Michael William Higgins (born October 24, 1948) is a Canadian academic and writer. He was the interim principal of St. Mark's College and president of Corpus Christi College from July 15, 2020
July 31, 2023
Higgins and his wife Krystyna, a professional piano accompanist, liturgical musician and freelance editor, have four adult children---Rebecca, Andrew, Sarah and Alexa.

Personal

Born in Toronto in 1948, Higgins attended St. Thomas Aquinas School for his primary education, and received his secondary education from the

Vaughan Road Collegiate Institute Vaughan Road Academy (VRA), formerly known as Vaughan Road High School and Vaughan Road Collegiate Institute, is a Toronto District School Board (TDSB) facility that formerly operated as an International Baccalaureate high school in Toronto, Ont ...

, where Higgins is now on the school'
"Hall of Fame"
Higgins earned his Bachelor of Arts degree

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

in English and Philosophy from

St. Francis Xavier University St. Francis Xavier University is a public undergraduate liberal arts university located in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a member of the Maple League, a group of primarily undergraduate universities in Eastern Canada. History St. Fran ...

(1970), a Masters of Arts in English from

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

(1971), a Bachelor of Education (Theatre Arts specialization) from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

(1974), a PhD from

(1979) with
thesis entitled ''Thomas Merton — the Silent-Speaking Poet: A Study of his Poetry''
a Doctor of Humane Letters (DHL) from

Sacred Heart University Sacred Heart University (SHU) is a private, Roman Catholic university in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1963 by Walter W. Curtis, Bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Sacred Heart was the first Catholi ...

(2008), and an honorary Laws Doctor (LL.D) from the

University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a Public university, public research university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is on of land adjacent to uptown Waterloo and Waterloo Park. The university also op ...

(2013).

Professional

Higgins also did graduate work in

Theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

at the University of St. Michael's College (

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

), later teaching English and Religious Studies (1974-1982 and 1981-1983) and English (1979-1982), at both the College School and the University College, before moving to St. Jerome's College in

Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is one of three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo (formerly Waterloo County, Ontario, Waterloo County). Waterloo is situated about west-southwest of Toronto, but it is n ...

(1982–2006). There, from 1989 to 1995 he served as Associate Dean, before becoming Academic Dean and Vice-President (1995–1999) and President and Vice-Chancellor (1999–2006). In 2006 Higgins became President and Vice-Chancellor, as well as Professor of English and Religious Studies at St. Thomas University in

Fredericton, New Brunswick Fredericton (; ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River (Bay of Fundy), Saint John River, ...

. In August 2009, eighteen months after a controversial lockout (before the faculty union had taken a strike vote) and subsequent strike, Higgins announced his resignation as President of St. Thomas, effective December 31, 2009. Four days later, on January 4, 2010, he commenced as a Visiting Senior Executive in Residence a
Sacred Heart University (SHU).
From 2010 - 2017, Higgins served as Vice President fo
SHU's Mission and Catholic Identity
department. In this role Higgins was responsible for leading initiatives that preserve, promote and integrate Catholic mission, vision and values throughout the University. He directed such programs at the Spidlik Center for Ecumenical Understanding as well as the new and developing Institute for Vatican II Studies. In 2012 Higgins was a Senior Fellow at

Massey College Massey College is the postgraduate University of Toronto#Colleges, college of the University of Toronto located at the University of Toronto#St. George campus, St. George campus in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The college was established, built and ...

. Higgins became the Distinguished Professor of Catholic Thought at SHU (2017-2020) before accepting the positions of Principal of St. Mark's College at UBC and President of Corpus Christi College (2020–2022). He is a Professor Emeritus of SHU, and an Affiliate Professor of Graduate Studies at the San Antonio Oblate School of Theology. He is also the Basilian Distinguished Fellow of Contemporary Catholic Thought, University of St. Michael's College, University ofToronto (2022-present). Higgins has been a columnist fo
''The Toronto Star''
''The Record'' (Kitchener-Waterloo), '' The Catholic Register'', ''The Telegraph-Journal'' (New Brunswick), ''

The Irish Catholic ''The Irish Catholic'' is a 40-page Irish weekly newspaper providing news and commentary about the Catholic Church. The newspaper is privately owned by editor-in-chief Garry O’Sullivan, managed by a private limited company and independent of ...

