Notre Dame's President at a Crossroads (predicted ND prez responses)

Inside Catholic ^ | March 23, 2009 | Deal W. Hudson

[NYer]

 

 

For the past few years, the buzz about Rev. John I. Jenkins, the president of Notre Dame since 2005, has been very positive. In spite of his refusal to ban The Vagina Monologues from the campus, Father Jenkins was viewed as strengthening the Catholic identity of the nation's most beloved Catholic institution.

 

But with one bold stroke, Father Jenkins has radically altered the perception of his leadership. His decision to honor President Barack Obama at Notre Dame's commencement this year has been met with stunned disbelief among Catholics across the nation. The Cardinal Newman Society immediately launched a petition drive, NotreDameScandal.com, and within 48 hours it collected over 10,000 signatures.

 

In 2006, Father Jenkins defused the uproar over The Vagina Monologues with a statement on "Academic Freedom and Catholic Character," which argued that "a Catholic university is where the Church does its thinking, and that thinking, to be beneficial, must come from an intellectually rigorous engagement with the world."

 

Will Father Jenkins use the same argument to defend his invitation to Obama? Perhaps. Obama's pro-abortion views are, no doubt, part of "the world" that, in Father Jenkin's view, his university must engage. Now that the president has accepted the invitation, Father Jenkins could refuse to disinvite him on the grounds it would "suppress speech," as he argued in permitting The Vagina Monologues to be performed on campus.

 

More likely, Father Jenkins will simply say that Obama is the president of the United States and, as such, should be welcomed on campus as a political leader who is making history with every speech and appearance. Why shouldn't the community of Notre Dame become part of that history? Such an encounter, Father Jenkins could say, has unmistakable educational value.

 

This argument would be convincing -- if Notre Dame were not a Catholic university honoring a political leader committed to removing all restrictions on abortion-on-demand in the United States. Whatever educational value there is in the visit of a U.S. president to the campus is trumped by the spectacle of moral support being offered by Notre Dame to Obama's position on abortion.

 

The U.S. Catholic bishops have been clear on this point. In their 2004 document "Catholics in Political Life," the bishops wrote, "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."

 

In short, the moment Father Jenkins places the honorary doctorate into the hands of Barack Obama, the university will be viewed as either supporting his pro-abortion views or turning a blind eye to them.

 

Father Jenkins also has the option of making what could be called the "Faithful Citizenship" dodge. He could say that the university gave Obama this honor without intending to honor his pro-abortion views. Readers may recall that the bishops' 2008 document, "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship," left the same opening to allow Catholics to vote for pro-abortion candidates like Obama and his Catholic running mate, Joseph Biden.

 

 

Since the Friday afternoon announcement of the honor being conferred by Notre Dame on President Obama, there have been no statements from any of the bishops, including the ordinary of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Bishop John M. D'Arcy. A few days ago, Bishop D'Arcy issued a strongly worded statement on Obama's decision to allow federal funding for the destruction of embryos for their stem cells. He wrote,

 

This decision by the president is an imposition of a utilitarian ideology, which allows a group of human beings that some believe do not share human dignity, to be used and exploited. Human history, of course, is rife with examples of the strong dominating the weak and defenseless. Doesn't the promise of a democratic America -- of respect for the dignity of all -- hold us to a higher standard?

 

A bishop who is capable of such eloquent conviction will surely publicly express his disappointment in the leadership of Father Jenkins. Bishop D'Arcy, who has challenged Notre Dame before, must invoke the guidelines of "Catholics in Political Life" or risk some of the other bishops doing it for him. (The University of Notre Dame may lie within Bishop D'Arcy's diocese, but Catholics across the country feel ownership, regarding it as a national, rather than regional, institution.)

 

Barring some miracle of divine intervention, the world will soon watch as the preeminent Catholic university in the country lauds the world's leading advocate for killing children in the womb. Under Father Jenkins's leadership, Notre Dame has had an "intellectually rigorous engagement with the world," and the world has won.

[utahagen]

“Obama has led NOTHING in his life...” I agree with you, but I think our strongest argument is that Obama’s role as a leader has included fighting for the right of women to kill the babies they are carrying.

[shibumi]

The guys with the White Hoods have killed far fewer blacks than Planned Parenthood.

[Campion]

I have no affiliation with ND at all, but those of you who are alums or donors need to also call the development office (or whatever they call it at ND -- donor solicitation and fundraising are the people I'm talking about) and tell them your contributions are at an end, permanently, forever and ever amen, if Jenkins goes through with this.

And then influence as many other alums/donors to do the same as you can.

Money talks.

[GOPyouth]

The guys with the White Hoods have killed far fewer blacks than Planned Parenthood.

Planned Parenthood and the Klan were all proud products of the Democratic Party.

[Notwithstanding]

We can count on Helen Thomas to cover this story, gloved hand with pencil at the ready.

After all, she is used to covering issues dealing with Queen Mothers.

[Titanites]

I have no affiliation with ND at all, but those of you who are alums or donors need to also call the development office (or whatever they call it at ND -- donor solicitation and fundraising are the people I'm talking about) and tell them your contributions are at an end, permanently, forever and ever amen, if Jenkins goes through with this.

They are in the midst of an annual fund raising campaign right now. They called the house yesterday and I told them my donations had ended until Obama's invitation was recinded.

[shibumi]

.....and I do believe that Margaret Sanger was a real “Klan Fan.”

