Biography

Within the broad range of Old Testament studies, Fr. Hoppe has focused on Deuteronomy and  Deuteronomic literature. His Presidential Address at the 2016 Meeting of the Catholic Biblical Association dealt with the theological strategies of these books. Another focus of his study and teaching has been on the social and economic conflict between rich and poor in ancient Israelite society. One result of his work in this area is There Shall Be No Poor Among You: Poverty in the Bible. He has participated in several archaeological projects in Israel and is the author of The Churches and Synagogues of Ancient Palestine and is responsible for “The Biblical Landscape,” a regular feature on biblical archaeology in The Bible Today. He has served as the academic director on many of CTU’s Biblical Travel and Study Programs and this experience has led him to write The Holy City: Jerusalem in the Theology of the Old Testament. His most recent book is Isaiah in the New Collegeville Bible Commentary series. He is currently writing a commentary on the Book of Zechariah.

Fr. Hoppe has been a member of the CTU faculty from 198. In 2022, he was named Professor Emeritus of Bible Studie. In addition to his service at CTU, he was on the faculty of Aquinas Institute of Theology and Mundelein Seminary. He also has been visiting professor at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, and the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum. He served as the general editor of The Catholic Biblical Quarterly and currently is the Editor of The Bible Today. He was the associate editor of the Anselm Press Study Bible. He has served as the President of the Chicago Society of Biblical Research and the Catholic Biblical Association of America.
Fr. Hoppe is a brother in the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Order of Friars Minor (Franciscans) and a Roman Catholic priest.

Leslie J. Hoppe, OFM

Achievements

Publications
Electronic Publications
  • “The Strategy of the Deuteronomistic History: A Proposal,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 79/1 (January 2017) 1-19.
  • “A Place for Prayer: Solomon’s Prayer at the Dedication of the Temple (2 Kgs 8)” in Prayer in the Catholic Tradition: A Handbook of Practical Approaches. Robert J. Wicks (ed.) Cincinnati: Franciscan Media, 2016. Pp. 467-478.
  • Priests, Prophets and Sages: Catholic Perspectives on the Old Testament. Cincinnati: St. Anthony Messenger Press 2006.
  • New Light from Old Stories: Hebrew Scriptures for Today’s World. NY: Paulist, 2005.
  • “The Afterlife of a Text: The Case of 1 Kings 8” Liber Annuus 51 (2001) 9-30.
  • “Vengeance and Forgiveness: The Two Faces of Psalm 79” in Images and Imagination in Biblical Literature. (Washington: CBA, 2001) 1-22.
  • A Retreat with Matthew: Going Beyond the Law. Cincinnati: St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2000.
  • A New Heart: A Commentary on the Book of Ezekiel. Bruce Vawter, co-author. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1991.