Cardinal Newman Society: Catholic Colleges Lost
Our leading Catholic universities have lost their way, and they need clear direction from the bishops.
'Catholic colleges and universities would like all of the privileges of being Catholic, but none of the responsibilities of being high-profile witnesses for the fullness of the Catholic faith.'(Patrick Reilly)
PrintMANASSAS, Virginia (Zenit) - Many Catholic universities are lost and are in need of specific policies to help them go in the right direction, says the Cardinal Newman Society.
The society said this Wednesday in response to the expressed desire of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities to eliminate the U.S. bishops' policy against honoring public figures who are at odds with fundamental Catholic beliefs.
The association's summer newsletter reported this week that the board of directors concluded during its most recent meeting that "it would be desirable for the [U.S. bishops] to withdraw" their guidelines.
The 2004 bishops' guidelines state: "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."
The association, which represents over 200 institutions, added that "juridical expressions of bishops' or universities' responsibilities should be kept to a minimum" in order to maintain good relations between the prelates and educators.
Patrick Reilly, president of the Cardinal Newman Society, said is was evident "that the many secularized Catholic colleges and universities are more concerned with doing away with the rules than ending the scandals."
"Lobbying the bishops to back off a perfectly reasonable policy would be a shameful action by the Catholic higher education establishment," he added.
The Cardinal Newman Society noted that the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities is not the only group of university leaders looking to either put an end to or amend the current policy.
After protests erupted around the University of Notre Dame's decision to honor President Barack Obama at its graduation ceremony, Jesuit Father Charles Currie, president of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, affirmed that his association had already begun to lobby the conference for a policy change.
Reilly countered that "our leading Catholic universities have lost their way, and they need precisely the sort of clear direction from the bishops that the 2004 policy on Catholic honors and platforms represents."
He added, "Catholic colleges and universities would like all of the privileges of being Catholic, but none of the responsibilities of being high-profile witnesses for the fullness of the Catholic faith."
The society said this Wednesday in response to the expressed desire of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities to eliminate the U.S. bishops' policy against honoring public figures who are at odds with fundamental Catholic beliefs.
The association's summer newsletter reported this week that the board of directors concluded during its most recent meeting that "it would be desirable for the [U.S. bishops] to withdraw" their guidelines.
The 2004 bishops' guidelines state: "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."
The association, which represents over 200 institutions, added that "juridical expressions of bishops' or universities' responsibilities should be kept to a minimum" in order to maintain good relations between the prelates and educators.
Patrick Reilly, president of the Cardinal Newman Society, said is was evident "that the many secularized Catholic colleges and universities are more concerned with doing away with the rules than ending the scandals."
"Lobbying the bishops to back off a perfectly reasonable policy would be a shameful action by the Catholic higher education establishment," he added.
The Cardinal Newman Society noted that the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities is not the only group of university leaders looking to either put an end to or amend the current policy.
After protests erupted around the University of Notre Dame's decision to honor President Barack Obama at its graduation ceremony, Jesuit Father Charles Currie, president of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, affirmed that his association had already begun to lobby the conference for a policy change.
Reilly countered that "our leading Catholic universities have lost their way, and they need precisely the sort of clear direction from the bishops that the 2004 policy on Catholic honors and platforms represents."
He added, "Catholic colleges and universities would like all of the privileges of being Catholic, but none of the responsibilities of being high-profile witnesses for the fullness of the Catholic faith."
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William Brennan, I agree with you 100%. It was always said "A woman cannot be half pregnant, either you are or you are not!"
Look at the University of San Francisco. It's the poster child of what this article asserts.
Thanks, Nicholas, for the deacon's reminder about the Land of Lakes conference. Bringing this to public attention clarifies which path to take. People are out there looking. Take the high percentage of Evangelicals quitting church after Sunday school, the departures from homosexual Anglicanism, and even the faithful of the Missouri Synod where for authority on the topic of mercy the local Lutheran Univ. has students read Dives in Misericordia.
The Card. Newman Society article with comments brings a yes answer to "Thy kingdom come" and "the truth will set you free."
It's all about money. It seems that money means more than anything. Yes indeed, God help us all.
Unfortunately Catholic Colleges have been "lost" for decades. A very good deacon at my church just recently brought to my attention the so called Land of Lakes conference which was held by a number of Catholic Colleges a few decades ago and headed (no surprise) by Notre Dame in which they essentially decided to reject the Magisterium's authoritative teachings because they were "antiquated". If you are interested in more information, do a quick internet search, it really is an enlightening study, and explains why so many of "Catholic" colleges are so screwed up today.
Small "o" orthodoxy ebbs and flows in the Catholic Church over time, and always has. Go to EWTN's website and download Fr. Charles Connor's excellent series on "The Great Heresies".
At one time, a sizeable chunk of Christianity (Half?) believed that Christ was, at the very least, not quite God. And while a type of Arianism persists in Jehova's Witnesses and Mormonism, not to mention Islam, the Catholic church and most other Christians are trinitarian.
The Holy Father is aware of this ebb and flow as evidenced by his statement that he would prefer a small Church true to His teaching than a large one that is not.
So, trust in Christ's Divine Mercy for those unwittingly led astray, and in the Holy Spirit who guides the Church, and know that if you manage to live 1000 years, you'll still be able to find a Catholic Church and say, "Introibo ad altare Dei."
When Rome roars...I fear not, read its own newspaper. Why do I feel we are on our own? May God help us all.
Dan, I can appreciate the Marianist tradition of open and free dialogue but that presupposes that there is a middle ground in the debate toward which both sides give up something to achieve consensus. But abortion is not one of those issues. Either you support it or you don't. Partial abortion doesn't mean half way during discussion! As a Catholic I cannot and will not accept abortion nor honor its promoters. In the preservation of life there can be no middle ground!
Catholic parents should NOT send their children to "Catholic" universities. My three spent 12 years in Catholic primary and secondary, but I decided they were far better off avoiding Catholic colleges and universities. At least at secular institutions like McGill in Montreal, they know the professors are often antagonistic toward our religion. None of the three has lost the faith after 4 years on campus, something many whose children were on Catholic campuses cannot say. At supposedly Catholic universities, the man or woman at the front of the class may be truly Catholic, or -- as often as not -- he or she may be a wolf in sheep's clothing.
Catholic colleges are very expensive but hardly any better than their secular competitors, so why pay good money to have your children lose their faith? They will be safer at good secular institutions where the enemy is more truthful.
I am so thankful we have real "Catholic" priest in Waldport, Oregon. He is one in a million and we still know that there is a Heaven, a Purgatory and a hell.