[rhema]

I have no affiliation with ND at all, but those of you who are alums or donors need to also call the development office (or whatever they call it at ND -- donor solicitation and fundraising are the people I'm talking about) and tell them your contributions are at an end, permanently, forever and ever amen, if Jenkins goes through with this. And then influence as many other alums/donors to do the same as you can. Money talks.

Amen. Catholics -- and all Christians -- have an obligation to exercise good stewardship over what God's given them. I stopped all contributions to my Protestant alma mater years ago when it and its denomination decided that apostasy would be a great way to earn the secular world's acclamation.

[Unam Sanctam]

Bishop D’Arcy is one of the better bishops, so please be polite in contacting him.

[Titanites]

Bishop D’Arcy is one of the better bishops, so please be polite in contacting him.

You should be polite in contacting any bishop, even if they aren't one of the better ones.

[Notwithstanding]

Call Fr. Tyson (Fr. Jenkins’ boss) and press 1 to leave him a voicemail.
Tel 574-631-6196

Call Vince LaBarbera (the director of communications for the diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend) on his cell phone.
Tel 260-704-6164.

"I want to encourage the you to take bold action to counter the grave scandal at Notre Dame.

I know your office - unlike Notre Dame's Fr. Jenkins - is NOT indifferent to the wholesale slaughter of politically expedient innocents who are made in the image and likeness of God.

Honoring a man who consistently advocates such slaughter as good public policy is a grave scandal of the highest order."

[rhema]

They are in the midst of an annual fund raising campaign right now. They called the house yesterday and I told them my donations had ended until Obama's invitation was recinded.

This Notre Dame alumna and parent, writing in the online Notre Dame newspaper, would agree:

My 40-year love affair with the University of Notre Dame - as student, alumna and parent - came to a sad and abrupt end upon learning the news of the invitation of Barack Obama to receive an honorary law degree and speak at my child's graduation. Everyone knows Obama's stance on the "life" issues and his opposition to what are the teachings of the Catholic Church. In his tenure, he would sign the Freedom of Choice Act, allow partial birth abortion and, most importantly, will appoint at least two Supreme Court justices who will enshrine Roe v. Wade into law for at least another 30-40 years.

There is a course taught at Notre Dame called "A Faith Worth Dying For." Do we really believe anymore that there are principles which are worth fighting for, perhaps dying for? Or is it all about making compromises with the culture, not appearing "strange" or "out there"? Is our Catholic faith really worth standing up and fighting for or is it just a comfortable, kumbaya, hand-holding-at-the-Our-Father kind of faith? The founders are rolling in their graves, right down the road in Holy Cross Cemetery. Ah, the cross - how inconvenient.

Mary Mullaney alum class of 1973 March 21

[Notwithstanding]

Call Fr. Tyson (Fr. Jenkins’ boss) and press 1 to leave him a voicemail.
Tel 574-631-6196

Call Vince LaBarbera (the director of communications for the diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend) on his cell phone.
Tel 260-704-6164.

"I want to encourage the you to take bold action to counter the grave scandal at Notre Dame.

I know your office - unlike Notre Dame's Fr. Jenkins - is NOT indifferent to the wholesale slaughter of politically expendable innocents who are made in the image and likeness of God.

Honoring a man who consistently advocates such slaughter as good public policy is a grave scandal of the highest order."

[red irish]

The priest should be reminded of the scripture Woe to those that call evil good and good evil. Because the priest is pretty much giving the ok to Obama. As a Catholic this pc attitude diminishes the shepherd feeding the sheep as Christ asked to be done.

[Uri’el-2012]

The priest should be reminded of the scripture Woe to those that call evil good and good evil. Because the priest is pretty much giving the ok to Obama. As a Catholic this pc attitude diminishes the shepherd feeding the sheep as Christ asked to be done.

As a teacher, one risks greater punishment for error.

NAsbU James 3:1 Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.

Jenkins needs to seek the face of G-d,
repent and turn from teaching error.

shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiach Adonai

[Varda]

bttt

[RobbyS]

I knowit is easy for me to say, but I must say it: the bishop is afraid. He can issue some boilerplate about abortion being bad, but it would be hard for him to take action. And he will not because he is afraid.

[rhema]

Another Notre Dame alum, this one a law-school graduate, weighs in with this open letter:

Dear Father Jenkins:

As an alumnus of Notre Dame Law School, I am deeply offended that you would invite President Barack Obama to speak at Commencement this year.

In his first days of office, Mr. Obama has chosen as his first federal court nominee a pro-abortion Indiana judge who has struck down Indiana's parental notification law seven times; reversed the Mexico City policy that prevented U.S. funding of pro-abortion groups internationally; lifted federal restrictions on stem cell research of human embryos; announced that he intends to reverse conscience clause protections for medical care workers; and named Kathleen Sibelius, who is so pro-abortion that she had to be publicly warned by her bishop, Archbishop Naumann, not to present herself for communion, as Secretary of Health and Human Services, to oversee all of these measures.

This is the person whom you feel is worthy to address the students and faculty of Notre Dame, in the shadow of Our Lady atop the Golden Dome, with the spires of the Basilica in the background? Father Sorin must be wringing his hands in heaven, that his successor would approve this disgrace. Shame on Notre Dame for choosing to scandalize the faithful who continue to support the Catholic identity and mission of the University.

Very truly yours,

William B. Newton, Esq.
NDLS '99

The online petition, by the way, now has over 31,000 signatures.

[rhema]

The online petition (can't remember if I pinged you about it) now has more than 31,000 signatures and is averaging more than 270 signatures per hour.

[TASMANIANRED]

The president of the college needs to be removed.