# Sandra M. Schneiders

Sandra Marie Schneiders, I.H.M., is an American biblical scholar and theologian. She is a member of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary of Monroe, Michigan, and a professor emerita of New Testament Studies and Christian Spirituality at the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University.

## Education and Career

Sandra Schneiders was born in Chicago, the second of seven children. Her father, a professor of psychology, and her mother, a homemaker and academic secretary, fostered an environment that valued both intellectual work and faith.
After completing her first year of college at St. Joseph’s in Maryland, she entered the I.H.M. congregation in 1955, fulfilling what she describes as a lifelong certainty about her vocation. She continued her undergraduate studies at Marygrove College, majoring in sociology and social sciences. While already teaching, she completed her graduate studies at the University of Detroit. In 1968, her congregation sent her to Paris to complete her education with a Licentiate in Theology from the Institut Catholique.
Upon her return, she resumed her role at Marygrove College, this time as a professor of theology, before traveling to Rome to pursue a doctorate in Sacred Theology at the Gregorian University. Specializing in biblical studies, she developed a particular expertise in the Gospel of John and biblical hermeneutics. Her research interests also expanded to spirituality, with a focus on the history and theology of religious life.
With her theological training complete, Dr. Schneiders moved to California, where she has served since 1976 as a professor of New Testament Studies and Spirituality at the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley—now part of Santa Clara University and member of the Graduate Theological Union. There, she has played a key role in advancing the study of Christian spirituality as an academic field.

## Theological Views

One of Schneiders’ central contributions is the description of the scripture's function of “revelatory text.” How can the Bible act upon the reader, not just as an ancient document but as a medium through which contemporary readers encounter divine revelation? She draws from philosophical hermeneutics (Gadamer, Ricœur) to argue that understanding scripture involves a fusion of horizons—the horizon of the ancient text and that of the present-day reader.
Schneiders argues for a hermeneutical model that integrate the historical-critical method, literary criticism, and an appropriative (or transformative) aspect. She challenges purely historical approaches, which could risk treating the text as a relic of the past, and instead promotes a dynamic interaction between the text and contemporary readers. Both fundamentalist approaches, which ignore historical complexity, and purely historical-critical approaches are insufficient to account for the changes that the text mediates in the life of the interpreter.
Schneiders emphasizes that interpreting scripture is not a purely intellectual exercise; rather, it is experiential and transformative. She argues that believers engage scripture existentially, in a way that shapes their lives and faith commitments. Schneiders aims to recover a tradition that sees scripture as formative, not just informative.
Schneiders’ overall scholarship also reflects a feminist hermeneutical sensitivity, questioning patriarchal biases in traditional biblical interpretation. She is attentive to the ethical and spiritual dimensions of scriptural engagement, making room for marginalized voices.

## Recognition

In 2006, a volume of essays was published in her honor.

## Selected works

* Jesus Risen in Our Midst: Essays on the Resurrection of Jesus in the Fourth Gospel. Liturgical Press, 2013.
* Beyond Patching: Faith and Feminism in the Catholic Church. 2nd edition. Paulist Press, 2004.
* Written That You May Believe: Encountering Jesus in the Fourth Gospel. Revised and Expanded Edition. Crossroad, 2003.
* Selling All: Commitment, Consecrated Celibacy, and Community in Catholic Religious Life. Religious Life in a New Millennnium, vol. 2. Paulist Press, 2001.
* Finding the Treasure: Locating Catholic Religious Life in a New Ecclesial and Cultural Context. Religious Life in a New Millennium, vol. 1. Paulist Press, 2000.
* The Revelatory Text: Interpreting the New Testament as Sacred Scripture. 2nd edition. Liturgical Press, 1999.
* Women and the Word: The Gender of God in the New Testament and the Spirituality of Women. Paulist Press, 1986.