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Campus Scenes
When Towers Fall — At Notre Dame
Does the Catholic mission of a Catholic institution still have meaning?
(Page 2 of 2)
Ms. Martino has served Notre Dame in many ways over the years and is highly regarded as someone who is absolutely dedicated in every way to the Catholic mission of this University.… She has lived her life and faith in an exemplary way, including the counsel and support she has provided to Notre Dame, many other Catholic institutions and Thresholds, an organization that provides programs for thousands of people with severe mental illness.
In recommending to the full Board the election of Ms. Martino as a trustee, Chairman Notebaert and Father Jenkins did not apply the recommendations made in the investigation of Declan Sullivan’s death. Either they did not obtain information about Ms. Martino’s donations or, although they obtained the information, they did not share it with the Board members. And when the storm arose, they compounded their breach of duty by flailing around and making the stupidest of arguments: Ms. Martino supports Church teaching on the sanctity of life and she did not know the organizations were pro-abortion.
One would expect that the chairman of a board of trustees and president of a university would act as towers to the students, providing a vision over the field of life. But these two men have fallen — at least twice now. In 2009, they honored pro-abortion President Obama at the commencement. They compounded this error by allowing the arrest of 88 people on that occasion, including an elderly priest, in clerical garb, kneeling, reciting the prayers of the rosary. (Rather impossible to determine if he was demonstrating but for the fact he was out of place.) And now they have striven to bring a pro-abortion supporter to the University they believed to be someone highly capable of being entrusted with its Catholic mission now and well into the future.
One would also expect that the faculty of a Catholic institution would be protective of the institution’s Catholic mission. But not the faculty of the University of Notre Dame. Three times in recent years now, the faculty has dissed Catholicism and its efforts to protect human life:
• On April 16, 2008, one day before Pope Benedict’s address on April 17 at the Catholic University of America to presidents of Catholic universities (an event Father Jenkins attended), the University Faculty Senate issued a “Faculty Response to University Initiative on Hiring Faculty.” It resolved “The University should not compromise its academic aspirations in its efforts to maintain its Catholic identity” and no numerical goal in hiring Catholic faculty should be permitted. The faculty is willing to “compromise aspirations” (affirmative action) in order to achieve gender, racial, and ethnic diversity, but not Catholic identity, among the faculty. (If then South Bend-Fort Wayne Bishop D’Arcy’s characterization of the invitation to President Obama in 2009 as the university’s choice of “prestige over truth” is correct, and it is, then the election of Ms. Martino reflected the university’s choice of “gender and diversity over truth.”)
• In 2009, the faculty senate roundly supported the decision to honor President Obama.
• On March 1, 2011, the faculty senate, by a vote of 22 to 8, disapproved of a resolution that would have supported two of the pro-life initiatives undertaken by Father Jenkins after he had dishonored himself and the University with the honor given Obama: his appearances at the 2010 and 2011 Marches for Life in Washington, D.C., and the establishment of a Task Force on Supporting the Choice for Life.
Notre Dame has a saying that “their blood is in the bricks,” meaning that the founders and early faculty’s lifeblood was spent to start and sustain the place as a Catholic institution. (My forebears attended the school beginning in the 1860s.) If the current faculty cannot bring themselves to support Notre Dame’s Catholic mission, they should do the honorable thing and leave.
Last fall, Notre Dame did everything it could to prevent the perception that it had acted in reckless disregard of the physical safety of one of its students, especially in order to promote football. Can it permit itself to be perceived to act in reckless disregard of its fiduciary duty to students, parents, benefactors and alumni/ae to maintain its raison d’être, its exceptionalism, as a Catholic institution?
