Sunday, May 17, 2009

Notre Dame, Obama, and 'Outside Agitators' - a Blast From the Past

Notre Dame university plans to give an honorary law degree to President Barack Obama today. I'm quite sure that the university will receive acclaim and congratulations for being open-minded, or forward-looking, or something groovy like that.

And, getting a high-profile public figure on campus is a feather in the cap for Notre Dame university.

Too bad that, under the circumstances, it's violating Catholic teachings.

Still, it could be worse. Notre Dame could have shown how up-to-date it was, by re-naming its law school to honor Harry Blackmun, and its Women's Studies Department after Dorothy Sanger.

"Protesters to Greet Obama at Notre Dame"

AssociatedPress, YouTube (May 17, 2009)
video 1:04

The Associated Press's video carefully points out that most Notre Dame students are not protesting, and are concerned about graduating.

A phrase used by the AP reporter took me back more than 40 years. Saying "...demonstrators have descended on South Bend Indiana to speak out against Obama and also the university...." reminded me of the times, back in the sixties, when it was 'outside agitators' who were stirring up all that fuss about civil rights in the south. A FOXNews headline, "Pro-Life Activists Converge on Notre Dame to Protest Obama Speech," had the same sort-of-nostalgic feel.

In both cases, it's probably straight reporting. For most reporters, the civil rights movement of the sixties is part of history - not something they experienced personally.

As for "...students are generally in favor of Obama giving the graduation speech...," I'm not surprised. He's got great charisma, says things very nicely, he's a celebrity, and America has quite a few Catholics who are about as knowledgeable about their church's teachings as Nancy Pelosi.

A professor, Richard Garnett, wrote " 'My strong hope is that serious Catholics will not let this particular incident drive them away from Notre Dame, which remains very important in the life of the Church,' ... 'But, Notre Dame has allowed itself to get into a very unhealthy adversarial relationship with many bishops, and lay Catholics.

" 'The university is going to have to find ways to demonstrate its Catholic character, to reassure those who think that the invitation to President Obama revealed a lack of commitment to that character.'..." (FOXNews)

I think Professor Garnett misses a point. Notre Dame university has violated one of the teachings of the church by giving the abortion president a platform for airing his views. ("Notre Dame: Lots of Prestige, Lots of History, About as Catholic as Harry Blackmun" (May 3, 2009))

The professor may think it's a fine thing for a "Catholic" university to defy Church teaching, and then explain to the Church that it's wrong about what it teaches. Me, I think that discussion of opposing views should be carried out in detail, and honestly: in the classrooms, coffee shops, and faculty lounges.

Defying Catholic teaching by giving "awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions" ("Catholics in Political Life"
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (June, 2004)) is about as appropriate for an allegedly Catholic university, as would holding a slave auction to raise funds.

Related posts: Background: In the news:

No comments:

Like it? Pin it, Plus it, - - -

Pinterest: My Stuff, and More

Advertisement

Unique, innovative candles


Visit us online:
Spiral Light CandleFind a Retailer
Spiral Light Candle Store

Popular Posts

Label Cloud

1277 abortion ADD ADHD-Inattentive Adoration Chapel Advent Afghanistan Africa America Amoris Laetitia angels animals annulment Annunciation anti-catholicism Antichrist apocalyptic ideas apparitions archaeology architecture Arianism art Asperger syndrome assumptions asteroid astronomy Australia authority balance and moderation baptism being Catholic beliefs bias Bible Bible and Catechism bioethics biology blogs brain Brazil business Canada capital punishment Caritas in Veritate Catechism Catholic Church Catholic counter-culture Catholicism change happens charisms charity Chile China Christianity Christmas citizenship climate change climatology cloning comets common good common sense Communion community compassion confirmation conscience conversion Corpus Christi cosmology creation credibility crime crucifix Crucifixion Cuba culture dance dark night of the soul death depression designer babies despair detachment devotion discipline disease diversity divination Divine Mercy divorce Docetism domestic church dualism duty Easter economics education elections emotions England entertainment environmental issues Epiphany Establishment Clause ethics ethnicity Eucharist eugenics Europe evangelizing evolution exobiology exoplanets exorcism extremophiles faith faith and works family Father's Day Faust Faustus fear of the Lord fiction Final Judgment First Amendment forgiveness Fortnight For Freedom free will freedom fun genetics genocide geoengineering geology getting a grip global Gnosticism God God's will good judgment government gratitude great commission guest post guilt Haiti Halloween happiness hate health Heaven Hell HHS hierarchy history holidays Holy Family Holy See Holy Spirit holy water home schooling hope humility humor hypocrisy idolatry image of God images Immaculate Conception immigrants in the news Incarnation Independence Day India information technology Internet Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Japan Jesus John Paul II joy just war justice Kansas Kenya Knights of Columbus knowledge Korea language Last Judgment last things law learning Lent Lenten Chaplet life issues love magi magic Magisterium Manichaeism marriage martyrs Mary Mass materialism media medicine meditation Memorial Day mercy meteor meteorology Mexico Minnesota miracles Missouri moderation modesty Monophysitism Mother Teresa of Calcutta Mother's Day movies music Muslims myth natural law neighbor Nestorianism New Year's Eve New Zealand news Nietzsche obedience Oceania organization original sin paleontology parish Parousia penance penitence Pentecost Philippines physical disability physics pilgrimage politics Pope Pope in Germany 2011 population growth positive law poverty prayer predestination presumption pride priests prophets prostitution Providence Purgatory purpose quantum entanglement quotes reason redemption reflections relics religion religious freedom repentance Resurrection robots Roman Missal Third Edition rosaries rules sacramentals Sacraments Saints salvation schools science secondary causes SETI sex shrines sin slavery social justice solar planets soul South Sudan space aliens space exploration Spain spirituality stem cell research stereotypes stewardship stories storm Sudan suicide Sunday obligation superstition symbols technology temptation terraforming the establishment the human condition tolerance Tradition traffic Transfiguration Transubstantiation travel Trinity trust truth uncertainty United Kingdom universal destination of goods vacation Vatican Vatican II veneration vengeance Veterans Day videos virtue vlog vocations voting war warp drive theory wealth weather wisdom within reason work worship writing

Marian Apparition: Champion, Wisconsin

Background:Posts in this blog: In the news:

What's That Doing in a Nice Catholic Blog?

From time to time, a service that I use will display links to - odd - services and retailers.

I block a few of the more obvious dubious advertisers.

For example: psychic anything, numerology, mediums, and related practices are on the no-no list for Catholics. It has to do with the Church's stand on divination. I try to block those ads.

Sometime regrettable advertisements get through, anyway.

Bottom line? What that service displays reflects the local culture's norms, - not Catholic teaching.