Talk Radio on Obama at Notre Dame

Professor Scott Appleby spoke on a segment on NPR yesterday. He spoke in defense of Notre Dame's decision, opposite of Patrick Reilly, President of the Cardinal Newman Society.

Professor Appleby also spoke on Sirius Satellite Radio on The Catholics Next Door Show with Greg and Jennifer Willits. The podcast of that extraordinary interview is found here.

Jared Rizzi, a Notre Dame graduate and producer of Lino Rulli’s The Catholic Guy Show on the Catholic Channel on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio gave the following perspective in this podcast:

It appears that the decision from Fr. John Jenkins is final. It appears that the President will be speaking at the University for Commencement. Let’s treat the decision as final. I don’t really like the idea of students and faculty, alums, people who feel a strong affinity to the Church or to the University saying he should or should not be coming. It seems like it’s happening. I believe there is a place for that debate, and I don’t think it’s over just because Fr. Jenkins has put his foot down. We have to look at this as an opportunity to open up the first real dialogue with this President on these issues. There are going to be other people on the dais who are going to have other opinions on this. The President is going to be there, and he’s not just going to be there for the twenty minutes of his speech. He’s going to be on that
campus. And if you don’t think that campus can change somebody, I would suggest you go there and take a visit. If we really hope that the President going there can reignite a national dialogue between Catholics, and maybe wake Catholics up a little bit about how they need to approach these issues if their elected officials are going to take notice. I think that is the best thing that could come out of this event in May.

More on Obama, Part II

Below is a message issued by Bishop D'Arcy, Bishop of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend:

Concerning President Barack Obama speaking at Notre Dame
graduation, receiving honorary law degree

March 24, 2009

On Friday, March 21, Father John Jenkins, CSC, phoned to inform me that President Obama had accepted his invitation to speak to the graduating class at Notre Dame and receive an honorary degree. We spoke shortly before the announcement was made public at the White House press briefing. It was the first time that I had been informed that Notre Dame had issued this invitation.

President Obama has recently reaffirmed, and has now placed in public policy, his long-stated unwillingness to hold human life as sacred. While claiming to separate politics from science, he has in fact separated science from ethics and has brought the American government, for the first time in history, into supporting direct destruction of innocent human life.

This will be the 25th Notre Dame graduation during my time as bishop. After much prayer, I have decided not to attend the graduation. I wish no disrespect to our president, I pray for him and wish him well. I have always revered the Office of the Presidency. But a bishop must teach the Catholic faith “in season and out of season,” and he teaches not only by his words — but by his actions. My decision is not an attack on anyone, but is in defense of the truth about human life. I have in mind also the statement of the U.S. Catholic Bishops in 2004. “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.” Indeed, the measure of any Catholic institution is not only what it stands for, but also what it will not stand for.

I have spoken with Professor Mary Ann Glendon, who is to receive the Laetare Medal. I have known her for many years and hold her in high esteem. We are both teachers, but in different ways. I have encouraged her to accept this award and take the opportunity such an award gives her to teach.

Even as I continue to ponder in prayer these events, which many have found shocking, so must Notre Dame. Indeed, as a Catholic University, Notre Dame must ask itself, if by this decision it has chosen prestige over truth.

Tomorrow, we celebrate as Catholics the moment when our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, became a child in the womb of his most holy mother. Let us ask Our Lady to intercede for the university named in her honor, that it may recommit itself to the primacy of truth over prestige.

More on Obama

The Alumni Association sent an email to all Club Leaders today regarding the decision to ask President Obama to be this year's Commencement Speaker. It explains why Notre Dame made its decision and gives some thoughts from Fr. Hesburgh. I copy it in full below for your information:

Dear Club Leaders:

As you know, the University recently announced President Barack Obama will be the principal speaker and recipient of an honorary degree at Notre Dame’s Commencement ceremony this May. President Obama will be the ninth U.S. president to be awarded an honorary degree by the University, and the sixth to be the Commencement speaker. Here is the press release about the announcement.

Many alumni, parents, and friends of the University have expressed their opinions about the selection of the Commencement speaker. We welcome their feedback and appreciate the passion the Notre Dame family has for Our Lady’s University.

As leaders of ND clubs, classes, and alumni groups, you may receive phone calls, e-mails, and letters from alumni, parents and friends regarding the Commencement speaker.

If alumni, parents or friends would like to express their opinions to the University regarding this issue, please ask them to send an e-mail to the Alumni Association at ndalumni@nd.edu. They will receive a timely response.

The Alumni Association also welcomes you to share your personal views on this issue, but requests that any communications be sent outside the structure and distribution lists of the Notre Dame club, class or alumni group that you represent.

