Matilde Kathleen Moros

Dr. Matilde Moros (Mati) passed away peacefully on August 10, 2023 after a three year struggle with cancer.

Matilde Moros was born in Maracaibo, Venezuela to a Venezuelan father and US American mother, both of whom were educators and Presbyterian ministers, and grew up between the US and Venezuela within a bilingual, bicultural, community-oriented and open-minded home.

From a very young age, Mati was always active in and concerned with social justice, human rights, and faith-based solidarity and outreach to those most in need, particularly within Latin America. Throughout her life, Mati maintained a warm, open and loving outlook toward people in general, which in part resulted from a deeply pastoral and caring view of human relations, as well as her own innate depth of perception and empathy.

Following her undergraduate studies which she completed at College of Wooster, and where Mati met her future spouse, John, they embarked on mission work in both Colombia and Venezuela, working with several church and education communities at the grass roots level, commissioned by the PCUSA. Mati earned a Master of Divinity (MDiv) degree in 2005 from the Princeton Theological Seminary, a Master of Theological Studies (MTS) degree in 1996 from the Harvard University Divinity School, Master of Philosophy and a PhD in 2014 in Religion and Society (with a concentration in Ethics) from Drew University. She held faculty appointments at Drew University, Princeton University, and the New Brunswick Theological Seminary. During this time, Mati also welcomed the birth of her 3 children with John, as well as an ever-expanding community of friends, colleagues and mentors.

Mati was always active in church life, and was an ordained Elder in the Presbyterian Church (USA). In addition to her mission work in Colombia and Venezuela, frequently accepting liturgical requests in various churches where she was active, Mati also did significant work with PC(USA), several Latin American Universities and Seminaries, including leading workshops, participating in conferences, and publishing scholarly work. Most notably, Mati was a key figure in the Presbyterian Church’s (USA) development of the Belhar Confession which affirms the church's commitment to justice and equality for all people. The Belhar Confession has been adopted by many churches around the world, and it continues to be a powerful witness for justice and peace.

Most recently, Mati was a celebrated associate professor in the Department of Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. As a professor she saw and worked to fulfill not only the intellectual needs of her students, but also their emotional, psychological, and personal needs. Among her many professional achievements and contributions, Mati collaborated on numerous academic and theological publications, workshops, training events, as well as conferences.

Mati is survived by her spouse, John Taylor; her children, Alexa, Omar and Ali; her father, Edgar; her siblings, Edgar Jr. and Donna, her sister in law, Glenda, her nephew, David, and niece, Isabella; her father-in-law, Robert Taylor; her brothers in law, Cary and Cory Booker; Aunts and Uncles on both sides of her family, and numerous cousins.

In her most intimate family life, as well as in her professional and spiritual relationships, Mati was always caring, fiercely loyal and protective; and was quick to celebrate one's successes, as well as embracing their losses and difficulties with equal passion. Above all, Mati always knew in her heart that she wanted to have children of her own, a role she undertook with dedication, strength and a deeply loving devotion.

A Memorial Service in remembrance and celebration of Mati’s life will be held at Ginter Park Presbyterian Church in Richmond, VA, on Saturday, October 7th at 10:00am. The service will be live streamed via the following link for those wishing to attend but who cannot physically join in this service: https://www.youtube.com/@GinterParkPC/streams. A recording of the service will be available on the Youtube page afterwards.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you offer donations to:

The Hispanic Theological Initiative (HTI) via https://tns-apps.ptsem.edu/onlinegiving/giftformhti.aspx

Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies via https://www.support.vcu.edu/give/fund?fund=3935

Please select "This gift is a tribute" and indicate the donation is in honor of Dr. Mati Moros. All tribute donations will be utilized to support students.