Postscript for readers who are not Catholic. Do you have a dog in this fight? Yes, on two bases. First, the American people are well-served by having institutions of every sort — educational, charitable, medical, etc. — run by organizations of every sort, including religious denominations. If Notre Dame becomes yet another formerly religious elite college (with a veneer of Catholicism), that is, if the bell tolls for Notre Dame, do not “send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.” (John Donne)
Second, the American people, young and old, need to see promises being kept across generations. Their hope is founded not in change, but in continuity. The founders and benefactors and administrators of our institutions make commitments and set expectations. These commitments and expectations must be kept. This is why the Bass family brought a suit against Yale and the Robertson family brought a suit against Princeton. When Notre Dame changed hands from the Congregation of the Holy Cross to lay trustees in 1967, solemn commitments were made to continue the University as a Catholic institution. The lay trustees, and the members of the Holy Cross Order who are also trustees, have vows. Paraphrasing Robert Frost, “The secular woods may be lovely, dark and deep. But Notre Dame has promises to keep.”
Letter to the Editor View all comments (54) | Leave a comment
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The Bishop| 6.20.11 @ 6:24AM
I'm not an alumnus of ND nor Catholic, but as a 40-year resident of South Bend I've been dismayed by the compromises with secular fads that the university has made that has compromised the mission and vision of it's founders. The arrest of Catholics standing for the faith during the 2009 honoring of Obama was particularly disgusting. Very sad to watch, even as an outsider.
k962| 6.20.11 @ 7:02AM
Notre Dame approved of the arrest of the demonstrators who were merely praying. A Catholic University? Not anymore!
Stuart Koehl| 6.20.11 @ 7:04AM
I attended a Catholic--excuse me, "Jesuit" institution of higher education (there is a difference, you know) as a non-Catholic, and was shocked by the extent to which the faculty--particularly the Jebbies--expressed their open disdain for Catholic teaching. No wonder, then, that so many of my classmates, who were raised in the hothouse of Catholic elementary and prep schools, either adopted the idiosyncratic Catholicism of the Jesuit order, or simply lost their faith altogether--thereby confirming what Bishop Fulton Sheen had said many years earlier: if parents want their children to lose their Catholic faith, by all means send them to a Catholic college or university. This has been going on for a long, long time.
Contrary cusses that we are, my wife and I eventually were baptized as Greek Catholics two full decades after our graduation. We have never sent a dime to Georgetown, because of its approach to Catholic doctrine, as well as a host of administrative decisions that effectively destroyed what little was left of its supposedly Catholic identity.
Therein lies the solution to the Notre Dame problem: starve the beast. When the fundraising envelopes go out, return them empty (using the postage paid envelope, so it costs the university money), or with a note telling them that no funds will be forthcoming until they straighten up and fly right.
Alas, far too many alumni either don't care about the issue, or are too nostalgic about their college days, or are more interested in collegiate athletics than in moral and social teachings, so the slide is likely to continue.
GotFreedom| 6.20.11 @ 11:00AM
"We have never sent a dime to Georgetown, because of its approach to Catholic doctrine, as well as a host of administrative decisions that effectively destroyed what little was left of its supposedly Catholic identity."
Amen to that Stuart--like you, we will never send a single dime to this so-called "Catholic" institution--the first Catholic institution of higher learning in America--seems they, along with so many other supposed Catholic schools have lost their way especially in their stance (or lack thereof) on moral and social teachings--God help them see the error of their ways. We're afraid that the only way to get the attention of these schools is through their wallets. It's sad but true what Thomas Jefferson said, "Money, not morality, is the principle commerce of civilized nations."
TennesseeVolunteer| 6.20.11 @ 7:55AM
As a subway alum of ND, I was dismayed at their bringing in O'bortion. One of our three local parish priests is flawed in his rooting for Obamacare in front of life.
Our Bishop also told us before the election that we should look at candidates in a multitude of views and don't use one Catholic precept (life) to rule out any such candidates.
It is my understanding he recieved a firestorm of mail about that!
The one thing about Catholics is most all of us follow but stay quiet. I am glad to see this change. Our leadership are good people but sometimes as flawed as us.
I am not one of the quiet ones!
MikeBee| 6.20.11 @ 8:30AM
The most important thing to universities in the U.S. today is money, especially in the form of their investments. Martino spent career time in a rather large investment firm, and also sits on the investment subcommittee of the BOD of Catholic Relief Services. UND wants her simply for her expertise in managing investments.
