E. David de Leon

A photo of E. David de Leon, a doctoral student in the systematic studies track in the Theology Department at Fordham University

Education

B.A. - University of California, Berkeley, 2009

M.Div. - Yale Divinity School, 2021

Biography

E. David de Leon resides in New York City with his two sons and wife. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, he is a child of Pilipino immigrants. His research examines Christian doctrines of providence and eschatology as deployed in colonial, imperial, and civilizing projects with a particular eye toward histories of Spanish and American colonialism in the Philippines and the lives of diasporic Pilipinos. His additional research interests include postcolonial and decolonial theory, psychoanalysis and its extension into ideas like racial melancholia, Asian American studies, Pilipinx American studies, and more. He thinks, writes, and teaches along the lines of Asian American and Pilipino American theology. He has extensive experience in Christian ministry settings, with over 12 years in university campus ministry work, immersion learning programs, and church music ministry. Now in his fifth year at Fordham, he is an instructor for Faith & Critical Reason, teaching a class that attempts to forge a productive relationship between religious studies and theology.

David is a runner, an avid cook, and is a fan of carbohydrates in solid and liquid forms. He is an experienced bread baker whose sourdough starter is now almost a decade old. His favorite ice cream flavor is Pistachio from Arethusa in New Haven, CT.

Student’s publications/awards/presentations include:

PAPER PRESENTATIONS

  • "Liberation and Providence: Decolonial Trajectories in the Work of Gustavo Gutiérrez,” Christian Systematic Theology Unit, American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting; Boston, MA (November 2025)
  • “American Imperial Liturgy: Manifesting the Destiny of the Civilized Filipino,” Imperial Sacraments and the Struggle for the Sacred Panel Presentation, Asian Pacific American Religions Research Initiative (APARRI) Conference; Berkeley, CA. (June 2025)
  • “Chinese Mestizos in the Spanish Colonial Era: Problematizing Nationalistic Conceptions of Filipino Identity,” Legacies of Spanish Colonialism Session; Religion, Colonialism, and Postcolonialism Unit, American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting; San Diego, CA (November 2024)
  • “On the Limits and Possibilities of Kapwa as a Theological Resource,” Kapwa, Solidarity, and Filipino American Theology: A Critical and Constructive Exploration Panel Presentation, Asian Pacific American Religions Research Initiative (APARRI) Conference; Berkeley, CA. (June 2024)
  • “Pilipinx/a/o American Theological Imagination: Making Meaning Beyond Colonial Mentality;” Beyond Colonial Mentality: Reclaiming Pilipinx/a/o American Radicality Panel Presentation, Asian Pacific American Religions Research Initiative (APARRI) Conference; Berkeley, CA. (June 2023)
  • “Communities in Context: Insights from Marginalized Communities about Christian Witness in the Public Sphere;” co-authored with Nikki Toyama-Szeto; Stott-Bediako Forum 2022. (October 2022)

INVITED TALKS

  • “Politicized Asian Americans & Moving Beyond the Nostalgia for Lost Origins,” Discipleship in Diaspora Dialogue, Center for Asian American Christianity, Princeton Theological Seminary. (November 2023)

PEER-REVIEWED ARTICLES

“Christology & Colonial Mentality: Sketching Liberation for Filipino Americans,” ChristianityNext, Vol. 8, 32-55 (Winter 2024)

BOOK CHAPTERS

         “Exchanging Adobo Recipes: The Ingredients and Flavors of Filipino-American

Theological Anthropologies,” with co-authored with Dave de la Fuente, Constructive Theological Anthropologies Book Project, co-eds.  Lakisha R. Lockhart-Rusch, Oluwatomisin Olayinka Oredein. (forthcoming)

“Postcolonial Theological Anthropology,” Constructive Christian Theology from a Postcolonial Perspective, ed. Eleazar S. Fernandez. (forthcoming)

“Beyond Ontological Kapwa: God-Talk & the Making of our Filipino American

Selves,” Religious/Theological Voices of Filipino/a Americans and Diaspora Filipinos/as in the United States of America, co eds. Eleazar S. Fernandez, Lester J. Ruiz. (forthcoming)

“Knowing Our Names,” “Being Asian American,” Learning Our Names, ed. Sabrina Chan, IVPress (Trade book; Published August 2022)

AWARDS

  • Doctoral Fellowship for Latino/a, Asian and First Nations Doctoral Students, Forum for Theological Exploration (FTE) (2023-2024)