'' (Dublin), and is a regular contributor to ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'', ''Commonweal'' (New York), ''

The Tablet ''The Tablet'' is a Catholic Church, Catholic international weekly review published in London. Brendan Walsh, previously literary editor and then acting editor, was appointed editor in July 2017. History ''The Tablet'' was launched in 1840 by ...

'' (London, England) and '' The Literary Review of Canada''. He has been a documentarian/script writer for the CBC's ''Ideas'', ''Open Circuit'', ''Celebration'', and a regular commentator and analyst for CTV,

TVOntario TVO (stylized in all lowercase as tvo), formerly known as TVOntario, is a Canadian Public broadcasting, publicly funded English-language educational television network and media organization serving the Canadian province of Ontario. It operates ...

, and

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

networks, specifically with ''Morningside'' and ''Sunday'' ''Edition''. He is a Vatican Affairs analyst for CTV. Higgins' editorial responsibilities include Book Review Editor for the Catholic New Times (1981-1991), Poetry Editor for The New Quarterly (1983-1986), Advisory Editor for Gamut International and Arts and Media Editor for Grail: An Ecumenical Journal (1985-1987), Editor for Grail: An Ecumenical Journal (1987-1998), Advisory Board member for the University of Waterloo Magazine (1999-2006), and Editor of the John English Symposium on Ignatian Spirituality Interviews (July 19–21, 1999). In 2009, Higgins spoke out about the lifting of the excommunications of the bishops of the

Society of Saint Pius X The Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX; ("Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X"), FSSPX) is a canonically irregular traditionalist Catholic priestly fraternity founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. Lefebvre was a leading traditionalis ...

, saying bishop Richard Williamson must apologize for his negationist views or be expelled from the Roman Catholic Church. As a radio documentarian for the

, he has prepared more than 60 one-hour scripts for ''Ideas, Celebration, and Testament'', and has been a regular contributor to ''Morningside'', ''This Morning, Sunday Edition'', as well as to CTV's ''

Canada AM ''Canada AM'' is a Canadian morning television news show that aired on CTV from 1972 to 2016. Its final hosts were Beverly Thomson and Marci Ien, with Jeff Hutcheson presenting the weather forecast and sports. The program aired on weekdays, an ...

'' and to

TV Ontario TVO (stylized in all lowercase as tvo), formerly known as TVOntario, is a Canadian publicly funded English-language educational television network and media organization serving the Canadian province of Ontario. It operates flagship station ...

's ''Studio 2'' and ''Agenda''. Several of Higgins' programmes have been nominated and short-listed for public-broadcasting awards. Higgins was the main consultant for John McGreevy's six-hour television series, ''Sir Peter Ustinov's 'Inside the Vatican, and for John Bailey's film version of Ron Hansen's novel, '' Mariette in Ecstasy''. He has also served as a consultant for CBC's ''Man Alive,'' and was a writer and consultant for Knopf Canada on the publishing of Pope John Paul II's Crossing the Threshold of Hope. Higgins was working on
CBC documentary series
when, in April 2010, it was announced that he would serve as biographer of Henri J.M. Nouwen, the only biographical account of Nouwen's life and works to be authorized by Nouwen's Legacy Trust. In November 2010, Higgins released <
Suffer the Children Unto Me: An Open Inquiry into the Clerical Sex Abuse Scandal
/u>, which was co-authored with Peter Kavanagh. The book deals with the Roman Catholic Church's sexual abuse crisis in Canada and the media. The authors describe it as "an exploration of the modern sexual abuse scandal from a number of perspectives". The authors go beyond simply chronicling the issue and its players. They also carefully scrutinize how the media have both reported on and influenced the crisis. In June 2011 The Catholic Journalist, the newspaper of the

Catholic Press Association The Catholic Media Association, formerly the Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada, is an association of American and Canadian newspaper and media specialists specialized on reporting on the Catholic Church. Founded in 1911, it ...

of the United States & Canada, awarded the book first place in their category for gender issues. With the award the CPA stated that "The gift of this book is its clear, story-telling language and its richly nuanced entry into deeply troubling but necessary questions that involve media coverage, social mores, systemic and cultural factors, legal procedures, theological understandings, and institutional demands."

