Ilia Delio, OSF, PhD
Josephine C. Connelly Endowed Chair in Theology| College of Liberal Arts and Sciences | Villanova University
Villanova, PA, UNITED STATES
Sister Ilia Delio, OSF, PhD, works to find a new unity and synthesis in science and religion.
Media
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Areas of Expertise (7)
Theology
Neuroscience
Artificial Intelligence and Becoming
Culture and Religion
Catholicity
Evolution and Culture
Integration of Science and Religion
Biography
Science and religion are often thought of as mutually exclusive; however, with areas of expertise grounded in both spheres, Sr. Ilia Delio can explain how it is possible to find a new unity and synthesis in science and religion. She can address compelling topics like how technology has changed human consciousness, spirit as a type of energy, the import of artificial intelligence on life as we know it and the potential for achieving wholeness of being. Her work seeks to move beyond the dialogue of science and religion toward a mutually enriched integration of these disciplines for wholeness of being.
Education (5)
Fordham University: PhD
Rutgers University: PhD
Fordham University: MA
Seton Hall University: MS
DeSales University: BS
Select Accomplishments (5)
2017 Madeleva Lecturer at St. Mary's College (Notre Dame) (professional)
The invited speaker is recognized as a prominent woman theologian in the United States.
Honorary Degree, Doctor of Science, St. Francis University (professional)
Conferred in 2015.
Catholic Press Book Award (2014) (professional)
Conferred for "The Unbearable Wholeness of Being: God, Evolution and the Power of Love" (Third Place, Faith and Science).
Silver Nautilus Book Award (2014) (professional)
Conferred for "The Unbearable Wholeness of Being: God, Evolution and the Power of Love."
Catholic Press Book Award (2012) (professional)
Conferred for "The Emergent Christ: Exploring the Meaning of Catholic in an Evolutionary Universe" (Third Place: Faith and Science).
Links (3)
Affiliations (6)
- American Academy of Religion (AAR)
- American Teilhard Association
- Catholic Theological Society of America
- The Maryknoll Institute of Theology, Lecturer
- Rohr Living School of Theology, Guest Speaker
- Orbis Book Series: "Catholicity in an Evolving Universe," General Editor
Select Media Appearances (8)
How Technology Is Reshaping Religion
National Geographic
2024-12-19
Villanova theology professor Sister Ilia Delio has closely observed the shifts of faith, belief and perception. And while she has watched the trends she doesn't believe that faith in God is vanishing. "It hasn’t gone away, but it's showing up in a new way," she says. "That really changes how we think about these questions of God or faith."
God Chatbots Offer Spiritual Insights on Demand. What Could Go Wrong?
Scientific American
2024-03-19
Many professional theologians... have serious concerns about blending large language models (LLMs) with religion. Ilia Delio, chair of theology at Villanova University and author of several books about the overlap between religion and science, believes these chatbots—which she describes... as "shortcuts to God"—undermine the spiritual benefits that have traditionally been achieved through long periods of direct engagement with religious texts.
New Movement Looks to Reduce Exposure to Our Phones, Apps and Social Media
KYW Newsradio
2019-05-19
A new term is floating in the ether, promoting a reduction in technology in our lives. It's called "digital minimalism." The theory is that less technology leads to more happiness, and reducing the number of apps on our phones will help... Ilia Delio, the Josephine C. Connelly endowed chair in theology at Villanova University, has a different take. "Technology actually emerged to try to help us transcend the boundaries that divide us," she said. "Because that's what technology does. It unites us actually."
Can the Church Keep Up With Artificial Intelligence?
America Magazine
2018-05-23
Some observers are concerned Catholic theology hasn't caught up with modern advancements to participate productively in the AI debate. "Pope Francis is absolutely right in raising the bar of our attention to technology," said Sister Ilia Delio, a Catholic nun and head of the science-and-theology-focused Omega Center. But first, she said, the church has to adapt its theology "to meet the needs of a world in evolution."
How Your Smartphone May Be Making You Unhappy
U.S. News & World Report
2018-02-12
A raft of research in recent years... suggests that for many people, the prodigious use of mobile devices is eroding their connections with family members, friends and romantic partners... This imbalance can have profound consequences for young people, says Sister Ilia Delio, who serves as the Josephine C. Connelly endowed chair in theology at Villanova University. Over-reliance on a smartphone can lead to "distraction, lack of attention, an increase in narcissism and... an increase in loneliness," she says.
AI and Humanity
Voice of America's American Café
2018-01-09
Personal assistants and artificial intelligence are center stage at this year's consumer electronics show in Las Vegas... Sister Ilia Delio is a professor of theology and religious studies at Villanova University in Philadelphia. She said that consumers need to be aware that too much reliance on our devices and artificial intelligence could change the way we react to other humans.
