Through A Baby’s Tears, God Speaks
After sitting through newscasts leading up to the commencement and watching protesters get arrested who attempted to get onto campus grounds over the weekend and earlier last week, I came to the conclusion that people willingly toss principles aside to jump on a band wagon and in turn become lemmings of a cause or particular individual.
It’s incredibly sad and disheartening that a college that is rooted in Catholic principles could throw away the very tenants on which the school stands. The invitation of the most pro-abortion candidate, who has gone so far as to vote for infanticide, is probably one of the most despicable slaps in the face yet, to the Catholic faith.
I’m not Catholic and don’t feel it completely right to get into detail or opine on the matter, however, I can see where Catholics and ardent pro-life advocates would feel heart broken and devastated that a prestigious Catholic school would stoop to this level when they could have avoided the controversy all together. I personally feel that if Obama were more moderate on the issue, which his record shows anything but, we would not be having this outcry.
Prominent Catholic priests (Father Norman Weslin), politicians (Keyes), and abortion figures (Norma McCorvey a.k.a Jane Roe), all came to protest and support life. They protested in a peaceful manner only to be carted away by police throughout the weekend. Over 40 people were arrested and both Father Weslin and Alan Keyes were arrested twice. Those who were incarcerated with Keyes and Father Weslin said it was the best moment of their lives – they were able to hear two of the most principled national figures speak on the issue in the holding cell – when bail was made for the individuals, nobody wanted to leave – they wanted to continue listening…
I spoke with some moderate friends of mine (pro-choice) on Sunday in regards to the speech and all were in agreement, to my chagrin, that Notre Dame was in the wrong, mainly because it professes to be a religious school and acted against its founding principles.
I watched the speech that Obama gave and listened to his words. If I were a graduating senior and that was the speech given at my commencement, although I didn’t pay money for it, I would at least attempt to get a refund for the 45 minutes of my life that were wasted listening to another campaign speech, pontifications about public policy, and the story of Obama’s life. It’s my understanding that commencement speeches are directed at a graduating class, at their future, and what awaits them. Obama’s speech started out in that manner, but quickly turned into his usual hollow rhetoric.
The most poignant and heart wrenching part of his speech came during his discussion of abortion. It was not what Obama said regarding the issue, but rather a baby in the audience crying the moment he began talking about abortion rights – it even made him stumble and pause when he began his talking points. The baby, over everything else in that convocation center, could be heard. It was something that only God could enact; that baby’s cry was the single best argument against abortion.
That moment, of all others, made my otherwise waste of listening to his empty lecture, all the more worth it. Sure there were protesters and hecklers who were thrown out during his speech and who also made him stumble, but there is nothing as mind changing as the most innocent among us.
Alan Keyes and 20 Other Protesters Arrested at Notre Dame
Pro-life protesters rallied at the Notre Dame campus for Obama’s upcoming commencement speech to show their disagreement with the Catholic university’s decision allowing Barack Obama, the most radical pro-abortion politician to date, to speak at their institution.
Former Illinois U.S. Senate candidate Alan Keyes and 21 other protesters were arrested this morning when they refused to leave the Notre Dame campus during a protest of President Obama’s upcoming commencement address there, authorities said.
Keyes and the others were arrested on trespassing charges when they refused to leave campus, a university spokesman said. All 22 were being held in the St. Joseph County Jail on misdemeanor criminal trespass charges, in lieu of $250 bond each, said St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Sgt. Bill Redman.
Just one question: If there were 20 some odd people marching in support of Obama’s speech, would they have also received fines for trespassing? One would hope it would go both ways…/yea right!
Former US Ambassador to the Vatican Says “No” to Notre Dame and Obama
Pro-Life Harvard Law professor (I didn’t know they had those at Harvard!), Ann Glendon, was to appear at Notre Dame to accept the Laetare Medal for recognition of outstanding service to the Roman Catholic church and society. She was to give a speech upon receiving the medal, but Obama’s invitation to speak at the school on the same day seemed to be the straw that broke the camel’s back and Ann Glendon has declined.
Here is her letter:
April 27, 2009
The Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.
President
University of Notre DameDear Father Jenkins,
When you informed me in December 2008 that I had been selected to receive Notre Dame’s Laetare Medal, I was profoundly moved. I treasure the memory of receiving an honorary degree from Notre Dame in 1996, and I have always felt honored that the commencement speech I gave that year was included in the anthology of Notre Dame’s most memorable commencement speeches. So I immediately began working on an acceptance speech that I hoped would be worthy of the occasion, of the honor of the medal, and of your students and faculty.
