In Aftermath of Notre Dame Controversy, Catholic College Commencement Scandals Decline in 2010

At least nine Catholic colleges and universities in the U.S. have invited spring commencement speakers and/or honorary degree recipients whose public positions and actions are clearly at odds with fundamental Catholic teachings, The Cardinal Newman Society (CNS) announced today as part of its annual commencement review.

“The U.S. bishops have stood publicly and in unison against Catholic honors for those who publicly and clearly oppose Catholic teaching, most dramatically in response to last year’s Notre Dame ceremony,” said Patrick J. Reilly, President of The Cardinal Newman Society, which sponsored the online petition against Notre Dame’s honor to President Barack Obama that garnered more than 367,000 signatures.

“It remains a dark stain on those Catholic colleges and universities that would persist in undermining the Catholic faith at their commencement ceremonies for the sake of publicity and prestige, whether by handing out degrees or honoring individuals with commencement platforms,” Reilly said. “On the other hand, it appears that more than 95 percent of our Catholic college leaders this year have taken the high road, and Catholics should applaud that.”

For 17 years, CNS has encouraged the renewal of Catholic identity at Catholic colleges and universities. CNS haspublicly identified Catholic institutions that choose commencement speakers and honorary degree recipients whose public actions and statements are contrary to key teachings of the Catholic Church. Recent years have seen a marked decline in these scandals, from 24 in 2006 to just nine in 2010.

In 2009, at least 11 commencement scandals occurred despite the unprecedented public opposition of 83 U.S. bishops to the University of Notre Dame’s honor for President Obama.

Most of the protesting bishops referenced the 2004 USCCB statement “Catholics in Political Life,” which reads: “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 Cardinal Newman Society compiled the following list of Catholic colleges and universities whose commencement speakers have publicly opposed or acted contrary to Catholic values on fundamental teachings:

Boston College (Mass.)
Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of General Electric (GE), will be the commencement speaker and honorary Doctor of Business Administration degree recipient at Boston College’s commencement ceremony on May 24. GE has an official company policy permitting experimenting on embryonic stem cells and last year launched a partnership with Geron Corp. to sell products derived from embryonic stem cells.

Boston College Law School has invited U.S. Senator Scott Brown to address its May 28 commencement ceremony. While running for office in 2002 in Massachusetts, Brown made public his position in support of legalized abortion with some restrictions.

College of the Holy Cross (Mass.)
Mark Shriver will be the commencement speaker and receive an honorary degree at the College of the Holy Cross on May 28. Shriver is currently Vice President and managing director of Save the Children. While a 2002 candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland, Shriver stated in a Washington Post interview, “Women's issues are critically important and I will continue to fight for a women's right to choose; family planning funds; maternal and child health funding and education for girls both here and abroad.”

Georgetown University (D.C.)
Baroness Brenda Hale will be the commencement speaker at Georgetown University Law Center on May 23. In 2004, Hale became the first woman to serve in the British House of Lords as a “Lord of Appeal in Ordinary,” the equivalent of a U.K. supreme court justice. Hale has “argued for gay civil partnerships and no-fault divorces” (The Guardian) and supports gay adoption as well as better rights for “cohabitees”. The Independent reported in 2003 that Hale stated: “My present view is that there is a strong case for introducing a legal commitment between people who are unable to marry, principally gay and lesbian partners.”

Loyola Marymount University (Calif.)
The Governor of Massachusetts, Deval Patrick, was the commencement speaker at Loyola Marymount University on May 8. Prior to serving as governor, Patrick was assistant attorney general for the civil rights division during Bill Clinton’s presidency. Patrick’s campaign website boasts that that he "helped lead the fight to keep discrimination out of the Massachusetts constitution and preserved the right of same-sex couples to marry in Massachusetts."

Marlene Canter was the graduate commencement speaker for Loyola Marymount University on May 9. She is a former member of the L.A. Unified School District board. According to LifeSiteNews, Canter has called the legalization of same-sex marriage an "issue of simple fairness and basic human rights." The same article reports that Canter has opposed a parental notification abortion law.

Loyola University Chicago (Ill.)
Clarence Page will be the commencement speaker for the School of Communication at Loyola University Chicago on May 14. Page is a syndicated columnist and a senior member of The Chicago Tribune editorial board. He haswritten that people who want to ban abortion are “yahoos”. As a guest on the MSNBC program Hardball last year, Page described proposed pro-life language to the healthcare bill as “worse… because this is declaring that even a woman can’t use her own money to pay for an insurance plan that also covers abortion.” He has stated, “I stand firmly on the pro-Roe side of the abortion debate.” Page also supports same-sex “marriage” as evidenced by hiseditorial “In defense of same-sex marriage”.

Notre Dame de Namur University (Calif.)
Jan Yanehiro was the commencement speaker at Notre Dame de Namur University on May 8. She is a broadcast journalist and a host on HGTV. In 2001 and again this year, Yanehiro was the mistress of ceremonies for the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL) annual “Power of Choice” luncheon. Yanehiroproclaimed, “What we celebrate on this anniversary is the fact that we still have the power of choice because Roe vs. Wade remains the law of the land.”

St. Joseph’s College (N.Y.)
Dr. John Sexton, President of New York University, will be the commencement speaker at St. Joseph’s College on June 2. In a March 2010 interview on PBS with Bill Moyers, Dr. Sexton said, “Okay, my view of infallibility as a Catholic is this. The Pope says something, and I disagree with it. I think again. If I think he’s wrong, I think yet again. By the time I’ve thought again the fourth time, if I still think he’s wrong, I think he’s wrong. Okay, so—but I cut him a break to begin with, even on issues on which I have deep, passionate feelings. Now, you know, on in vitro fertilization, on condoms in Africa, he’s wrong.”

St. Mary’s College of California
Jack O’Connell, California Superintendent of Schools, will serve as St. Mary’s College of California’s graduate and professional programs commencement speaker on May 23. O’Connell was featured in a TV ad opposing California’s Proposition 8, which defined marriage as between a man and a woman.

University of San Francisco (Calif.)
On May 22, the University of San Francisco will host as commencement speaker Dale Minami, who will also receive an honorary degree. A supporter of same-sex “marriage,” Minami is lead partner at Minami Tamaki LLP, which in December 2007 sponsored a fundraiser and donated funds to Asian Pacific Islander Equality, a group that advocates for same-sex “marriage.”