born 1940 in Berlin, since 1981 Professor for Social Ethics at the Faculty for Catholic Theology, University of Tuebingen. He studied Philosophy, Theology and Literature. PhD (Theology, 1968, Wuerzburg), Habilitation (Theol. Ethics, 1974, Tuebingen).

He was 1974-1981 Full Professor and Director oft he Institute for Moral Theology (Fribourg, Switzerland).

He prepared and organized the Interdepartmental Center for Ethics in the Sciences and in the Humanities at the University of Tuebingen (since 1985) and was the first Leading Director of this Center (1990-2001).

He was member of different Advisory Groups in Ethics (at the European Commission, Brussels, 1994-2000, at the European Council ( Strasbourg, 1999-2003), at the Federal Ministry of Health (Berlin, 1999-2002), at the German „Bundestag“ (Enquete-Committee „Ethics and Right in Modern Medicine, 2002-2005) at the German Bishops Conference (2001--).

He was longtime (1978-2001) Director at the Board of the International Theological Journal CONCILIUM, published in six Languages.

Since 1969 he was engaged also in Questions of so called „Narrative Ethics“, which he founded by two Books in 1976.

Engaged also in Ethics and Genetics since 1969, he directed the „European Network of Biomedical Ethics“, funded by the EU (1996-1999), and he was Member of the Transatlantic Research Group on Ethics in Human Genetics, funded by the Porticus Foundation (1997-2001).

He directed different Research Projects, funded by the „Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft“. His research Projects produced a big number of Monographies and Papers.

His is Member and also President of Different Scientific Advisory Boards, among them two Ethical Institutes in Berlin. He is Member of different European and German Scientific Societies and Editorial Boards in the Areas of Theology, Social Ethics and Bioethics.

His research in the last years is concentrated on Fundamental Questions of Human Dignity in Social Ethics, especially in the field of Ethics in the Sciences. In addition, he remains since his Doctor dissertation with a lot of publications engaged in the Philosophical Theology of Meister Eckhart and he is now President of the German Meister Eckhart Society.

Grants and Awards: He received Scholarships oft he „Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes“ (Postgraduate), from the „Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft“ (Habilitation), awards fort he best Doctor dissertation (Wuerzburg 1968), from Church and Sports (Ludwig Wolker relief 1998) for the Promotion of Women in the Center for Ethics (Tuebingen 2000) and the „Bundesverdienstkreuz“ (Cross of Merit oft he Federal Republic of Germany, 2007). He was also Guest Professor in Zuerich and in Nijmegen.