Rev. John Elmer Abad

Academic Dean
Associate Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology

EDUCATION

Ph.D. Classics, (Ancient History Stream) University of Toronto
M.A. Classics, University of Toronto
S.T.L. Institutum Patristicum Augustinianum, Rome
S.T.B.  Pontificia Università Lateranense, Rome
B.A. Philosophy St. Paul Seminary Foundation, Philippines

AREA OF SPECIALIZATION

  • Early Christian Theology and Patristic Literature, specifically Christian writers from Roman North Africa

  • Late Antiquity and Second Sophistic Movement

BIOGRAPHY

Fr. John Elmer Abad is a priest of the Archdiocese of Toronto and was ordained in 2000. After completing his priestly formation and Licenciate in Patristics in Rome, Fr. John came to Toronto and worked on his doctorate in Classics as a recipient of a graduate fellowship from the University of Toronto. He also taught ancient history and religion as a graduate instructor in the same academic institution. He presented papers and attended international academic symposia in Canada, the US and Germany. Before he was assigned to the seminary and as a seminary faculty member, Fr. John assisted various parishes in the Archdiocese of Toronto. Currently, he serves Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Etobicoke as a weekend preacher and confessor.  In January 2020, the Archbishop of Toronto appointed Fr. John as the Academic Dean of St. Augustine’s seminary. 

Fr. John serves as the Vice President of the Canadian Society for Patristic Studies.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS / SELECTED AREAS OF SERVICE / PASTORAL WORK

Abad, John Elmer, "Preaching Christ, Seeking Unity in the Church: St. Augustine's Interpretation of John 10," in For Love of the Church: A Festschrift  on the Interests and Accomplishments of His Eminence Thomas Cardinal Collins. Ed. P. Lovrick (Toronto: Novalis Press, 2022) 69-86.

Identity and Religion in Roman North Africa: the Apologetics of Tertullian (book, forthcoming)