Karl Paul Donfried

Karl Paul Donfried is an American theologist.

He is Elizabeth A. Woodson Professor Emeritus of Religion and Biblical Literature at Smith College.

Donfried was born in New York City and graduated from the prep school Trinity School. He went to college at Columbia University (B.A. 1960) and Harvard Divinity School (B.D. 1963 under G. Ernest Wright). Donfried was ordained by the Lutheran Church in America on June 5, 1963, and went on to earn graduate degrees from Union Theological Seminary (S.T.M. 1965 under W. D. Davies) and the University of Heidelberg (Dr. theol. 1968 under Günther Bornkamm).