However, saner minds would question this choice, ESPECIALLY for the purposes of managing money and investments. Any person who spends so little time and effort researching and analyzing the nature of the organizations to which her PERSONAL funds are given, should never be allowed to manage the money and investments of someone else. What research has she failed to perform before giving Catholic Relief Services' or UND's monies to companies in which to invest?
This is a glaring error, one which underscores the failure of UND to do its own homework and research. UND should fire her immediately, if not for her support of pro-abortion groups, then, most assuredly, for her lack of performance of due diligence, an essential component of successful investing.
Ryan| 6.20.11 @ 9:58AM
That's what it appears. She was either incompetent or deliberately doing it.
Mriordon| 6.20.11 @ 8:38AM
I don't know where you all have been for the last 20 years, but Notre Dame was lost to the church a long time ago and won't be coming back anytime soon.
Steve B | 6.20.11 @ 8:46AM
Not quite ten years ago I had a conversation in Warsaw with a Polish girl who'd gotten her B.A. in psychology from Notre Dame.
She informed me, at length, how western civilization in general, and the Christian church in particular, were the sources of all that's wrong in the world today.
Sorry, by you're way too late. Notre Dame is lost.
jd| 6.20.11 @ 9:10AM
MikeBee,
I totally agree with what you say, howeve, I think she knew damn well what she was contributing to. How one can say they support the Church's mission, yet support abortion in ANY way, defies logic.
I think the rot and decay at "Catholic" universities is the norm, especially when they are presided over by people like Jenkins. HE needs to be fired next.
MikeBee| 6.20.11 @ 10:01AM
JD,
You're right. The other possibility is that she is not being truthful with UND authorities. O.K. Another quality absolutely necessary of those who manage investments is the ability to be truthful, and to tell the truth. The prisons are full of people who have attempted to scam people out of their money, lying to them about potential investments. If she was lying, instead, then she still deserves to be fired. She's in a bad predicament; if lying, deserves to be fired, as you wouldn't want someone who is not truthful to be managing investments for you. If not lying, and simply bad at due diligence (which is what she is admitting), then she also deserves to be fired, as excellence in due diligence is an essential part of successful investing.
pc| 6.21.11 @ 9:00PM
My very pro-life executive wife has been targeted by these "womens" organizations and actually donated to one. These organizations don't mention they are all about abortion-they are about "womens issues" or "womens health". So I think it is very likely that she did not know that their mission was about abortion.
In the end ND and the Board member did the right thing. By the way, she was not on the Board because of her investment experience-she was on the Board because of her wealth and the wealth of her clients.
Our child now goes to ND and while it may not be as "Catholic" as it once was I absolutely believe it is light years ahead of other Catholic schools. My son feels the Catholic spirit every day.
MikeBee| 6.23.11 @ 8:43AM
PC,
Organizations whose mission is the destruction of human beings have never broadcast their mission clearly. They have always lied about what they are doing. That's why you perform due diligence. I am a financial professional. Companies who want other people's money often don't reveal everything a potential investor should know about them. Good due diligence either reveals much of what they are hiding, or confirms that they are not hiding anything, and are a good investment.
What is being questioned is her judgement and professionalism. The type of people that you want on your BOD is people who possess good judgement, and who are seasoned professionals. How this woman handled this situation shows a lack of good judgement and a lack of professionalism. She is either lying about her knowledge of the organizations which received her money, or she doesn't have enough professional expertise to perform due diligence before giving her money. Either potential situation shows that she doesn't belong on anyone's BOD.
I don't know anything about the quality of education at UND. However, I do believe that, if the school supports Abortion as simply a "choice" that every woman should have, then they should not be allowed to call themselves a Catholic university. Keeping this board member around supports the perception that the university supports Abortion.
pc| 6.26.11 @ 9:19PM
Mike, Extremely busy executives like this Board Member and my wife do not spend their time on blogs like this questioning the truthfulness of a person of which they have absolutely no knowledge or doing "due diligence" on all the charities they give money. What commonly happens is a co-worker approaches the very busy executive and the very busy executive trusting the judgement of their co-worker very generously supports a cause that their very busy co-worker is passionate about.
