Michael Balboni, Ph.D., Th.M., M.Div, is a congregational pastor and theologian. He has served both as a congregational minister in Boston and an intentional Christian community of healthcare students and professionals. He holds a Ph.D. in practical theology from Boston University and completed post-doctoral training at the Harvard School of Public Health and at Harvard Divinity School. As an Instructor at Harvard Medical School and a palliative care researcher he has published approximately fifty articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals. As a theologian, his focus has included the development of a theology of medicine and a concentration in the theological underpinnings related spiritual care in a pluralistic, secular medical context. With Tracy Balboni, he has co-authored "Hostility to Hospitality: Spirituality and Professional Socialization in Medicine” (Oxford University Press). The book explores a theology of medicine, including its decline through secularization, and hope for renewal through faith communities. He is also the co-editor of "Spirituality and Religion Within the Culture of Medicine" (Oxford University Press). His current book project, also with Tracy Balboni, entitled “Dancing with Lois”, focuses on Jesus’ call for spiritual leadership and sacrifice in the accompaniment and care for the seriously ill a dying.