Message to Notre Dame Response Group: President Obama's the Least of Your Worries

Paul Kiesel — Tue, 12 May 2009 20:14:28 GMT

A group of students -- a very small group of students -- from Notre Dame University made a short movie trailer (a la Hollywood-summer-blockbuster trailers) in an attempt to rally support around their cause and what appears to be the thesis of their trailer: Don't let President Obama speak at this weekend's graduation ceremonies.

Kids, the president speaking at your commencement is the least of your problems.

First, the trailer chose to quote current clergy members, like quotes from movie critics and reviews (cute), and as if the opinions of these clergy members, like New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan (an apathetic voice to victims of clergy sexual abuse), are valid. (They're really not that valid, unless we're discussing Theology.) Seriously, they're not. Not unless the Catholic church begins to make a better effort to eradicate pedophiles, like Father Eric Swearingen. Once that effort has started and is clearly visible, then we can start discussing the validity of clergy members' opinions.

Second, you had former President George W. Bush, an enabler of torture, give last year's commencement speech at your school. (I'm shaking my head, too.)

Third, up until recently, the Catholic church fed the nonsensical belief to families who lost their children before baptizing them, that their unbaptized babies would unfortunately be lost in "purgatory" forever. (You know, because the Catholic church is vehement in its support of protecting innocent life, it just seems that the church stops caring about that innocent life, once it is born.)

Hmm... My conclusion: The Notre Dame Response Group is more concerned with women's reproductive rights and fearful of a pragmatic president, a venerable family man, who has done more in his first 100 days as president than Bush, the "alleged" torturer, did within his first seven months as president, who, again, spoke at Notre Dame last year without fanfare. To me, this reeks of nonsense, however, it does fit with some of the nonsense that is propagated throughout various Catholic teachings (i.e. Condoms have microscopic holes in them and are defenseless against AIDS -- yep, they're currently teaching that nonsense throughout Africa and South America).

Lastly, and to be completely serious, if I were a senior graduating from ANY college right now, I'd be less concerned with who's speaking at my graduation and more concerned with the ability to find a job after I receive my diploma.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Paul Kiesel

Cardinal(s) Wrong

Paul Kiesel — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 18:30:26 GMT

Cardinal George is wrong on his stance of Obama addressing this year's graduating class at Notre Dame University.

Ten priests in the Roman Catholic order that helps run the University of Notre Dame want the school to reconsider having President Barack Obama deliver this year's commencement address. They're wrong, too.

Why? Because it's not their graduation. It's the students' graduation. And what do the seniors who will be graduating from Notre Dame think: They appear to strongly back the university's invitation to Obama. The campus newspaper reports that 97 percent of the letters that have come in on the subject from graduating seniors are supportive.

So why does the American Life League, a Catholic pro-life organization, want to remove Notre Dame from future Catholic foundation funding? Because they don't think the students at the school are Catholic enough and, frankly, they likely disapprove of many of President Obama's policies.

This "political" and theological stunt by poorly advised cardinals and priests comes down to the disapproval of one's, in this case Obama's, political ideologies and they're turning a joyous occasion for many hard-working seniors into a publicity stunt, unfairly stealing the attention that should be focused squarely on the graduating class and the President's upcoming appearance.

However, this isn't the first time the Catholic church has had its priorities out of whack. Look at what took place in Fresno last week, as Bishop John T. Steinbock felt vindicated by a Fresno's jury verdict: Jurors unanimously agreed that Monsignor Anthony Herdegen molested two brothers from 1959 to 1972 while Herdegen was a priest at St. John's Catholic Church in Wasco. The jurors didn't find the church liable.

In a statement, Bishop Steinbock expressed regret that Herdegen had abused the Santillans, "even though the diocese learned that they were abused years after it occurred [FLAT OUT LIE]."

"Bishop Steinbock emphasized that if even one child is sexually abused, that is one child too many," the statement said. "Child sexual abuse afflicts all of society, and no community or institution is free from its effects -- even the church [SECOND FLAT OUT LIE]."

Steinbock's position on sexually abused children is sadly disingenuous: A little over two years ago, a Fresno jury found Father Eric Swearingen guilty (9-3) of molesting a former altar boy, however, Bishop John J. Steinbock has continued to allow this man to work with children at the Holy Spirit Parish in Fresno, California.

If this is the best the Catholic church has, when it comes to its leaders and rank and file members throughout the country, I'm unimpressed.

However, kudos to Rev. John Jenkins, Notre Dame's president, who said in a statement last month that the invitation does not mean the university supports all of Obama's positions but that he will be honored as an "inspiring leader."

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Paul Kiesel

Los Angeles Personal Injury Lawyer - Notre Dame

Message to Notre Dame Response Group: President Obama's the Least of Your Worries

Cardinal(s) Wrong