In my personal opoinion, knowing nothing about this Board Member, she sounds like a really wonderful person.
kurt2088| 6.20.11 @ 9:29AM
Just wait until the student loan bubble bursts, with 70% of high school graduates going to college, a degree will not be worth the paper it's printed on in a few more years!
Sandra| 6.20.11 @ 9:37AM
Too late! That has already been happening. Now it is the "institution" that you attended, Ivies being the top preference, and then a select number of top tier specialized schools... it's a long drop to most branches of State Universities (University of "State" major city campus). Forget going to "night school" or other non-traditional route as a way to obtain a college degree too. They are viewed as similar to GEDs; met "some" requirements, but they don't have to take it that you actually "learned" something.
rendite| 6.20.11 @ 4:07PM
Kurt and Sandra, you are both correct. I am not the best at wordsmithing, grammar, spelling, etc. but I routinely have offers from doctoral level students to almost do their work for them. This at a "high end" institution.
If you have money and time, the sky is the limit. True scholarly merit? No, not important.
TrueBlue| 6.20.11 @ 5:23PM
None of them are worth the paper they are printed on, even the ones from Ivy League schools. Can get a Masters all they want, they STILL can't do the dang job, but they get hired, while the person that got laid off because of the economy but has been doing the job for 10+ years has their resume thrown in the trash because they don't have the time/money to spend to go back to school for the worthless degree and still support their family.
C Smith| 6.20.11 @ 9:34AM
The "Church teaching on the sanctity of life"? Notice the cross on each tower engraved in the copper foil. One day each one of these towers will fall:
http://martyrsmirror.blogspot......-1573.html
The north wind of persecution blew now the longer the more through the garden of the Lord, so that the herbs and trees of the same (that is the true believers) were rooted out of the earth through the violence that came against them. This appeared, among other instances, in the case of a very God-fearing and pious woman, named Maey ken Wens, who was the wife of a faithful minister of the church of God in the,city of Antwerp, by the name of Mattheus Wens, by trade a mason. About the month of April, A. D. 1573, she, together with others of her fellow believers, was apprehended at Antwerp, bound, and confined in the severest prison there. In the meantime she was subjected to much conflict and temptation by so-called spirituals (ecclesiastics), as well as by secular persons, to cause her to apostatize from her faith. But when she could by no manner of means, not even by severe tortures, be turned from the steadfastness of her faith, they, on the fifth day of October, 1573, passed sentence upon her, and pronounced it publicly in court at the afore-mentioned place, namely, that she should, with her mouth screwed shut, or with her tongue screwed up, be burnt to ashes as a heretic, together with several others, who were also imprisoned and stood in like faith with her....
The oldest son of the afore-mentioned martyress, named Adriaen Wens, aged about fifteen years, could not stay away from the place of execution on the day on which his dear mother was offered up; hence he took his youngest little brother, named Hans (or Jan) Mattheus Wens, who was about three years old, upon his arm and went and stood with him somewhere upon a bench, not far from the stakes erected, to behold his mother's death.
But when she was brought forth and placed at the stake, he lost consciousness, fell to the ground, and remained in this condition until his mother and the rest were burnt. Afterwards, when the people had gone away, having regained consciousness, he went to the place where his mother had been burnt, and hunted in the ashes, in which he found the screw with which her tongue had been screwed fast, which he kept in remembrance of her.
MAEYKEN WENS, A. D. 1573 (Martyrs Mirror, Page 980-981)
Petronius| 6.20.11 @ 9:41AM
The only thing a degree signifies now, is that the person who's name is inscribed as recipient upon it has an appetite for the excrement of others.
David W| 6.20.11 @ 9:47AM
I assume that Notre Dame has also determined that "thou shall not lie" is no longer a requirement (how else could the board make the statements about Miss/Mrs. Martino's pro-life support). I assume that the first commandment will be the next to go, if it hasn't already.....
Doctor Right| 6.20.11 @ 9:48AM
The problem described in this article is not limited to Catholic churches or institutions of higher learning. Many denominational churches are increasingly afraid to teach sound doctrine, Biblical or otherwise, that might make congregants uncomfortable (or damage the weekly collection...)
