Moral theologian cycles her way into the Institute for Social Concerns

Suzanne Mulligan joins the institute as professor of the practice

February 12, 2025

Suzanne Mulligan, new professor of the practice at the Institute for Social Concerns, is an avid cyclist. She prefers the challenge of the high mountains—usually Alps or Pyrennes. “There is no escaping the brutality of it. Out in the wilderness, it is just you and the mountain. You have to suffer and endure it. It pushes you to the absolute limit.” Living in endlessly flat Indiana is just one of many adjustments in her transition from Ireland to the United States.

Mulligan, a moral theologian and expert in Catholic social tradition (CST), joined the institute last fall. Mulligan’s research and teaching focuses on the signs of the times, including HIV/AIDS, gender violence, migration, homelessness, and the social teaching of Pope Francis. Her latest book, Dwelling with Dignity, on the global housing crisis, is newly out with Liturgical Press as part of the institute’s Enacting Catholic Social Tradition series. Here at Notre Dame she joins Professor Margie Pfeil in co-directing the Catholic Social Tradition minor.

Formerly at the Pontifical University in Maynooth, Ireland, Mulligan was drawn to Notre Dame by the institute’s foundational commitment to CST as well as its broadly interdisciplinary community, despite the lack of mountains. “It is an exciting place with good people engaged in crucial issues,” she reflected.

Fellow faculty, staff, and students are beyond thrilled to have Mulligan as part of the institute’s community and work as well. “Suzanne brings great experience, new energy, and fresh insight to our work of justice both on campus and off,” notes Suzanne Shanahan, Leo and Arlene Hawk Executive Director of the institute. “By coming to Notre Dame, she offers an opportunity for us to amplify even further our important work in CST.”
The agricultural roots of Indiana are familiar to Mulligan. She grew up in Ireland’s rural midlands on a cattle farm that has more recently become a farm for breeding horses—her father’s lifelong passion as a former show jumper. The family farm in County Longford was also the site of the only shop in the area, as well as a post office (where Suzanne worked). Mulligan, her brother, and her two sisters grew up with both sets of grandparents and two uncles living in the family home, and farm workers were also always about her home. This childhood gives her an expansive sense of home, and she credits many for her upbringing. As with her sisters, she spent five years in boarding school in County Offaly. In contrast to her sisters, Suzanne loved boarding school. It seems playing field hockey allowed her to get away with “blue murder.”

*Suzanne Mulligan cycling on Luz Ardiden in the Pyrenees*

Long before she acquired a passion for cycling in her thirties, sports have always been an important part of her life. She remains a loyal Manchester United fan, despite their lackluster season. Though she is still trying to understand the appeal of American football, Notre Dame colleagues are queuing up to assist with that challenge.

While she is rooted in the central midlands, Maynooth has always been Suzanne’s scholarly home. In addition to being a lecturer in Maynooth, she earned all three degrees there. She had originally hoped to study history at Queens College in Belfast, but the peace was still fragile. Disappointed, she pursued theology and history at Maynooth. It was moral theologian Fr. Patrick Hannan that first inspired her love of theology. Hannan’s provocative teaching got her to think deeply for the first time in her life. She was hooked. Mulligan also worked with Hannan on both her M.A. and her Ph.D.

Suzanne Mulligan introduces Anna Rowlands at Encounter lecture | Photo by Peter Ringenberg/University of Notre Dame

As a faculty member at Maynooth, Suzanne held various leadership roles and was editor of Irish Theological Quarterly. She also worked throughout Ireland with parishes on CST and the local church and taught in the permanent diaconate program in Ireland for 12 years. She remains a member of the Planning Committee of Catholic Theological Ethics in the World Church (CTEWC) and often consults for organizations such as Trócaire on CST.

This semester, Mulligan is hosting a new signature lecture series at the institute: Encounter: Conversations in Catholic Social Tradition. The series kicked off Friday, February 7, with an inspired lecture from Anna Rowlands (Durham University, England), who spoke on Simone Weil, CST, and contemporary society.