Words of Faith: Greatest Superpower Abides in Us All
Desert Sun
2017-07-31
The Christian gospel message is loud and clear: "Love is the answer." Love is a more powerful tool than superpowers. I am reminded of a quote from Franciscan Sister Ilia Delio... "The nature of love is unity; evolution is the process toward greater unity; sin is the resistance to unity."
A Cosmic Feast: Eight Hours With Ilia Delio
National Catholic Reporter's Global Sisters Report
2017-07-06
Ten minutes into Franciscan Sr. Ilia Delio's talk at a contemporary spirituality retreat, I knew I was in trouble. How was I supposed to capture almost eight hours of brilliant insights in an 800-word blog? The answer: I couldn't. So, I just sat back and enjoyed a roller coaster ride through billions of years of cosmic evolution, with plunges into the history of science and philosophy and steep climbs into theology and mysticism.
Research Grants (1)
Public Theologies of Technology and Presence (2018)
The Institute of Buddhist Studies at UC Berkeley
Public Theologies of Technology and Presence gathered and funded a cohort of leading scholars of religion, theologians and journalists for their work addressing a pressing concern of contemporary life: the ways in which technologies reshape human relationships and alter how people are (or are not) "present" with each other. The initiative was developed and directed by psychoanalyst and religion scholar Steven Barrie-Anthony, PhD, PsyD, RP, and was funded by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Select Academic Articles (5)
Is Natural Law "Unnatural?" Exploring God and Nature Through Teilhard's Organic Theology
Theology and ScienceDelio, Ilia
2017 Teilhard de Chardin turns revelation and nature into a complementarity of wholeness, expanding religion so that it better reflects God's revelation. Truth comes in two books: the Book of Nature and the Book of Scripture. In the tradition of Thomas Aquinas, the truths of natural reason are discovered by using the natural light of reason, that is, the capacity for intelligent thought that all human beings have by virtue of being human. Similarly, the truths beyond reason are outside the aptitude of the natural light of reason to discover or verify. They are available only through faith. What Teilhard teaches us is that the Book of Nature can no longer be separated from the Book of Scripture without denying God. The two together constitute an organic theology.
From Aquinas to Teilhard: Divine Action and the Metaphysics of Love
The Heythrop JournalDelio, Ilia
2016 "Although the question of divine action is a modern one, the roots of the question (as a philosophical-theological one) lie in the Middle Ages. Hence this paper begins by returning to the Middle Ages in order to understand divine causality as a function of cosmology. I begin with Thomas Aquinas and his ideas on primary and secondary causality, translated into the Latin West and modified by the Islamic philosophers of his age. Because Thomas' philosophy is deeply tied to monotheism and Neoplatonic metaphysics, I turn to his contemporary Bonaventure who sought to Christianize Neoplatonism by describing a philosophy of Christ the center and a new metaphysics of love. Although there is no explicit connection between Bonaventure and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Teilhard's ideas on God and evolution are supported by a metaphysics of love that resonates with Bonaventure's theology and the integral relationship between causality and cosmology. Teilhard envisioned God in relation to the whole (cosmos) and divine action as an ongoing work of love. I will argue that a metaphysics of love is essential to the ongoing work of creation in an unfinished universe."
Transhumanism or Ultrahumanism? Teilhard de Chardin on Technology, Religion and Evolution
Theology and ScienceDelio, Ilia
2012 Transhumanism is a term used to describe the enhancement of human life through technology, seeking to overcome biological limits. Teilhard de Chardin has been described as a transhumanist, but a closer examination of his ideas reveals his distinction of ultrahumanism, a deepening of the whole evolutionary process in and through the human person. This paper examines ultrahumanism and Teilhard's vision of technology in the evolution of religion.
Eco-Christology: Living in Creation as the Body of Christ
Human DevelopmentDelio, Ilia
2012 "Centuries before Teilhard de Chardin, the Franciscan theologian Bonaventure wrote, 'you exist more truly where you love than where you merely live, since you are transformed into the likeness of whatever you love, through the power of this love itself.' Both the Franciscan and the Jesuit realized that love is the source and goal of the universe. We are to love so as to evolve into greater wholeness, to deepen our humanity by uniting with one another and with earth's creatures. In Teilhard de Chardin's view, love alone can evolve this cosmos toward the fullness of Christ. However, if we fail to perceive our human vocation to build the earth—to adore the living Christ—then we will bear its revolt..."
Theology, Metaphysics and the Centrality of Christ
Theological StudiesDelio, Ilia
2007 The article explores the relationship between theology and metaphysics in the light of Bonaventure's theology. His trinitarian theology, grounded in self-communicative love and ontology of personhood, renders new insight into his metaphysics of Christ the center. The emergence of creation ex amore through the centrality of the Divine Word enables Bonaventure to recast metaphysics in terms of love. The import of his metaphysics of love, grounded in the centrality of Christ, is discussed in view of contemporary Christian life.