Last month, when you called to tell me that the commencement speech was to be given by President Obama, I mentioned to you that I would have to rewrite my speech. Over the ensuing weeks, the task that once seemed so delightful has been complicated by a number of factors.
First, as a longtime consultant to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, I could not help but be dismayed by the news that Notre Dame also planned to award the president an honorary degree. This, as you must know, was in disregard of the U.S. bishops’ express request of 2004 that Catholic institutions “should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles” and that such persons “should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions.” That request, which in no way seeks to control or interfere with an institution’s freedom to invite and engage in serious debate with whomever it wishes, seems to me so reasonable that I am at a loss to understand why a Catholic university should disrespect it.
Then I learned that “talking points” issued by Notre Dame in response to widespread criticism of its decision included two statements implying that my acceptance speech would somehow balance the event:
• “President Obama won’t be doing all the talking. Mary Ann Glendon, the former U.S. ambassador to the Vatican, will be speaking as the recipient of the Laetare Medal.”
• “We think having the president come to Notre Dame, see our graduates, meet our leaders, and hear a talk from Mary Ann Glendon is a good thing for the president and for the causes we care about.”
A commencement, however, is supposed to be a joyous day for the graduates and their families. It is not the right place, nor is a brief acceptance speech the right vehicle, for engagement with the very serious problems raised by Notre Dame’s decision—in disregard of the settled position of the U.S. bishops—to honor a prominent and uncompromising opponent of the Church’s position on issues involving fundamental principles of justice.
Finally, with recent news reports that other Catholic schools are similarly choosing to disregard the bishops’ guidelines, I am concerned that Notre Dame’s example could have an unfortunate ripple effect.
It is with great sadness, therefore, that I have concluded that I cannot accept the Laetare Medal or participate in the May 17 graduation ceremony.
In order to avoid the inevitable speculation about the reasons for my decision, I will release this letter to the press, but I do not plan to make any further comment on the matter at this time.
Yours Very Truly,
Mary Ann Glendon
Ann, I wouldn’t really appreciate being used as a pawn or an excuse for Notre Dame to go against its doctrines and the oath it took on behalf of the Church. I would back out if I also felt like I was being used without my consent. I also think that it is very valiant of Ann to stand on principle and not back down from her convictions.
Ann Glendon served as US Ambassador to the Vatican from 2007 to 2009.
Liberals have been protesting speakers for a very long time so I don’t want to hear anything from them when it comes to double standards (examples such as Tancredo, Rick Warren, Ann Coulter, Karl Rove, and so on and so forth).
Update: Fighting Irish Lay Down; Fighting Irish Backlash
UPDATE:
Notre Dame is keeping Obama as the commencement speaker or so says the Chicago Sun Times. It appears that the alumni, parents and others may still try to fight this with petitions (linked below), funding and phone calls.
There are parents, alumni and some students who are not all that ecstatic over President Obama conducting the commencement speech at Notre Dame’s graduation this year. The college itself (not the young student body) has historically been more conservative and many students come from conservative backgrounds when they arrive at the school, some stay that way, but most change ideologically, as could be expected. The current student body is typically liberal, but many of the alumni go back to their conservative roots as they get older. The biggest issue for Notre Dame is its deep Catholic roots. Catholicism has very conservative opinions and views in regards to abortion and embryonic stem cell research – this becomes a very big issue since Obama is the most radical pro-choice president in the history of this nation.
As reported here on First Read Friday, President Obamawill be speaking at the University of Notre Dame commencement ceremony on May 17th. While the president will also be speaking at the Naval Academy and Arizona State, those appearances haven’t caused as much uproar as his trip to South Bend, Ind.
In today’s edition of the student newspaper, The Observer, letters to the editor, which are usually reserved for debates over the color of The Shirt or whether it’s proper to chant “Sucks” at sporting events — was expanded to cover a lively debate over whether Obama should be speaking.“Obama choice unacceptable,” read one headline, and “Obama a disgrace” shouted another.
The point of contention? The president’s record on issues related to abortion, the majority of which clash with the strict anti-abortion stance of the Catholic Church. An online petition has sprung up urging people to voice their complaints to Father John Jenkins, president of the university.
Jenkins said in an interview with the student paper Monday that while there are clear differences between the president and the Catholic church on some issues (abortion and embryonic stem cell research), it was a great honor to have the president accept the university’s offer and that he had no plans to rescind the offer.
A majority of the student body is enthusiastic about President Obama coming to speak — he won the campus’ mock election 52.6% to 41.1% over Sen. John McCain — but an active alumni base that skews more conservative than the increasingly liberal campus has been vocal about the selection of the commencement speaker.
Maybe that’s why they call them the Fighting Irish!
There were several petitions for this item of interest as well.
