« Barry's New Brain | Main | A Civil Partnership Falls Short »

Fr Jenkins defends the indefenisble by saying: "You cannot change the world if you shun the people you want to persuade."

Hey, padre. I got news for you: By inviting Obama you are not going to persuade him to change his mind on abortion. Not at all. Not even an iota. So you might as well find a new excuse

And in the spirit of Obama's appeasement "Touchdown Jesus" has been replaced at Notre Dame with "Touchdown Allah"

My reaction as an alum of the University of Notre Dame:

There are two aspects to Obama's commencement invitation: him giving a commencement address and him being given an honorary law degree. The 2004 US Bishop’s statement instructs:

The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.

I think it debatable as to whether Obama, in giving the commencement address, is being given a platform which would suggest support for his actions, especially since he will be sharing the stage and podium with pro-life-to-the-core Mary Ann Glendon (who is receiving a much higher honor, the Laetare medal, than Obama) and Fr. Jenkins. One could argue that he is being given such a platform, and should therefore be denied it; in response, one could reply that one has no idea what he is going to say, and follow that by invoking "academic freedom" and "role of dissent" - terms that make debate almost impossible, as you soon find yourself splitting hairs as to what those terms actually mean: Been there, done that, slammed head against wall. It is a debate that would go round and round, and I have no interest whatsoever in engaging in debates that will bear no fruit - it may allow me to feel good and bask in the glow of like-minded individuals, but would only harden the resolve of my opponents and give them plenty of ammunition. So I would hold my tongue, and if I were attending, bring a "I am thankful my unwed teen-aged mom didn’t have a 'choice' in 1967, or else I would not be here to pay taxes" sign to the commencement.

However, it is not debatable at all that Obama, in being awarded an honorary law degree, is being given an honor which would suggest support for his view of law and its application, especially in regards to legally unsound and morally reprehensible Roe decision. Protesting this is a cause I will pursue with great fervor. As such, I...

a) ...am signing the petition put forward by the Sycamore Trust, a group dedicated to preserving Notre Dame's Catholic identity, of which I am a member.

b) ...have composed my own letter of concern and protest that will be sent to ND's president, Fr. Jenkins.

c) ...spent Sunday afternoon compiling a list of addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers of Board of Trustees members at the request of William Dempsey, president of the Sycamore Trust. Each of these folks will receive the letter I am sending Fr. Jenkins.

d) ...will contact the Law school, to inquire as to what role they played (if any) in the decision to award this honorary degree to Obama. I have a hunch that this was not their initiative, but I'd like to know. If it was, they'll be getting a letter from me also.

As a faithful Catholic, strident pro-lifer, and enthusiastic alumnus of Notre Dame, I am attempting to be faithful to all three while being careful not to play into the hands of those who harbor contempt for any or all of them.

Van Helsing, please allow me to post a preemptive response to those who will join in the "Notre Dame is not a Catholic university anymore" chorus:

Notre Dame is university that is struggling to be both a Catholic university and premier academic and research university. Notre Dame is not Georgetown or Boston College, both of which are premier academic and research universities, but whose Catholic identity is so tenuous that they cannot even decide whether to put crucifixes in their classrooms without lengthy discernment and plenty of wailing and gnashing of teeth. Notre Dame is also not Christendom College or Franciscan University of Steubenville, whose Catholic identity, on a scale from 1 to 10, could be measured at about 28, but could not by any stretch of imagination be referred to as premier academic and research institutions, and - in my experience - tend to produce graduates who have a marked difficulty interacting with those who do not believe and practice their faith at their level of fervor.

