Christopher Steck, S.J., is the Thomas J. Healey Family Distinguished Professor in Ethical Studies. He was born in Pt. Arthur, TX. After completing his Masters in Electrical Engineering at LSU, he worked for Texas Instruments, where he was awarded a patent for a circuit he designed. He entered the Jesuits in 1983 and was ordained a priest in 1994. In 1999, upon completion of his Ph.D. in Christian Ethics at Yale University, he joined the theology department at Georgetown. He received tenure in 2006 and served as department chair from 2012 to 2015.

Steck is author of three books: The Ethical Thought of Hans Urs von Balthasar (2001), which was named book of the year by the College Theology Society; All God’s Animals: A Catholic Theological Framework for Animal Ethics (Georgetown University Press, 2019); and Animals in Heaven: A Catholic Case and Why It Matters (forthcoming from Georgetown University Press). Since 2021, he has been editor in chief of Theological Studies, an academic journal published four times a year.

The focus of his research is on environmental and animal ethics. Among the courses he teaches are: Problem of God; Saints and Sinners; and Dogs and Theology. Steck served as caretaker of Jack the Bulldog from 2003 until 2015.

His other campus activities include 10 years as co-chair of the Core Curriculum Committee and 20 years as Jesuit representative on the Board of Governors. Steck has served as chaplain in New South Hall for 22 years. He often leads Problem of God presentations during reunion weekends.