Joseph Andrew Sittler (September 26, 1904 – December 28, 1987) was an American Lutheran minister and theologian who taught at Maywood Seminary, eventually merged into the Divinity School of the University of Chicago and the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. He was also active in the Christian ecumenical movement, working with World Council of Churches and the National Council of Churches.

Biography

Joseph Sittler, the son of Lutheran pastor The Reverend Doctor Joseph Andrew Sittler Jr. (1876–1961) and Minnie Lillian Veith Sittler (1874–1963), was born in Upper Sandusky, Ohio. He was a graduate of Wittenberg College and Hamma Divinity School in Springfield, Ohio. Sittler became a teacher at Chicago Lutheran Theological Seminary in the early 1940s. He was a professor of theology at the University of Chicago from 1957 to 1973. He was widely credited with pioneering the links between Christian theology and ecological thought, including the need to return to a cosmic Christology, having written about environmental matters as early as the 1950s (long before they were widely reported in the mainstream press). He continually insisted that care for the earth and its environment is a central concern of the Christian religion. He was also interested in the topics of aging, grace, religion and science, narrative in preaching, and biblical interpretation. Sittler's siblings included Nazi propagandists Dr. Edward Vieth Sittler (1916–1975) and Charles Vieth Sittler (1914–1996).

Personal life

Rev. Joseph Sittler died in 1987. His wife Jeanne died in 1991. They were survived by six children, Stephen, Joseph Jr, Edward, Barbara, Philip and Bay. Joseph Sittler was also an uncle of German actor Walter Sittler.

Published works

Sittler was a prolific theologian. His books were, in many cases, derived from his speaking engagements.

Sittler Archives

The Joseph Sittler Archives are maintained at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.