Rev. James J. Gill, 78; Counselor, Writer on Psychosexual Issues

The Rev. James J. Gill, 78, a Jesuit priest and psychiatrist at the Institute of Living in Hartford, Conn., who has published and lectured widely on psychosexual issues, died of cancer July 29 in Scottsdale, Ariz.

A native of Tacoma, Wash., who was ordained in 1957 and received his medical degree from Marquette University Medical School in 1963, Gill served as a psychiatrist at Harvard University Health Services from 1969 to 1994.

In 1979, he and colleague Linda Amadeo established the Jesuit Education Center for Human Development in Cambridge, Mass., to publish the journal Human Development. The quarterly publication, of which Gill was editor in chief until last spring, brings together the insights of theology, spirituality and the social sciences to assist church leaders in the work of renewal.

In 1989, he became a psychiatrist and senior consultant to the Retreat Service Unit of the Institute of Living, assisting priests, religious professionals and others. He continued as a part-time consultant until the time of his death.

Nine years ago, he helped establish the Christian Institute for the Study of Human Sexuality, a program designed to help seminary teachers counsel future priests about sexual matters.