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Catholic Theologians
Denounce Attacks on Notre Dame
For Immediate Release
May 14, 2009
Contact:
John Gehring
Senior Writer
Catholics in Alliance
for the Common Good
202-429-9683 (office)
410-302-3792 (cell)
Washington,
DC — As controversy swirls
around President Obama’s commencement address at Notre Dame this Sunday, over 20
Catholic theologians issued a statement today denouncing shrill attacks against
the university as betraying a rich Catholic intellectual tradition and
injecting partisan politics into the graduation ceremony.
The statement, signed by the president of the Catholic
Theological Society of America and other prominent Catholic scholars, will run
as a full-page advertisement in the May 16 edition of the South Bend Tribune.
It cautions “those who seek to disrupt these joyous proceedings or to divide
the Church for narrow political advantage that history is not on your side.”
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The theologians note that Notre Dame has a long tradition of
inviting presidents from both political parties to give the commencement. They
include former presidents George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan, whose positions on
the death penalty, use of military power, torture and other central life issues
did not align with Catholic social teaching.
“These former leaders were received as sitting presidents
who came to speak about great issues of our time,” the statement reads. “The
same standard should apply for President Obama, a Christian with deep respect
for the role of faith in public life and whose commitment to universal health
care, comprehensive immigration reform, environmental stewardship and an
economy that works for all Americans reflect core Catholic values.
The complete text of the statement with signers can be found
below.
Catholic Leaders and
Theologians Welcome President Obama to Notre Dame
As Catholics committed to civil dialogue, we are proud that
President Barack Obama will give the Commencement Address at the University of
Notre Dame on May 17.
Eighty-five years ago to the very day, the racial and
religious hatred of the KKK spilled onto the Irish campus. Notre Dame President
Rev. John Jenkins now welcomes an American president who transcends race with
hope and invites people of every faith to find common ground.
Notre Dame has a long tradition of honoring presidents from
both political parties. We caution those who seek to disrupt these joyous
proceedings or to divide the Church for narrow political advantage that history
is not on your side.
Catholic teaching warns about the threats to human dignity
posed by abortion, the death penalty, torture, unjust military engagement and
the nuclear arms race. The honoring of George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan did not
detract from Notre Dame’s commitment to the fullness of faith. These former
leaders were received as sitting presidents who came to speak about great
issues of our time. The same standard should apply for President Obama, a
Christian with deep respect for the role of faith in public life and whose
commitment to universal health care, comprehensive immigration reform,
environmental stewardship and an economy that works for all Americans reflect
core Catholic values.
Catholic institutions of higher learning teach students to
engage the world through faith and reason. On this anniversary when the Irish
defeated the KKK with fists, it is a measure of human progress that today we
use our minds in pursuit of the common good.
We join Notre Dame in recognizing the accomplishments of
President Obama.
Nicholas Cafardi
Dean Emeritus
Professor of Law
Lisa Cahill
Professor of Theology
Boston College
David De Cosse
Director of Campus Ethics
Markkula Center for Applied Ethics
Santa Clara University
Charles E. Curran
Professor of Human Values
Southern Methodist University
Nancy Dallavalle
Associate Professor
Chair, Department of
Religious Studies
Fairfield University
Dennis Doyle
Professor of Religious
Studies
University of Dayton
Jeannine Hill Fletcher
Associate Professor of
Theology
Fordham University
Elena G. Procario-Foley
Chair, Religious Studies
Dept.
Iona College
Richard Gaillardetz
Professor of Catholic Studies
University of Toledo
Elizabeth Groppe
Associate Professor of
Theology
Xavier University
Kirk O. Hanson
Executive Director
Markkula Center for Applied Ethics
Santa Clara University
Kristin E. Heyer
Associate Professor,
Theological Studies
Loyola Marymount University
Christine Firer Hinze
Professor, Christian Ethics
Department of Theology
Fordham University
Bradford E. Hinze
Professor of Theology
Fordham University
Douglas Kmiec
Professor of Constitutional
Law
Pepperdine University
Paul Lakeland
Director, Center for Catholic
Studies
Fairfield University
Vincent Miller
Associate Professor, Theology
Department
Georgetown University
David O’Brien
Loyola Professor Emeritus,
Catholic Studies
College of Holy Cross
Rev. William O’Neill, SJ
Associate Professor of Social
Ethics
Jesuit School of
Theology at Berkeley
Rev. Tom Reese, SJ
Senior Fellow
Woodstock Theological Center
Georgetown University
Vincent Rougeau
Associate Professor of Law
University of Notre Dame
Stephen Schneck
Director, Life Cycle
Institute
The Catholic
University of America
Terrence W. Tilley
President
Catholic Theological Society
of America
Sandra Yocum
Chair of Religious Studies
University of Dayton