I frequently spar with people in my own Church who are Biblically conservative, yet politically immature and incoherent. They tend to think with their emotions, and not their God-given brains. To that end, they are staunch supporters of political parties and organizations which are diametrically opposed to Biblical teachings (and even their own professed faith), yet they fail to notice the inherent contradictions, and have little curiosity, either.
Abortion is the most obvious, glaring example. Catholic teaching on abortion is 100% clear. I fail to see how anyone who professes to be a Catholic can distinguish any ambiguity in that position, or justify their own rationalization. And again, this is problematic across Christianity. In the church I attend, I encounter the same problem, albeit slightly disguised a la' how Rick Warren "koshered" Obama for many evangelical Christians in 2008.
...It's very discouraging. Churches have a duty to their members to teach sound doctrine. Too often, we hear the refrain "...but that's politics..". Yes, it is...but it's more than that, and when we oversimplify or obfuscate, we are doing a great disservice.
Nick| 6.20.11 @ 12:01PM
Doctor Right,
Excellent points. I commend you.
jolizoom| 6.20.11 @ 6:13PM
Yep, I liked Warren's "Purpose Driven Life", but it seemed to me that he abandoned the gospel after that in favor of a Purpose Driven Cult. The purpose? $$, I'm sure. I was not fooled by Warren's so-called non-endorsement of Obama. Didn't he also accept a position on some religious board under Obama?
tonyo| 6.20.11 @ 10:53AM
NDs Catholic identify went the way of its football prowess. I doubt either can be restored.
Petronius| 6.20.11 @ 2:23PM
Dan Devine pray for us.
Citizen Jerry| 6.20.11 @ 10:58AM
I won't presume to be as knowledgeable about the Catholic faith as some who have posted here in the past and present. I consider the Catholics as my "western spiritual brethren."
Sadly. most name-brand Catholic institutions have become CINO -- Catholic in Name Only. Faculties and administrations have been taken over by secularists who have no reverence for the Magesterium, or anything spiritual for that matter. These termites will eventually eat away the foundation of every institution that holds to "the faith once given." Maybe that's their plan.
W| 6.20.11 @ 11:25AM
There is a terrific book titled "Can a Catholic be a Democrat," written by a Democrat politician, that adresses most of these issues. Specifically, how can you be a Catholic (you can substitute Christian, or Jewish) and support/vote for a party that promotes,condones, and justifies abortion, and be honest. I suppose the part of "being honest" explains how Cuomo, Pelosi, Biden,Kennedy,etc. manage to be both.
I will supply the author's name as soon as i remember or look it up.
W| 6.20.11 @ 3:24PM
author is David Carlin.
Kris Lepine| 6.20.11 @ 11:30AM
My neice and family lived in Granger, Indiana several years ago. After adopting 2 sons in the US they went to China to adopt a girl. They went back a few years later for another girl and fell in love with China. They have since adopted 10 children with 7 coming from China and many have handicaps. During the years they lived near Notre Dame, they learned of Chinese students studying there and began inviting them to their home for holiday dinners and other events. I was curious so asked why a Roman Catholic university was hosting Chinese exchange students. My neice had the answer. They are so smart, they bring up the grade point average of the entire school. If that's true, it's another way for the university to "cheat" when reporting on itself.
rendite| 6.20.11 @ 4:19PM
I believe it is also a way for a university to gain financially.
Notre Dame would not be the only institution very aggressively courting the Chinese students. Aren't they now 1 out of every 12 students on our (allegedly) best campuses in America? Why? And I refer to mainland communist Chinese.
My strong hunch: Unlike many other international students who do not pay full tuition, the Chinese government is paying well for these 'seats.'
Haven't you noticed? Our 'upscale' universities are craving $$ and scratching to find it everywhere. So if a Notre Dame has to sacrifice a principle or two to get more $$, so what? I bet Notre Dame is also announcing more freshman and sophomore transfer 'seats' for Fall 2011.
Meanwhile...are we really sure the presence and purposes of these Chinese students is...ahem...all on the up and up? What might really be their purposes here?
Michael K| 6.20.11 @ 11:41AM
These incidents removes any guilt I have for rooting for the U, that is Univ of Miami, when they crushed the Domers back in the late 80s. I always found ND's
holier than thou" attitude a big turn off and their becoming another CINO institution just confirms my dislike of the place.
