Frederick Herzog, a professor in the Divinity School, died suddenly Monday morning while attending a Divinity School faculty and staff meeting.
The cause of death was not immediately determined.
Colleagues and former students of Herzog, 69, said that they will greatly miss Herzog's presence.
"Students knew him to be a very kind, gentle, warm and caring professor," said Harmon Smith, a professor in the Divinity School. "He was beloved by his students and respected by his colleagues."
Students cited the way in which Herzog's life reflected his faith and love of scholarship as a source of inspiration.
"He was a man who embodied the academic discipline and the love of Christ for everyone he met, particularly the poor," said Para Drake, a third-year student in the Divinity School. "Love and scholarship is what he embodied for me."
T.J. O'Rear, a third-year student in the Divinity School, said that in a time when many criticize Christians for hypocrisy, Herzog was a man who lived by what he believed.
Herzog was widely known for his pioneering work in the field of liberation theology, which deals with the liberation of oppressed people.
"Fred Herzog was a devoted Christian scholar who always held both himself and [the Divinity School] faculty accountable to its tradition by bringing before us the voice of the poor and the oppressed," said Dennis Campbell, dean of the Divinity School. Herzog also taught courses in Christian theology, historical theology and prayer and contemplation.
In forging many connections between the University and other countries, Herzog demonstrated an immense commitment to internationalization efforts, Drake said.
"He was an incredible bridge builder," said Priscilla Pope-Levison, an assistant professor in the Divinity School and a former student of Herzog. "He was an incredible visionary of bringing people together from diverse contexts to work on problems in our world."
He was responsible for developing exchange programs between the Divinity School and both the University of Bonn and the Methodist Seminary in Lima, Peru. He was also heavily involved in the civil rights movement of the 1960's.
Herzog was educated at Bonn and Basel Universities. He received his masters and doctoral degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary and did post-graduate work at the Universities of Strasbourg and Tubingen. A widely published author, he produced works such as "Liberation Theology," "Justice Church" and "God-Walk: Liberation Shaping Dogmatics," which was shaped by his dealings with the black church and his involvement in the civil rights movement.
He is survived by his wife, daughter, son-in-law, granddaughter and sister. The funeral will be held on Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Pilgrim United Church of Christ in Durham, where he was an active member. Memorial contributions may be made to the Divinity School's Peru scholarship fund.
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