Trudeau's Spirituality

Higgins has been noted for his research on the spirituality of former Canadian Prime Minister

Pierre Elliott Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau (October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000) was a Canadian politician, statesman, and lawyer who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1984. Between his no ...

. Trudeau was a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

and attended church throughout his life. While mostly private about his beliefs, he made it clear that he was a believer. Trudeau maintained, however, that he preferred to impose constraints on himself rather than have them imposed from the outside. In this sense, he believed he was more like a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

than a Catholic of the era in which he was schooled. Higgins found that Trudeau's spirituality incorporated elements of three Catholic traditions. The first of these was the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

who provided his education up to the college level. Trudeau frequently displayed the logic and love of argument consistent with that tradition. A second great spiritual influence in Trudeau's life was Dominican. A third spiritual influence in Trudeau's spirituality was a

contemplative In a religious context, the practice of contemplation seeks a direct awareness of the divine which transcends the intellect, often in accordance with religious practices such as meditation or prayer. Etymology The word ''contemplation'' is de ...

aspect acquired from his association with the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

tradition. Trudeau was convinced of the centrality of

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

in a life fully lived, according to Higgins. He took retreats at Saint-Benoît-du-Lac, Quebec and regularly attended Hours and the

Eucharist The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an Ordinance (Christianity), ordinance in ...

at Montreal's Benedictine community.Higgins, M. 2004. "Defined by Spirituality", in English, J. Gwyn, R. Gwyn and P.W. Lackenbauer, eds. ''The Hidden Pierre Trudeau: The Faith Behind the Politics.'' Ottawa: Novalis. pgs. 26–30. Trudeau's spirituality, according to Higgins, "suffused, anchored, and directed his inner life. In no small part, it defined him."

Recognition

Among his awards are an

Ontario Arts Council The Ontario Arts Council (OAC) is a publicly funded Canadian organization in the province of Ontario whose purpose is to foster the creation and production of art for the benefit of all Ontarians. Based in Toronto, OAC was founded in 1963 by O ...

Award (1988 and 2001), Faith Today's ''God Uses Ink'' Award for Non-fiction (1999), the Queen's Jubilee Medal for Leadership and recognition as a 'notable alumnus' of

St. Michael's College School St. Michael's College School (also known as St. Michael's, St. Mike's, and SMCS), is an all-boys Catholic private school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Administered by the Congregation of St. Basil, it is the largest school of its kind in Canada ...

. He has been listed in the Canadian Who's Who (1997), was named among TVO's 'Top Ten Lecturers of Ontario' (2005) and was a Senior Fellow at Massey College at the University of Toronto in 2012. His CBC Ideas series "Genius Born of Anguish" won the New York Festivals' gold medal in 2013. He has won several book awards from the Catholic Press Association (First Prize for Suffer the Children in 2011, Second Prize for Genius Born of Anguish in 2013 and Impressively Free in 2020), and from the Association of Catholic Publishers (First Prize for Genius Born of Anguish in 2013). Higgins was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Human Letters from Sacred Heart University (2008), and an Honorary

Doctorate of Laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

from the University of Waterloo (2013). He had been nominated by the publisher for the Governor-General's Award in non-fiction (1990, ''My Father's Business''). With co-author Kevin Burns, Higgins received the second place award for sacraments for ''Impressively Free: Henri Nouwen as a Model for a Reformed Priesthood'' from the Catholic Press Association's 2020 Catholic Media Conference. In 2020, Dr. Higgins received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from his alma mater St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia. Higgins was named an Honorary Citizen of the Commune di Grimaldi, Provincia de Conzena, Italia in the spring of 2003, and inducted as an Honorary Member of the Honour Society of Jesuit Institutions of Higher Education

