science

James F. Keenan

James F. Keenan is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand James F. Keenan rather than just read about it. In short: James F. Keenan is an American Jesuit moral theologian, bioethicist, writer, and the Canisius Professor of theology at Boston College.

Key takeaways

James F. Keenan belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect James F. Keenan to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of James F. Keenan from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

James F. Keenan is an American Jesuit moral theologian, bioethicist, writer, and the Canisius Professor of theology at Boston College.

Career Keenan has been a Jesuit of the New York Province since 1970 and an ordained priest since 1982. He received his BA from Fordham University in 1976, his MDiv from the Weston School of Theology in 1982. He then received his STL in 1984 and his STD in 1988 from Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy. Keenan has taught as an Assistant Professor of Moral Theology at Fordham University ('87-'91) and Weston Jesuit School of Theology ('91-'99). He taught as Professor of Moral Theology at the Weston Jesuit School of Theology from 1999 to 2005, after which he became a full-time member of the Boston College Theology Department as a Professor of Theological Ethics. He is also visiting professor at Pontifical Athenaeum Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram and Pontifical Gregorian University.

Bioethics Keenan has been actively involved in the field of bioethics and has particular experience with bioethics concerning HIV/AIDS. He teaches such Ethics courses as "The Human Body" and "Ethical Issues of HIV/AIDS" at Boston College. Keenan has been an Advisor to the Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance since 2000, and has been a Group Leader for the Surgeon General's Task Force on Responsible Sexual Conduct (2000-2002), a Convener for the AIDS Study Group, Society of Christian Ethics (1996-2001), and is a director on the Board of Directors for the Society of Christian Ethics (2001-), among other positions.

Writings and Editorial Work Keenan is a columnist for Chicago Catholic, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Keenan has written numerous books on HIV/AIDS and has contributed articles to several books, periodicals, and studies concerning HIV/AIDS, including "Higher Education in a Time of HIV/AIDS" The list includes books such as Catholic Ethicists on HIV/AIDS Prevention published in 2000 (for which he won the Alpha Sigma Nu National Book Award in 2002 ), Moral Wisdom: Lessons and Texts from the Catholic Tradition (2004 - second edition 2009), Paul and Virtue Ethics (co-authored with Daniel Harrington, 2010), and Goodness and Rightness in Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologiae (1992). Some recent academic essays include "A Reconciling Work in the AIDS Century", "HIV/AIDS: The Expanding Ethical Challenge", "Theological Ethics out of the United States", and "'Ethics' After Augustine. A Survey of His Reception from 430-2000", which is to be published by the Oxford University Press. Keenan has also contributed many articles to such general periodicals as Commonweal, Church, and America - mostly, but not exclusively, concerning either ethics or bioethics. James Keenan is also a Series Editor of Moral Traditions (Georgetown University Press, 1993-).

Other Awards and Positions Source:

Gasson Chair - Boston College Tuohy Chair - John Carroll University Board of Directors - Society of Christian Ethics Grant and Faculty Fellowship - Association of Theological Schools Editorial Board Member of Theological Studies (1991 -) Chair - Catholic Theological Coalition on HIV/AIDS Prevention (1997 -) Fellow - Center of Theological Inquiry, Princeton University

Bibliography

Books Goodness and Rightness in Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologiae (1992) Catholic Ethicists on HIV/AIDS Prevention (2000) Moral Wisdom: Lessons and Texts from the Catholic Tradition (2004 - second edition 2009) Paul and Virtue Ethics (co-authored with Daniel Harrington, 2010) University Ethics: How Colleges Can Build and Benefit from a Culture of Ethics (2015) Keenan, James F. & Mark McGreevy, eds. (2019). Street homelessness and Catholic theological ethics. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.

Articles, chapters and other contributions "A Reconciling Work in the AIDS Century" "HIV/AIDS: The Expanding Ethical Challenge" "Theological Ethics out of the United States" "Ethics" in After Augustine. A Survey of His Reception from 430-2000

Critical studies and reviews of Keenan's work Street homelessness and Catholic theological ethics Robertson, Albert (November 2021). "[Untitled review]". New Blackfriars. 102 (1102): 1022–1024. doi:10.1111/nbfr.12701.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with James F. Keenan

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what James F. Keenan claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to James F. Keenan before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about James F. Keenan ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of James F. Keenan

In research: James F. Keenan appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses James F. Keenan in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: James F. Keenan is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 20th-century American Jesuits, 21st-century American Jesuits, American male writers, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for James F. Keenan outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study James F. Keenan in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what James F. Keenan means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain James F. Keenan out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is James F. Keenan in simple terms?

James F. Keenan is an American Jesuit moral theologian, bioethicist, writer, and the Canisius Professor of theology at Boston College.

Why does James F. Keenan matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study James F. Keenan?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on James F. Keenan.