JP| 6.20.11 @ 3:20PM
You wouldn't be speaking about the 1985 rout, would you. The 'Canes 58, Notre Dame 0? It was Gerry Faust's final game. I actually felt sorry for Faust. He was a good guy. But he was waaaay over his head.
cowgirl| 6.20.11 @ 12:32PM
I attended 12 years of Catholic schools While the academics and discipline are outstanding, their moral values are much to be desired. A couple of years ago when the news hit the world about the gay priests hitting on young men, I was shocked that I seemed to be the only person in the world who knew this had being going on for years - I saw it in grammar school and high school. This led to me leaving the Catholic Church at age 18 and never looking back.
One only has to read the history of the Catholic Church to know that it does not practice what it preaches.
Nick| 6.20.11 @ 3:41PM
Cowgirl,
I pray that you reconsider your choice and come back home to Mother Church.
By the way, there were many clerics and laity who were demanding that the bishops deal with this travesty, for over two decades prior to the MSM latching onto the story.
God Bless!
W| 6.20.11 @ 5:11PM
Cowgirl, you left the Catholic Church because you saw gay priests hit on young men? That makes no sense. Gay priests hitting on young men is not Catholic doctrine, and the criminal conduct of some is not a reason to leave a church. Are you going to leave the USA because of the criminal conduct of presidents, senators, judges, congressmen, mayors, governors?
rendite| 6.21.11 @ 1:52AM
Chill, W. The woman is very well entitled to her course of action. This is a blog spot, W. None of us can exhaustively explain or expound here. Time and space do not permit; Cowgirl kept her comments succinct.
As in the case of pedophile priests in schools and churches, when one sees open, frequent, blatant hypocrisy and the higher authorities (who know what is transpiring) do nothing, well, what does one do?
Actually, yes, it is easier to drop one's faith, try another denomination, or just go solo for awhile. Changing one's nationality is more troubling. As citizens in a large nation we have the option of moving away from highly corrupt NE urban areas or all of California when we are really sore with our elected fools. So we “relocate;” life in Tennessee, Kentucky, or North Carolina is worlds better than New York City.
We all know elected political fools are lying when they claim a faith denomination. They have no faith, and, yes they are criminals. We do not expect this same full scale deceit when dealing with clergy.
One may decide not to leave the faith when seeing corruption in a church (or a school), but one should change congregations. If you sit there and do nothing, you are part of the problem.
And so it should be with places like Notre Dame and Georgetown. Post haste, good students, go elsewhere!
W| 6.21.11 @ 8:26AM
sorry rendite, but dont believe it, seems like another cheap shot at the church. if i saw that i would have complained to my parents
Doctor Right| 6.21.11 @ 10:14AM
How do you know she didn't?
And why would you assume that watching gay Priests repeatedly hitting on young men with impunity WOULDN'T adversely affect someone's faith???
W| 6.21.11 @ 1:20PM
Well, she did not say "gay priests repeatedly hitting on young men with impunity," those are your words. If i saw that criminal conduct i would have reported it, it would definetely affect my opinion of those priests, but why would it affect my faith? Homosexual sex is not Catholic or Christian or Jewish doctrine. Is you faith affected by scandals in the Protestant denominations? No. Such conduct reflects on the individuals involved, whether they are the perpetrators or involved in the cover up; it does not reflect on your faith.
Why limit it to gay sex, what about ministers, rabbis, and priests who fool around with women?
I do not know why she left, I am basing my opinion on her post.
TrueBlue| 6.20.11 @ 5:40PM
From what I've noticed it's been a sad side effect of the US Bishops being liberal fools, and not the fault of the Catholic faith itself. They're more concerned with injecting politics into things than they are upholding the actual tenets of the Church.
I agree that the people in question need to be punished (and many of them actually are, the Church just doesn't feel the need to feed the media circus by making it public) but in the end they are human, just like the rest of us. All of us are flawed, it's just more surprising (and bigger news) when it happens to be religious leaders falling to temptation.
