Notre Dame Alumni Use Donations As Leverage in Effort to Oust University President

CNS News ^ | April 17, 2009 | Susan Jones

[rhema]

University of Notre Dame alumni and financial supporters on Thursday launched an online campaign to withhold donations to the Catholic school until the Rev. John Jenkins is replaced as president.

ReplaceJenkins.com is calling for the appointment of a president who “is committed to the authentic identity of Notre Dame” and “grounded in the teachings of the Catholic Church.”

“We feel strongly that the University should not honor President Barack Obama, given his well known commitment to abortion in the broadest possible context,” the Web site says.

Coalition representative Joe DiFranco, a ’57 alumnus, said Rev. Jenkins’ decision to “honor” President Barack Obama by inviting him to speak at Notre Dame’s commencement and awarding him an honorary degree “calls into question Father Jenkins’ judgment and leadership.”

“Alumni and supporters of Notre Dame who for years have proudly donated hundreds of millions of dollars to the University deserve better,” DiFranco said in a news release on Thursday.

During his first 100 days in office, President Obama has signed an order to allow taxpayer funding for stem cell research that kills human embryos; he resumed the use of taxpayer dollars for international groups that support or perform abortions; and his administration has proposed rescinding conscience protections for pro-life medical professionals.

During his campaign, Obama promised the Planned Parenthood Federation of America that “the first thing I’d do as president” would be to sign the Freedom of Choice Act into law. The federal legislation would eliminate state and federal restrictions on abortion, including waiting periods, parental consent, and the ban on partial-birth abortion.

While ReplaceJenkins.com is urging alumni and supporters to withhold contributions to Notre Dame's general fund, the group is urging donors to continue supporting campus pro-life organizations such as the Center for Ethics and Culture or the Notre Dame Fund to Protect Life.

Donations to these University-sanctioned groups will benefit the pro-life cause at Notre Dame, but will not go into the general fund, the alumni said.

ReplaceJenkins.com says its campaign is not personally or politically motivated, but it is opposed to actions that run counter to Catholic teaching:

“ReplaceJenkins.com fully supports academic freedom at the University of Notre Dame, but we believe that the truths revealed by Christ through His Church must be taught and defended by a faithful Catholic University.”

[Lurking in Kansas]

Money talks....

[Man50D]

The Pope needs to publicly denounce the invitation.

[ScottinVA]

Glad to hear that!!

[Vaquero]

the Bottom Line really is the bottom line.

GOD BLESS CAPITALISM!

[PhiKapMom]

I have been waiting for this to happen. Figured the alumni were not happy.

[Tallguy]

In this day & age the chief function of a university president is to solicit donations. Notre Dame’s alumni are hitting the good reverend right where it hurts. His job performance is going to suffer.

[OldNavyVet]

There are some wonderful priests out there that need support; nuns, too.

Donate your money where your heart directs.

[Lancey Howard]

Money talks.

[matginzac]

Excellent! Maybe this will get the Pope’s attention, if not the Bishops’ - yes, money talks. When the wizard who was president of Wm and Mary in Wmsbrg took the Holy Cross out of the Wren chapel for fear of “offending” someone (good grief!), the alums got pissed and took their money away. Two ticks and prez was histoire! Buh-bye...

[ChocChipCookie]

Good. I think it’s time some lines were drawn. Either the university is Catholic, and not in name only, or it’s not.

[Salvation]

Hold your contributions/donations and keep FReeping notre Dame!

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2231446/posts

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2230231/posts

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2210995/posts?page=28#28

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2210995/posts?page=87#87

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2210995/posts?page=101#101

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2210995/posts?page=102#102

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/2212664/posts?page=29#29

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/2212664/posts?page=37#37

[mrmargaritaville]

So assuming that ND lacks the balls to cancel the big O (as in zero) I wonder if they will cover any\all religious symbols for his commencement address. In the event that ND moves forward with their plans, I hope the ceremony is outside at the football stadium-and that “Touchdown Jesus” looms large over the ceremony.