During my years as a student, the theology department was a primary point of criticism due to the tenure of Richard McBrien, the enfant terrible of Catholic theological studies. He was replaced as department head in 90's, and his role has diminished greatly. ND’s theology (under the leadership of Fr. John Cavadini since 1997-8), philosophy, business, history, architecture, and law schools have all received favorable notices in Catholic education circles, as has engineering (though issues pertaining to Catholic thought and teaching don’t really come up very much). Their Center for Ethics and Culture recently created a hugely ambitious pro-life fund (as noted by First Things), and the ND Pro-Life club is absolutely enormous and extremely active. There are plenty of folks on the faculty and the Board of Trustees that not only see no conflict between being a truly Catholic university and a premier academic and research university, but believe that they mutually strengthen each other. I could provide a list of outstanding Catholic scholars at ND, as well as those who are not Catholic but fully support the Catholic identity and mission of the school.

However, ND's faculty and BOT also has within its ranks a cadre of individuals who view Catholic identity as a detriment to excellence in academics and research. (They also view having a nationally competitive football team with disdain, but that is another discussion for another time.) Such a prejudice is rather prevalent in the higher echelons of academia, which for more than a century and a half has accepted as its default premise the prevalence of an intrinsic conflict between science and religion, and hence reason and religion. While modern historians of science, law, and economics refute this premise, such scholarship does not receive wide mainstream attention, and old prejudices die hard.

As is also common, those in dissent from the majority are often the most active; in academia, these are the ones who take the most interest in getting on the faculty senate, who make the most noise in regards to hiring decisions, and are most active in recruiting like-minded colleagues. As a result, Notre Dame’s faculty senate is comprised of a strong majority of faculty whose views on faculty hiring and university identity do not reflect the majority of the entire faculty. It has been this way for at least 15 years now.

Though Fr. Ted Hesburgh's tenure (1952-1987) contained its share of missteps, no one who has read Hesburgh's writings of the early 60's on the future of Catholic education could claim that he was trying to undermine ND's Catholic identity; when he stepped down in 1987, ND's faculty was still 85% Catholic, and its Catholic-dominated philosophy department was considered one of the best in the world. The cadre described in the previous paragraph evolved primarily during the presidency of Rev. Edward ‘Monk’ Malloy (1987-2005), during which ND’s percentage of Catholic faculty dipped from 85% to 53%. Malloy’s great vision for Notre Dame, to judge by his own words and actions, was for Notre Dame to become Stanford, complete with a perennially mediocre football team. It was also in the last few years of Malloy’s tenure that the Vagina Monologues and Queer Film Festival found their way onto ND’s campus.

Fr. John Jenkins took over in 2005, and offered those who were concerned with Notre Dame surrendering its identity some hope: he announced he was reconsidering allowing the Monologues and QFF on campus, and said all the right things about increasing Catholic faculty hiring. However, his actions over the last 3 years offer plenty of evidence that a) he is not very skilled at persuading those who disagree with him (i.e. the faculty senate) and b) he very much wants to please everyone. As a result, his presidency has been somewhat of a mixed bag: he caved on the VMs, allowing it to continue, though it could not be sponsored by ND, and could only be on campus every other year; he allowed the Queer Film Festival to continue, though the conditions put on it in every proceeding year caused it to be eventually canceled altogether; the percentage of Catholic faculty has not increased, but it has not decreased either. On the VMs and QFF, Jenkins seemed unwilling to make a stand; on the percentage of Catholic faculty, he seems to lack any idea about how increase Catholic faculty over the entrenched objectors in the dissenting faculty. Hardly anyone I know has any confidence in him as a leader, and I wonder if his first term as president (to end in 2011) will be his only term. There are a couple of folks whom I would love to see succeed him – Fr. Tim Scully or Fr. Wilson Miscamble. While Miscamble has almost no chance, as he has been very publically critical of ND’s hiring practices, Scully has a shot.

As you can see from the above, ND is currently struggling to maintain and increase its Catholic identity. However, the battle has not been decided, and those working to preserve and enhance ND’s Catholic identity are becoming more vigilant and organized. To claim the cause already lost is to insult the faculty and alumni who are spending their time, talent, and treasure in its service.

Thank you for reading this far. All I have left to say is "Pray, pray, for old Notre Dame".

ROTFLMAO!! Right on target!

