Christopher J. Ruff, STL

Christopher studied 7 years in Rome, earning Bachelor's degrees in Philosophy and Theology from the Angelicum and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from the John Paul II Institute for Marriage and the Family. He studied under one of the Church’s great contemporary moral theologians, the late Cardinal Carlo Caffarra, and translated his book on that subject (Living in Christ) from Italian into English for Ignatius Press.  He had the joy of meeting Pope St. John Paul II and St. Teresa of Calcutta several times. While in Rome he also worked as a translator for the English edition of the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, translating many of Pope John Paul II’s talks from Italian, and as official English translator for two Synods of Bishops.

 
Parish and Diocesan ministry have been Christopher's vocation for nearly 30 years, and he has been Director of the Office for Ministries and Social Concerns for the Diocese of La Crosse since 2001.  In addition to authoring the Discipleship series, he has written for the National Catholic Register, Our Sunday Visitor Newsweekly, Columbia magazine and other publications, and taught as an adjunct faculty member of the former Institute for Pastoral Theology of Ave Maria University. He is also a Catholic leadership team consultant with Evangelium Consulting Group. 

He and his wife Clare have been blessed with three wonderful sons, three lovely daughters (one through marriage to their eldest), and two adorable grandchildren. They make their home in La Crescent, MN.