[The Great RJ]

That Obama demanded and got Georgetown to remove a Christian symbol says a lot about his lack of respect for Christianity and especially Catholicism. That Georgetown agreed to this demand is a travesty. Notre Dame should take note.

[wombtotomb]

If a university fails to continue on the path in which it was founded and alumni attended because of that path, then it is the duty of the alumni to withhold the funds until it returns to the path, or find a new college that remains on the path.

Georgetown, Notre Dame, take heed; Those wealthy alumni who are successful and funding your school because they received a proper education and more importantly faith formation from your school, can, should, and will withold funds precisely because they received a proper education from you. They know right from wrong and good from evil because you helped form them. They have not forgotten it, even though you have.

Kudo to those living their faith, not just using it as a way to make a political statement as the President of Notre Dame is. I hope each and every one of you withhold you funds until and unless they remove this renegade from such an important post, and get back to living the faith, as you have so richly done by withholding funds. I will pray for each of you to keep their feet to the fire financially, as they seem to be acting like our current government and ignoring the phone calls, faxes, and emails of Catholics everywhere opposed to honoring a man who thinks killing babies and destroying life for research is good. Thank you for helping us Catholics who could never afford Notre Dame have a voice there when they deny the Faith we all share.

[Mrs. Don-o]

Well?

Did you sign it yet?

And did you send it to
everybody in your Address Book?

---

The STOP OBAMA AT NOTRE DAME petition has now surged (as of posting time) to over 300,000 signatures. Whoop! Let's make it an even half-a-million!

Click here: OBAMA NOTRE DAME SCANDAL.COM - - - PETITION

---

I'm posting, from the Cardinal Newman Society, the sponsors of the petition, excerpts of their quite encouraging recent thank you message.

---

Dear Friend:

Thank you for signing the petition at NotreDameScandal.com...

More than 264,000 [Note: now 307,959 prolife people] have signed the petition at NotreDameScandal.com, including many priests, Notre Dame families, college presidents and even some bishops!

“Cardinal Francis George, Archbishop of Chicago and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, has urged faithful Catholics to do what you are supposed to be doing: to call, to email, to write letters, to express what’s in your heart about this”!

[snip] MSNBC, FOX News, EWTN, TIME magazine, U.S. News & World Report, The Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, and more – has pointed to the LARGE NUMBER of protesters at NotreDameScandal.com!

Leading Cardinals and Archbishops – have declared Notre Dame’s planned honor of Obama a “travesty,” “unconscionable,” “indefensible,” “a public act of disobedience to the Bishops,” and “seemingly without regard for the mission of the Catholic Church in the United States”!

At 7:00 a.m. Monday morning we are going to print the first wave of petitions, and what a statement it would make if Father Jenkins and the bishops (including some of our friends in Rome) saw that we had 300,000, 350,000 or even 400,000 Catholics and others demanding that Notre Dame live up to its Holy mission!

As much as pro-abortion Catholics want to make this a partisan issue, you and I know that at its core this scandal is about Catholic institutions standing up as a witness for life at this moment in history when it is under constant attack.

My entire staff and I have devoted nearly every hour to this protest since the moment the scandal broke, and to be honest with you this effort is breaking our budget. If necessary, The Cardinal Newman Society will go broke to help stop the Notre Dame scandal… but I hope that is not God’s plan for us.

Please consider what level of support you can give [click here.]

May God bless you for your faithful witness to the truth, and may He inspire Father Jenkins to withdraw this scandalous honor to Barack Obama!

Yours in Christ,

Patrick J. Reilly

President, The Cardinal Newman Society

[April Lexington]

Chi chi actions have real consequences. Invite an abortionist and pay the piper. RESIGN!

[reaganaut]

yes and yes.

[Responsibility2nd]

Notre Dame should follow Georgetown's example and just cover up any and all religous signs.

It's only for one day, right?

When the Obamessiah leaves, then you can go back to pretending you're a Christian, right?

[little jeremiah]

Can non-Catholics sign or should it only be Catholics? I totally support this!