The percentage in comparison to the rest of the population is actually still lower for the clergy, it's just not heard of as often because normal people doing that stuff isn't newsworthy. Not excusing the actions, just pointing that out.
Also have to realize that unfortunately the Church falls victim to wanting the story to disappear, even when the priest is innocent since that part will never be printed, and they just pay people off. So you end up with sue happy people in this country looking for any excuse, and the news agencies make a huge deal out of it because it's news, not because it's true.
POST American| 6.20.11 @ 10:14PM
---Well over half a century of Rockefeller/Carnegie/Ford Foundation infiltration, Arminian heresy cloaked 'Marksism'
etc. contiues to take its deadly, deadly cultural and spiritual toll.
NEVER talked about in the columns of 'American'
Spectator.
NEVER----------------------------------------------------
sunglasses for sale | 6.20.11 @ 10:53PM
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weddingdresses | 6.21.11 @ 5:38AM
---Well over half a century of Rockefeller/Carnegie/Ford Foundation infiltration, Arminian heresy cloaked 'Marksism'
etc. contiues to take its deadly, deadly cultural and spiritual toll.
NEVER talked about in the columns of 'American'
Spectator.
Owl_at_Dusk| 6.21.11 @ 10:45AM
Why is it that one can't be Catholic and vote for a pro-abortion candidate? Did you have any problem for voting for pro-capital punishment, pro-unjust war, and anti-poor Bush? Aren't these Catholic doctrines as well, or are you just picking the "conservative" ones you like? You may think of yourselves as orthodox, but you're just as heretical as the liberals you excoriate as disloyal apostates. You claim to represent the higher standard; your hypocrisy is that much greater as a result. Perhaps THAT is why your influence is waning, not the substance of the pro-life position (which you discredit by your example).
You don't have to be Catholic to be pro-life, and being pro-life doesn't make you Catholic. And if voting for a politician requires that he share Catholic doctrine, well then, no President would ever have been elected with Catholic votes, including John Kennedy.
MikeBee| 6.21.11 @ 12:09PM
Wow, OAD! Really left yourself open on this one. The Catholic Church's stand on capital punishment is not a doctrine of the Church, and, therefore, not required to be believed by Catholics, much like Church teachings on Purgatory. But, the Church's belief that human life begins at conception IS a doctrine of the Church, and is required to be believed/supported by all who call themselves Catholic. Everything the Catholic Church teaches is not required to be supported by the Catholic public; only the doctrines of the Church are required. Catholics today who support abortion are simply CINO (Catholics in Name Only).
Unjust war? What unjust war? Obama's excursions into Libya? Sounds like you're making an assumption on this one.
Anti-poor Bush? Since when was either President Bush against the poor? Again, your trousers are showing, OAD. Might want to pull those pants up. You're going to have to come up with some credible arguments to try pin a charge of Hypocrisy on conservative Catholics. Also, try learning something about the Catholic faith before making unfounded accusations. You make yourself look bad, and we just feel embarrassed for you...........
W| 6.21.11 @ 4:28PM
MikeBee, excellent post. Owl must have learned his Catholic doctrine from Nancy Pelosi and Ted Kennedy, who declared Bush to be unfair, the Iraq war unjust, and the rest.
Mary Ann Falkenberg| 6.21.11 @ 11:50AM
To read and/or re-read the comments expressed above is very disheartening....so negative . The glass should be HALF FULL and only an attitude that promotes and supports that ideal can possibly exist and continue to inspire. There is so very much to criticize, start with ourselves - and from that evaluation, try to start thinking POSITVE with a glass half FULL and increasing on a daily basis with continuing prayers for the good of all of us, INCLUDING NOTRE DAME !!!!
Nick| 6.21.11 @ 7:36PM
Miss Falkenberg,
Here is one positive item to note. The Pro-Life activists who were unjustly arrested, when O'Bama unjustly spoke at Notre Dame, had the charges against them dropped.
Praise the Lord!
DixieFlyer | 6.21.11 @ 1:02PM
The unstoppable decline of a nation and a university. See http://www.grottogate.com
Elizabeth Baldo| 6.21.11 @ 9:46PM
Excellent article, James. Keep it up.