Here are a few University observations about the selection of the President as the Commencement speaker:

The University does not support President Obama’s positions on specific issues regarding the protection of human life, including abortion and embryonic stem cell research. Notre Dame’s positions on these issues are firm and unwavering. The invitation to the President to be the Commencement speaker shouldn’t be taken as condoning or endorsing his positions that contradict the teachings of the Catholic Church.

Rather, the University has invited the President to campus for what he’s done for racial equality, and for his stands on poverty, health care, immigration, education, infectious disease, and seeking peace. These are causes dear to the heart of Notre Dame, and he has elevated these causes and made them his own.

It adds special significance that the Notre Dame family will hear the Commencement address from our first African-American president, a man who has spoken eloquently on the issue of race in this nation. That said, presenting a Commencement speaker with an honorary degree does not imply approval of all a person thinks or does. We recognize that the University has differences with the President on specific issues of protecting life, and we hope his visit to campus will provide an opportunity to address our concerns in a dialogue that can deepen over time, and ultimately lead to better policies for protecting life. A policy that is never discussed is policy that is never changed, and we’re going to get more discussion on these issues because of his visit to Notre Dame.

Also, I want to mention that Fr. Hesburgh spoke last Friday evening (3/20) to a group of alumni, parents, and friends who had gathered on campus for the Academic Recognition Weekend. Someone in the group raised the question: what did Fr. Hesburgh think of the University’s announcement of Obama as Commencement speaker? “No speaker who has ever come to Notre Dame has changed this University, he explained. We are who we are. But, quite often, the very fact of being here has changed the speaker.”

Do we expect President Obama to reverse his stance on life issues after visiting campus? No, but we do expect that the national attention drawn to these matters by virtue of his being here will open up the conversation around these critical issues—and shed light on Notre Dame’s and the Catholic Church’s firm opposition to abortion and embryonic stem cell research.

Your devotion to Notre Dame is greatly appreciated. Thank you for your support and all you do for Our Lady’s University.

For Notre Dame,

Charles F.
Lennon Jr. ’61, ’62 M.A.Executive Director, Notre Dame Alumni Association

Obama to Speak at Notre Dame

As many of you have heard, President Obama will be the principal speaker and the recipient of an honorary doctor of laws degree at this year's Commencement Ceremony on May 17. Obama will be the ninth U.S. president to be awarded an honorary degree by the University of Notre Dame and the sixth to be the Commencement speaker. The official announcement is on the Notre Dame site.

Fr. Jenkins responded to questions about the choice in an Observer article from March 23:

"Presidents from both parties have come to Notre Dame for decades to speak to graduates about our nation and our world. They've given important addresses on international affairs, human rights, service, and we're delighted that President Obama is continuing that tradition," Jenkins said. "The invitation of President Obama to be our Commencement speaker should in no way be taken as condoning or endorsing his positions on specific issues regarding the protection of life, such as abortion and embryonic stem cell research," Jenkins said. "I would say that it's a special feature for us that we will hear from the first African American president here at Notre Dame, a person who has spoken eloquently and powerfully about race," he said. "Racial prejudice is a deep wound in America and President Obama has been a healer, so we honor him for those reasons."

The Catholic News Agency has collected comments from several Catholic scholars and Notre Dame professors in an interesting March 23 article. The Cardinal Newman Society and CatholicVote.org are sponsoring a website, http://www.notredamescandal.com/ to collect signatures to send to Fr. Jenkins protesting the decision. As of Wednesday morning, the number of signatures was reported to be over 108,000. The National Catholic Register interprets Notre Dame's decision to be opposed to the June 2004 statement from the United States Catholic Bishops called, "Catholics in Political Life." That document concludes with several points of emphasis, including the following:

• 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.


• We commit ourselves to maintain communication with public officials who make decisions every day that touch issues of human life and dignity.

Cathleen Kaveny, a Notre Dame professor of law and professor of theology and a big supporter of Obama in the election, offered this perspective Sunday in a blog post on dotCommonweal:

Current ND students appear to have voted for Obama over McCain by about 10 percentage points.
Many of them identified the economy and foreign policy as major factors in their votes.

To get a sampling of what Catholic blogs are saying about the invitation, check out this search engine dedicated only to Catholic blogs.

It's safe to expect a significant number of protests on campus. The Observer explains the following:

Junior Mary Daly, president of Notre Dame's Right to Life club, said that she has been contacted by many pro-life organizations around the country. "There are a ton of ideas flying around," Daly said. "But we don't have any decisions yet. Those will be coming out in a few days." Although she said she believes it is an honor to have the President speak at Notre Dame, Daly said Obama's strong pro-choice beliefs and support for the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) contradicts the Catholic mission of the University.