Uta Ranke-Heinemann

German theologian and author (1927–2021)

Uta Ranke Heinemann (2 October 1927 – 25 March 2021) was a German theologian, academic, and author. In 1969, she was the first woman in the world to be habilitated in Catholic theology. She held a chair of ancient Church history and the New Testament at the University of Duisburg Essen. When her license to teach was revoked by the bishop because of her critical position in matters of faith, the university created a nondenominational chair of History of Religion. Her 1988 book Eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven, criticising the Catholic Church's stance on women and sexuality, was published in several editions, and translated in 12 languages. Her 1992 book Nein und Amen, revised in 2002, said there were "fairy tales you don't need to believe to have a living faith".

Uta Heinemann was born in Essen; her parents were Calvinist Protestants. Her father Gustav Heinemann was to become the third President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1969 as a first member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) in the position. She was an excellent student, the only girl accepted at the de, where she passed the Abitur with distinction. Heinemann converted to Catholicism in 1953, One of her fellow students and a friend at that time was Joseph Ratzinger, later known as Pope Benedict XVI. In 1969, Ranke Heinemann became the first woman in the world to be habilitated in Catholic theology, The University of Essen created a new chair for her, for History of Religion.