About Angela Franks

Angela Franks, Ph.D., is a theologian, speaker, writer, and mother of six. She serves as Associate Professor of Theology at the Catholic University of America and as the President of the Academy of Catholic Theology for 2025-26. She is a Senior Fellow at the Abigail Adams Institute in Cambridge, as well as a Life and Dignity Writing Fellow for Church Life Journal (University of Notre Dame). Her CV can be found here.

Her areas of specialty include the body, identity, the Trinity, Christology, and the thought of John Paul II and Hans Urs von Balthasar. She is currently focused on bringing key ideas in contemporary Continental philosophy into conversation with the Catholic intellectual tradition. She is finishing a two-volume book manuscript on the body and identity. The first volume is Body and Identity: A History of the Empty Self, which appeared in August 2025 with University of Notre Dame Press.

An experienced speaker, she has spoken at numerous conferences, including the International Theology of the Body Congress, and on EWTN, Catholic Answers Live, FOX News, and many other outlets. (The “Blog” tab has links to some of these appearances.) She has been published in America Magazine, First Things, Public Discourse, Church Life Journal, Catholic World Report, The Plough, and academic journals such as Theological Studies, Christian Bioethics, Nova et Vetera, Communio, and others, in addition to contributing chapters to edited books (see the “Writing” tab). She has written two books on sexual ethics and the history of eugenics.

To invite Dr. Franks to appear at your event or to contact her, please fill out the form below.

Photo by George Martell