Notre Dumb
NOTRE DAME, Indiana, March 20, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - White House Secretary Robert Gibbs stated today that Obama will give the commencement address at Notre Dame University this year. The school confirmed the announcement, stating on its website that Obama will also receive an honorary doctor of laws degree at the University's 164th University Commencement Ceremony at 2 p.m. May 17 in the Joyce Center on campus.
In 2004, the United States of Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) approved a policy statement called "Catholics in Political Life," which says, with reference to pro-abortion politicians, "They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."
President Obama has been called the "abortion president" by pro-life activists, and his appearance at the university would appear to violate the USCCB's policy against honoring pro-abortion politicians.
One alumnus from the university has already expressed his displeasure in an open letter sent today to the president of Notre Dame, Rev. John Jenkins.
William Newton, a D.C. area attorney, wrote, "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." [reference]
As I quipped on Twitter, the only degree Notre Dame should be giving him is the "third degree" for his murderous executive orders. You have to wonder who in the world they could think this was a good idea. Though their annual production of the Vagina Monologue I guess leads to the Obama Monologue for the most radically pro-abortion president in history. To give an honor to a person who recently signed the death warrant for human embryos is pure scandal.
Update: Cardinal Newman Society has setup www.NotreDameScandal.com which includes an online petition to Notre Dame president Rev. John Jenkins, CSC, and contact information for the university
Known as 
And may the upcoming ND football season be even worse than year before last if I Won receives it.
Notre Dame is making a choice to become a secular institution. It should be stripped of its ability to masquerade as Catholic, unless it retracts this invitation.
SCANDAL, the worst sin, is PUBLICLY displayed in Georgetown (Drinan's building), Fordham, Notre Dame, and so on.
From a foreign perspective: How it is possible that the USCCB is nor publicly exposed, along with the USA Nuncio to the Vatican? Millions of strayded souls are at stake.
Being a graduate from this University, I find it to be very embarrassing. I half way want to burn my degree knowing this bit of information. I believe Our Lady on top of the Admin buliding is in tears.
However, I find it very offensive when people make stabbing remarks about Notre Dame due to the stupidity of a few individuals. People who call Notre Dame a "secular school posing as a Catholic school" or a non-Catholic university have truly never experienced Notre Dame from the inside and only know about the University from what it reads in the papers. As we know, the media isn't interested in things like Chapels in every building or mass celebrated nightly in the dorms or adoration occurring on various locations or morning prayer or night prayer or the daily rosary or Sunday vespers or the numerous other authentically Catholic things that happen on campus. In fact, my time at the university was more authentically Catholic than the experiences I had while visiting friends at Franciscan University of Stubenville, Ave Maria, University of Dallas, or Belmont Abbey College -- all of which have their own problems to deal with.
Remember, the Catholic church had a few Popes who were less than stellar, but the Church pressed on and other, better Popes eventually took the lead.
I pray that this is just a bump in the road for the University.
If you are offended by this, then instead of being uncharitable in word. Perhaps following Jeff's advice is best. Write to the President, and get down on your knees and pray, pray, pray for the University. Pray for certain people to take early retirement. Pray for holy priests on campus. Pray for the students who have wounded hearts and souls. Pray!
A draft of the letter I am mailing. Any advice?
Dear Fr. Jenkins,
I am 35 years old and I say the Rosary everyday. For six months now one of my intentions has been the conversion of President Obama. It is a bitter thing then to learn Notre Dame University plans to further confuse a profoundly misguided politician by honouring him. Feting a President who adamantly holds feticidal and infanticidal beliefs will have a demoralising effect on young Catholics world wide. It will send the message that an esteemed Catholic teaching institution has almost wholly assimilated to the surrounding quasi religion of secularism; and that principles like the autonomy of the will trump the life affirming principle of the inherent dignity of all human life. It would be a symbolic victory for the culture of death.
I’m not one to send protest letters or emails at the drop of a hat, but in this case my heartbreak overwhelms my reticence. Our Lord loves President Obama like a lost sheep and went through the Cross for him and in a very important sense the faithful who in prayer and deed know God’s Kingdom are Obama’s servants.