Alpha Sigma Nu Alpha Sigma Nu () is the honor society of Jesuit colleges and universities. Founded in 1915 at Marquette University as Alpha Sigma Tau, it adopted the current name in 1930. The society is open to both men and women of every academic discipline ...

in 2003. Dr. Higgins was Knighted by Aloysius Cardinal Ambrozic as a member of the

Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre Order of the Holy Sepulchre or Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre may refer to: * Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Catholic), chivalric order belonging to the Holy See (the Roman Catholic Church) * Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Orthodox), chivalric ...

at St. Michael's Cathedral in September 2004, and was promoted to the rank of Knight Commander in October 2008.

Publications

Higgins is the author or editor of over a dozen books, including:
The Church Needs the Laity: The Wisdom of John Henry Newman
Paulist Press, 2021.
Impressively Free: Henri Nouwen as a Model for a Reformed Priesthood
co-authored with Kevin Burns, Paulist/Novalis, 2019. *<
Introducing John Moriarty in His Own Words
/u>, co-edited with Sean Aherne, with introduction by Michael W. Higgins, Dublin: Lilliput Press, 2019. *"Foreword," <
Stray Devotions: Prayers, Poems and Intercessions from the Bench
/u>, by James Clarke. Toronto: Novalis, 2018. *<
Jean Vanier: Logician of the Heart
/u>, Liturgical Press/Novalis, 2016. *<
The Unquiet Monk: Thomas Merton's Questing Faith
/u>, New York: Orbis, 2015. *Faith and Literature Matters, edited with introduction by Michael W. Higgins, Toronto: Novalis, 2014. *<
Thomas Merton: Faithful Visionary
/u>, Collegeville: Liturgical Press , 2014. (Published in German by Verlag Katholisches Bibelwerk in 2015 and scheduled to appear in Italian by Libreria Editrice Vaticana in 2017.) *<
Genius Born of Anguish: The Life and Legacy of Henri Nouwen
/u>, by Michael W. Higgins and Kevin Burns, Ottawa/New York: Paulist/Novalis, 2012. *<
Vatican II: A Universal Call to Holiness
/u>, edited by Anthony Ciorra and Michael W. Higgins, New York: Paulist Press, 2012. *<
Suffer the Children Unto Me: An Open Inquiry into the Clerical Sex Abuse Scandal
/u>, co-authored with Peter Kavanagh, Toronto: Novalis/Bayard Publishing, 2010. *"Afterword", <
Names of Blessing
/u>, by Pier Giorgio Di Cicco, Toronto: Novalis, 2009. *<
Stalking the Holy: In Pursuit of Saint-Making
/u>, Toronto: House of Anansi, 2006. *<
Pope John Paul II: Connecting to Canadians
/u>, foreword by Michael W. Higgins, Toronto: Wiley/Canadian Press, 2005. *<
Power and Peril: The Catholic Church at the Crossroads
/u>, co-authored with Douglas R. Letson, Toronto: HarperCollins. 2002. *"Foreword", <
Sex and Marriage in the Catholic Tradition
/u>, edited by Douglas R. Letson, Ottawa: Novalis, 2001, pp. 11–18. *"Foreword", <
The Future of Religion
/u>, by Bob Harvey, Novalis, 2001, pp. 7–9. *<
Soundings: Conversations About Catholicism
/u>, co-authored with Douglas R. Letson, Ottawa: Novalis, 2000. *<
The Muted Voice: Religion and the Media
/u>, Ottawa: Novalis, 2000. *
Heretic Blood: An Audiobiography of Thomas Merton
', (CBC Audio Cassettes) 1999. *<
Heretic Blood: The Spiritual Geography of Thomas Merton
/u>, Toronto: Stoddart, September, 1998. [U.S. edition in 1999; Sangue Eretico: La Geografia Spirituale di Thomas Merton (Garzanti) Italian (2001) and French edition ''Thomas'' Merton: La voie Spirituelle d'un hérétique (Bellarmin) (2000)]. *<
The Jesuit Mystique
/u>, co-authored with Douglas R. Letson, Toronto: Macmillan, 1995; London: HarperCollins, 1995; Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1995. *Catholic Education—Transforming Our World: A Canadian Perspective, co-edited with Trafford, McGowan and Murphy, Ottawa: Novalis, 1991. *<
