Posted on 02/28/2010 11:48:42 AM PST by Notwithstanding
Father Dennis Cooney, pastor of St. Raphael's Parish in Lehigh Acres, is delighted that two students from his parish will be attending Ave Maria University this fall. He's even more delighted that each of them will receive a minimum of $5,000 in financial aid through a new program started by the university called Priests for Ave Maria.
The PFAM program, as it is known, is part of an effort to involve more priests in the mission of Ave Maria University, and to help recruit students for the university, according to AMU Chancellor Tom Monaghan, who came up with the initial concept.
http://www.avemariaherald.com/images/stories/faq_pfam.doc
"I remembered reading that a priest in Texas sent about 30 students to Franciscan University of Steubenville," Mr. Monaghan said in an interview. "So I thought there might be a way to involve priests who like what we're doing."
"They pretty much know the types of students and families who would be a good fit for Ave Maria University."
The PFAM brochure calls the group an "informal organization" whose members introduce Ave Maria University in their area, help recruit students and connect with priests of similar interests. "We're trying to benefit the priest and the student," Mr. Monaghan said.
The university is encouraging anyone to pass a copy of the brochure along to parish priests who might be interested. It can be downloaded here, and a Q&A about the program is here.
There is no charge to join and so far more than 140 priests from all parts of the U.S. and Canada have signed up, said Jessica Copeland, who is coordinating the program at AMU.
If a priest who is a PFAM member writes a letter of recommendation for a student from his parish, that student is guaranteed a minimum of $5,000 in financial aid for the first year if accepted to Ave Maria University. The award is potentially renewable based on student performance and availability of funds.
"I think it's a wonderful idea," Fr. Cooney said. "The more priests we can get on board supporting Ave Maria the better."
"The teaching mission of priests is connected with the work of universities like Ave Maria," Fr. Cooney said. "I would hope that more and more priests will be more active in their support of Ave Maria University and other schools like Christendom College, Thomas Aquinas College and Franciscan University of Steubenville that are faithful to the church's teaching."
"It's what Pope John Paul II called the ‘new springtime of evangelization,'" he said.
Free annual $5k scholarship for devout catholic students.
Please ping.
Students should not contact the admissions office until after the priests recommends them to AMU.
Priest incurs no costs - he simply signs up to stay informed about AMU, and if they desire can also enjoy subsidized campus stays for prayer, relaxation and golf.
Well, if I had to pick between Ave Maria, and Steubenville, I’d pick Steubenville. Anyplace with Scott Hahn on the faculty has to be good.
yes - Ohio has Hahn - and Florida has Burmese Pythons.
I confess that a very uncharitable thought regarding the qualifications for being ‘picked’ by a priest are going through my mind...
Ping
Not too long ago they found their first anaconda in Florida, a measly 12 footer if I recall.
Freegards
Too bad they don’t have a football team.
Lovely.
Anacondas are even scarier than Burmese Pythons.
Thanks for giving me a major case of the willies!
oh stuff it!
With a mind like that you probably have more to confess.
They just hired a new coach to start building a team.
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/feb/12/ave-maria-university-hires-football-coach/
Ave Maria also has great professors, including Michael Waldstein - who is one of the most respected theology professors in the world and who is so well regarded that the Vatican invited him to be an official theological expert to advice the most recent synod on sacred scripture.
Alumni Updates
A Bishops’ Peritus: Michael Waldstein (’77)
(Fall 2008 Newsletter)
For three weeks in October, the 12th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops met in the Vatican on the theme “The Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church.” And among those advising the bishops in their studies and discussions was Dr. Michael Waldstein, Thomas Aquinas College Class of 1977.
The Synod on the Word of God, a continuation of the 2005 Synod on the Eucharist, focused on examining the intrinsic connection between Holy Scripture and the Blessed Sacrament. Dr. Waldstein, who this summer joined the faculty at Florida’s Ave Maria University as the Max Seckler Professor of Theology, was appointed a peritus (expert) for the Synod, one of only 41 periti from around the world to be so appointed.
Dr. Waldstein previously spent eight years as the founding president of the International Theological Institute in Gaming, Austria, following eight years as a theology professor at the University of Notre Dame. He and his wife, Susan (Class of 1978), were also one of only nine couples appointed by Pope John Paul II to serve on the Pontifical Council for the Family. The Waldsteins have eight children, three of whom are graduates of the College: Johannes (’02), Maria-Theresia (’05), and Thomas (’06); and one, Benedict, who is currently enrolled as a sophomore.
In 2006, Dr. Waldstein published an authoritative and highly acclaimed translation of Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, based on a long-missing outline of the works that Dr. Waldstein discovered among the Holy Father’s papers in the John Paul II archives at Rome’s Casa Polacca. Dr. Waldstein holds a masters in philosophy from the University of Dallas, a licentiate in Scripture from the Pontificium Institutum Biblicum in Rome, and a doctorate in New Testament studies from Harvard Divinity School.
The Synod, which ran from October 5 to October 26, placed a heavy emphasis on the role of the Word of God in ecumenism and evangelization. Leading the Synod was Marc Cardinal Ouellet of Quebec, who will be Thomas Aquinas College’s Commencement Speaker in 2009. Members of the Synod from the United States included Francis Cardinal George of Chicago, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB); USCCB Vice President Daniel Cardinal DiNardo of Houston; Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson; and Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington, D.C.
Upon receiving his appointment, Dr. Waldstein remarked that it would be “an honor to serve as an advisor to the bishops and to be a resource for them in their own reflections.”
— Qtrly Newsletter, Fall 2008
Ah, that all may be true, but Hahn’s writings are a big part of the reason I’m a Catholic today, after forty years as an “unchurched” Episcopalian. So you might say it’s an emotional judgment.
Ice Cube yo! He killed those Anacondas yo!
I highly recommend you read Waldstein’s translation of JP2’s Theologoy of the Body (TOB). The 100-page introduction is worth its weight in gold, as it helps one understand the complex nuances that JP2 included in TOB.
And we can all be glad that Waldstein and Hahn are on the same sheet of music.
Thanks. I am passing it on to some Catholic guys who want to go to a good Catholic college and play football.
LOL!
Oh-h-h-h, I love hearing from someone who is perfect! What a thrill!
Enough is enough! I have had it with these XXXXXXXXXXXXX snakes on this XXXXXXXXXXXXX University!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.