ATLANTA—The former U.S. envoy to the Holy See is scheduled to speak at Emory University as part of the Major Catholic Speaker series. He is the fifth annual Catholic speaker brought to campus by the Aquinas Center for Theology, in collaboration with Emory University’s Candler School of Theology.

Miguel Diaz, Ph.D., will give a talk on the theme, “Through Hispanic Eyes: God, International Relations, and the Common Good.” Among the topics he will address are: What can the doctrine of the Trinity and Latino/a theology contribute to international relations and the urgent task to advance the common good? Central to the contemporary retrieval of the doctrine of the Trinity is the notion of relationship with others—the practice of hospitality—that constitutes who God is and who people are called to become in God’s image.

Aquinas Center Director Phillip Thompson said Diaz’s insights on human rights will interest Catholics who want to be informed about the global church.

He said Catholic Hispanic theology isn’t well known.

“When we think of Hispanics and Catholics the temptation is to focus only on immigration issues or Our Lady of Guadalupe. These are very important but there is also a very profound Hispanic spirituality and theology beyond these realities,” he said in an email. “Given that over half the archdiocese is Hispanic, it is imperative that we recognize and cherish the special contributions and insights of this dimension of our faith.”

Diaz, who served as ambassador to the Holy See for President Obama, is a theologian with an expertise in the Hispanic Catholic experience. He was the first Latino to serve as ambassador. He served from 2009 before he stepped down in 2012.

He has served on the board of the Catholic Theological Society of America and was the president of the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the United States.

Diaz now serves as the university professor of faith and culture at the University of Dayton, Ohio.

The author of numerous works, he wrote “On Being Human: U.S. Hispanic and Rahnerian Perspectives,” which received the Hispanic Theological Initiative’s 2002 Book of the Year award from Princeton Theological Seminary. He also co-edited “From the Heart of Our People: Latino/a Explorations in Catholic Systematic Theology.”