther and the Lutheran Traditions, an extraordinary companion for reference work explaining Luther’s life, teachings, key figures of his time, and the many traditions he continues to influence.
If you’re interested in reading some of her works, swing by the library and check some of them out!