My Father's Business: a biography of G. Emmett Cardinal Carter
/u>, co-authored with Douglas R. Letson, Toronto: Macmillan, 1990. *<
"How Can We Sorrow"?--Essays on the Resurrection
/u>, edited by Michael W. Higgins, Waterloo: University of St. Jerome's College Press, 1989. *<
Women and the Church: A Sourcebook
/u>, co-edited with Douglas R. Letson, Toronto: Griffin House, 1986. *<
Portraits of Canadian Catholicism
/u>, co-authored with Douglas R. Letson, Toronto: Griffin House, 1986. *<
Thomas Merton: Pilgrim in Process
/u>, co-authored/edited with Donald Grayston, Toronto: Griffin House, 1983. Higgins' named lecture series include: * Christian Culture Lecture, Assumption University, October 8, 2000: "Spirituality as Subversion: Chicken Soup be Damned". *The Swanson Lectures in Spirituality, University of Calgary, September 21–24, 2000. *1998 Elizabeth Seton Lecturer, Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, September 30 - October 1, 1998: "Religion and the Canadian Media". *Graduate Association's Lecturer (1995), St. Jerome's University, October 13, 1995: "Sexual Politics vs. Papal Politics: Never the Twain Shall Meet?". *Christian Culture Lecturer, Campion College, University of Regina, January 26–27, 1995: "Thomas Merton and the Jesuit Poets"; "Ruminations on the Writing Life". *Christian Culture Lecturer, Assumption University and the University of Windsor, February 5, 1989: "Autobiography as a Mode of Theological Inquiry: Muggeridge, White and Newman". *Keenan Lecturer, St. Thomas More College, University of Saskatchewan, last week of October and first week of November, 1988: several lectures given for the Departments of English, Philosophy and Religious Studies, as well as the Keenan Memorial Lecture "The Making and Re-Making: The Many Masks of Thomas Merton " ublished lecture series *Columbus Day Lecturer, Brock University, October 14, 1986: "The Laity and the Kairos". *University of St. Dunstan's and the University of Prince Edward Island's Department of English and Religious Studies co-sponsorship, November 24 and 25, 1983: "Thomas Merton, Humanist", "Thomas Merton, Diarist", "Thomas Merton, Mystic". * Higgins has also published over 60 articles, essays, film reviews and book reviews (general and academic). He is credited with over 75 published interviews, documentaries, dramas, and radio and television commentaries (including appearances on CTV's

CBC Newsworld CBC News Network (formerly CBC Newsworld) is a Canadian English-language specialty news channel owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). It is Canada's first all-news channel, and the world's third-oldest television service of this ...

, CBC Radio's Ideas and a CBS Washington Special. Higgins also provided the ethical and humanistic perspective on the Discovery Channel's @discovery.ca twice per month, along with Dr. Pauline Mazumdar, Dr. Kee Dewdney, Rob Sawyer and

Jay Ingram Jay Ingram Order of Canada, CM (born March 20, 1945) is a Canadian author, broadcaster and science communicator. He was host of the television show ''Daily Planet (TV series), Daily Planet'' (originally titled ''@discovery.ca''), which aired on ...

.Dr. Michael W. Higgins Curriculum Vitae, St. Thomas University, July 20, 2009, accessed at http://w3.stu.ca/stu/administrative/president/_content/pdfs/DrMichaelWHigginsCurriculumVitae20090720.pdf on March 4, 2010.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Higgins, Michael William 1948 births Living people University of Toronto alumni Sacred Heart University faculty Canadian expatriates in the United States Fairfield University faculty Canadian people of Irish descent Canadian university and college chief executives Members of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre Members of the Order of Canada