This is why inviting him to Notre Dame fills me with visceral disgust. We the faithful are duty bound to stand for the truth against the world, to suffer with Our Lord for the sake of all souls. The President of America has an almost preternaturally wicked stance against defenceless life and so demands rebuke [2Timothy 4:1-6]not plaudits of the kind on offer by Notre Dame.
The economy of the Kingdom [Matt 20: 1-16] teaches us that we must hope for the President’s employment at some stage even at the eleventh hour. We do him violence in our Catholic representations by affirming him in his extension of the reign of the culture of death.
In our Eucharistic prayer we pray ‘make us grow in love together WITH Benedict our Pope'. Notre Dame's intention to invite the President is not the behaviour of a Catholic teaching institution faithful to the leadership of the Holy Father.
Insulting Mary and Our Lord the child Jesus by feting a deluded feticidal and infanticidal political leader is intolerable Fr Jenkins. Please do not do this thing.
May God grant wisdom and knowledge to the decision makers at Notre Dame.
Sincerely
Senior Chemistry Teacher
Catholic Schools Adelaide Australia
Cc Archbishop Phillip Wilson Chairman Australian Council of Bishops
Cc George Cardinal Pell
Cc Francis Cardinal George
Cc Apostolic Nuncio USA
Cc Bishop John D'Arcy, Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese
etc etc
Martin, I think that your letter is very well written, and shows a great deal of charity towards the president and Fr. Jenkins--I wouldn't change a thing.
More and more, I'm thinking that the Democrats and Liberal "Catholics" are working towards setting up a parallel "Patriotic" Catholic Church in this country, much like what happened in China.
The Catholic hospitals will be a huge bone in their throat when Socialized Medicine comes about and who doubts that some form of Socialized Medicine is a certainty at this point?
Socialized Medicine will require standardizing services everywhere. They'll need some ruse to wrest control of those institutions from the Church.
The initiative in Connecticut is one sign of a trial balloon.
They are placing Catholics who dissent from the teaching of the Church front and center in the Obama administration.
The Government could give over control of Catholic Hospitals and Institutions (like Notre Dame) to the parallel Church. How many US Catholics would join this Church? Clearly they could staff it with many of the ordained and groups like VoTF. Many US Catholics would welcome a church they could attend without all the "judgementalism" of the Church of the Pope.
Perhaps some new pedophilia scandal could provide a pretext for this. That would be the lever the VoTF might advocate.
Maybe it's paranoia, but I'm afraid to sign my name to this because if it's true, they'll target opponents for smears.
Boy, Anonymouns, I've been pondering the same thing for awhile now. The signs have been there all along but as the president hastens his agenda further, it becomes clearer. The president has done more in his two months in office to make the black blacker and the white whiter on issues of moral significance than years of President Bush. Obama is making it very very easy to be a pro-choice "catholic." Fr. Jenkins is playing right into his hands. Tacitly pro-choice bishops, priests and other religulous and the laity who despise Rome have wanted this pro-abortion politician to give them legitamacy. Well, they must be so pleased. But while Obama gives with one hand, he's no friend ultimately as he'll take with the other. Be careful what you wish for, American catholic church.
Notre Dame will not rescind the invite, Obama will not decline it no matter how many thousands will plead to stop this travesty. but in the words of Peter Kreeft..."Justice deferred is not justice denied."
Fr. Jenkins, Biden, Pelosi, the Kennedy's and all who are colluding to destroy a separate and independent Latin Rite Catholic Church in the USA will someday have to face the consequences of their actions. The rest of us must remain faithful and obedient and unintimidated.
Notre Dame is now off the short list for my daughter's future college.
Who is Fr. Jenkins? a PRESIDENT (Oh, oh inflated lika a frog?) of one, from THOUSANDS of Catholic Colleges all over a world with a BILLION Catholics, only 4 % in USA (mostly SAD Cafetereía types).
My Point?
THIS ENORMOUS SCANDAL-SHAME would not exist, if USA's Catholics directed their efforts NOT TO NOTRE DAME HONCHOS inflated by their pride, BUT TO:
The ONLY ones with direct RESPONSIBILITY over this NOT SAD (pathetic word), OUTRAGEOUS SCANDAL: the zone bishop, and the US Nuncio.
Let be known that WE WORLD-CATHOLICS have a voice in Rome.
Cordially