Posted on 01/25/2008 6:02:55 AM PST by NYer
ST. LOUIS (AP) — A Roman Catholic archbishop's call this week for Saint Louis University to discipline its popular basketball coach for publicly supporting abortion rights has put the Jesuit school in a bind.
If the university takes action against Rick Majerus, no stranger to controversy throughout his career, it risks criticism for clamping down on the free exchange of ideas.
If it doesn't, it looks like it's brushing off Archbishop Raymond Burke, who chastised Majerus for airing his views at a Hillary Rodham Clinton rally last weekend.
The university hasn't publicly heeded Burke's call to discipline Majerus, who coached Utah to 10 NCAA tournament appearances and whose hiring last April electrified supporters of the Billikens.
University spokesman Clayton Berry would not say Thursday if the school is considering disciplinary action against Majerus. He has said previously that Majerus was speaking at the rally as an individual, not as a representative of the school.
University athletics spokesman Chuck Young said Majerus refused to comment Thursday to The Associated Press.
Majerus took a typically defiant stand in an interview published Thursday in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
"These beliefs are ingrained in me," Majerus told the paper. "And my First Amendment right to free speech supersedes anything that the archbishop would order me to do. My dad fought on Okinawa in World War II. My uncle died in World War II. I had classmates die in Vietnam. And it was to preserve our way of life, so people like me could have an opinion."
The dispute between the archbishop and the coach puts students and faculty in the midst of a common clash pitting Catholic doctrine against intellectual freedom. The private university is independent of the Archdiocese of St. Louis, and therefore beyond the bishop's purview, but is tied to it culturally as a Catholic institution.
"I'm a Catholic, and I support the church's stance. As an American, I also support people's free speech," said Andrew Clifton, the Student Government Association president.
Berry said Burke doesn't have any direct control over the university, which is operated by priests in the Jesuit order, also known as the Society of Jesus. He said ultimate authority lies with the school's Board of Trustees, several of whom did not return messages seeking comment.
A spokeswoman at the archdiocese said Burke was not available to comment.
Burke has spoken out before against Catholics or Catholic institutions that stray from church doctrine. During the 2004 election, he said he would not administer Holy Communion to presidential candidate John Kerry, a Catholic, because he supported abortion rights.
Last year, Burke dropped his seat on the board of a charity that let singer Sheryl Crow perform at a benefit concert. Crow supports abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research.
On Tuesday, Burke said he would ask Saint Louis University officials to take "appropriate action" against Majerus after the coach gave a TV interview at the Clinton rally during which he said he was Catholic and pro-choice.
"I'm concerned that a leader at a Catholic university made these comments. It can lead Catholics astray," Burke said Tuesday. "I just believe that it's of the essence for people to understand as a Catholic you just cannot hold these beliefs."
Majerus told the Post-Dispatch he "respectfully" disagreed.
"I do not speak for the university or the Catholic Church. These are my personal views. And I'm not letting him change my mind," the coach said. "I think religion should be inclusive. I would hope that all people would feel welcome inside a church, and that the church would serve to bring people together, even if they happen to disagree on certain things."
The dispute has been the buzz on campus, Clifton said.
"A lot of students like Coach Majerus. He's been a great coach. We all want to see him do well," Clifton said. "I would hope he's not punished in any way."
Sarah Hale, the opinion page editor of the school newspaper, The University News, said a handful of letters to the editor appear to show a split in the student body.
"Some are backing the decision of the archbishop, some are backing Majerus. They're really all over the board," she said.
The two faced clergy stands by and watches the John Kerry family, Kennedy’s and other politicians ignore the church.
Going after a coach would be stupid unless they apply the same rules to the elitist Catholic politicians.
Here’s the only pressure the Archbishop can bring to bear; is this a Catholic institution or not? If not, there’s no need for all these priests, who I believe need his permission to say Mass in the archdiocese.
He can of course instruct priests under his jurisdiction to refuse the sacraments to Majerus. Let’s see how big those balls really are.
MO Ping!
It would be interesting to see how coach Majerus would react to member(s) of his basketball team, in a public forum, directly criticizing his coaching theories and methods.
This man is an idiot. The First Amendment has absolutely no bearing on his relationship with the university or the bishop, neither of which are government entities.
If the bishop and the university, private entities, refuse to let him use their platform to speak his mind, his one and only recourse is to go elsewhere.
It's simple, Ricky Boy:
Go Away, or Shut Up.
“The free exchange of ideas?” Fine. If encouraging sucking broken baby parts out of wombs is an “idea” worth exchanging, then what isn’t? THe school paper should run front page headlines of walrus boy there shoving cheeseburgers down his throat, asking “Should we allow our investment to harm itself?” If someone married Tubby, why not run some “Freely Exchanged Ideas” on her too? God help anyone every shut up for any reason.
What discipline other than dismissal could be considered? If the coach believes in abortion rights then his beliefs are at odds with his employer. Hitting him with a fine or something isn’t going to change those beliefs. If the school considers him wrong for believing as he does then they should dismiss him and find someone else.
What job in the Catholic Church does John Kerry hold?
Oh, yes: He doesn't hold one ... he can't be fired.
Use your brain.
If they back down, they just become another Georgetown.
Surely he will have every liberal and civil libertarian and member of the elite intelligentsia championing the right to free speech and exchange of different ideas. How different that is from Choate School here in CT where Karl Rove is supposed to be the commencement speaker. There are already howls of protest against that. I suspect the school will have to back down. Rove is pure evil, some students say. Well, of course he is far worse than a commencement speaker like, let’s say, Mumia....
So the Catholic Church will have to bear more criticism? Whatever will we do? Coach Majerus is free to exchange any idea he wishes, but while he is employed as a basketball coach for a Jesuit Catholic university, he is a representative of that university, and should uphold that institution's mission.
An employee does not have carte blanche to speak ill of their employer in public settings, while they remain in that same employ.
By the way, after scoring only 20 points against George Washington, in a basketball game earlier this year, someone should reprimand Majerus for that sorry output, alone.
Just like talking about which flavor bagel he prefers.
Fire him.
SI did a profile on him last month. This guy’s a ticking time bomb.
“These beliefs are ingrained in me,” Majerus told the paper. “And my First Amendment right to free speech supersedes anything that the archbishop would order me to do. My dad fought on Okinawa in World War II. My uncle died in World War II. I had classmates die in Vietnam. And it was to preserve our way of life, so people like me could have an opinion.”
This flatulent fatass is an embarrassment to himself, to the university, to the Church, and most of all, to his friends and relatives who died for this country protecting our freedoms.
The idiot can spew all the filth he wants. It’s a free country. But it’s a free country - no Catholic institution should be obligated to hire/retain such an imbecile.
Let’s see if the university has the guts to do the right thing - fire his sorry butt.
Unless you can convince me otherwise.
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