Think PresBO will bring his "Oath" signers with him??

All I can hope for is the distinguished graduates give the exhaulted one a roudy round of boos and flip their robes up in a hearty mooning. Perhaps they can toss their caps at HIM instead of in the air. (or their shoes)

More disgrace from the universities that jenkins yickhead deserves to be sent to the spicemines of kessel or elba II

It is interesting that in an age of dumbing down and marking on the curve, it has become accepted that God marks on the curve. He doesn't! Certain things are wrong. Abortion is one of those things.

If Catholics really believed that abortion was wrong, Obama wouldn't be president. How can this absolutely wrong thing be excused in the leader who will make it universal? So, we now have a bunch of once Catholics who are now apostate.

Thank you, GeronimoRumplestiltskin for the defense and detailed explanation about Notre Dame. As a non-Catholic yet proud parent of a ND alum, it is impossible for me to appreciate all the complexities of the situation.

From my point of view, ND was/is rich in its religious traditions and heritage. It was powerful in contrast to what I perceived at Duke University as a great effort to diminish and obscure its religious roots.

As an aside, my daughter is always amused when people ask if there was an effort to convert her. I don't know if she will always be Methodist, whether someday she might be Catholic but I know she will forever be "Irish."

the catholic church now hides deported illegal immigrants,Celebrates gay pride and endorses pro abortion candidates. they should loose their tax exemption.

Like in SUPERMAN we need a PHANTOM ZONE to banish all these crinimal to and leave them there forever

bertie,

You wrote:

my daughter is always amused when people ask if there was an effort to convert her.

Funny you should mention that.

** Back in the 60's and 70's, coaches from football-playing universities in the South would tell the kids they were recruiting (that were also being recruited by Notre Dame) that they would be forced to convert to Catholicism if they went there.

** A brief sampling of Notre Dame's star athletes that were not Catholic:

-Knute Rockne, football All-American, (Lutheran as student, he converted in 1925 while ND coach)
-Joe Theismann, football All-American, (Methodist)
-Tom Gatewood, football All-American, (Baptist)
-John Shumate, basketball All-American,(Evangelical Protestant of some sort)
-Tim Brown, football Heisman Trophy winner (Methodist or Baptist)
-Raghib Ismail, football All-American,(I've heard both Methodist and Muslim)
-Troy Murphy, basketball All-American, (Evangelical Protestant of some sort)
-Ruth Riley, women's basketball All-American, (Evangelical Protestant of some sort)
-Brady Quinn, football All-American, (Methodist)

** Ara Parseghian, Irish football coach from 1964-1974, was the first non-Catholic, non-alum to coach there. He was a Presbyterian, though his wife was Catholic and his children were all raised Catholic. I have it on good authority that Ara was somewhat hurt by the fact that no one asked him to convert while he was coaching there; he must have seen it as "Do they not want me or something?", whereas the good fathers in charge wouldn't think of bringing it up for fear that it might be seen as "pressuring" him.

** Folks from other religions - mainline Protestants, Mormons, Mennonites, Jews, even Muslims - love to come to study at Notre Dame, whether it be for graduate studies or summer programs. The reason? They can openly discuss their faith in a way they can't at other premier academic and research institutions.

Rally sons (and daughters) of Notre Dame....

GR

Thanks again, GR. I've heard the recruitment story before but I sent the Coach Parseghian story to my daughter.

Ted Kennedy given "Knighthood"

Notre Dame honors most PRO-ABORTION U.S. President in history.

These have to be stories from "TheOnion"

"You cannot change the world if you shun the people you want to persuade."
No one is talking about shunning him, fathead, they are disgusted that you want to HONOR him.
Slan, fathead.

The Catholics at Notre Dame and elsewhere areound the country have admonished the unCatholic Fr. Whatshisname. He has been inundated by phone calls, emails and handwritten letters. Shame on him or anybody else who thinks honoring an Abortionist is okay. They can join all the other goats. Their corral is on the left.

That means you, "fathead".