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Obama's Notre Dame Speech Still Draws Commentary

U.S. Catholic Bishops Disapprove, Say University Broke Rules

May 20, 2009 Linda DeMerle

Notre Dame University's commencement ceremony has come and gone and its graduates have left the campus, but the controversy will not die as the number of voices mounts.

The number of US Catholic bishops condemning Notre Dame University for President Obama’s commencement speech and honorary law degree grows as U.S. bishops and columnists continue to comment.

“There are now 83 U.S. bishops known to have condemned Notre Dame's decision to honor the deeply pro-abortion president,” reports LifeSiteNews.com

Disapproval And Disappointment from US Catholic Bishops

The Diocese of Covington, Kentucky's Bishop Robert Foyes expressed disappointment that Notre Dame would honor “anyone who publicly supports the culture of death that seems to pervade our society."

"The issue of life is a core issue and one that cannot be treated lightly," said Bishop Foys. "This decision is simply a bad one and no amount of publicity to the contrary can put a positive face on it."

Bishop Dale Melczek of Gary, Indiana was said by a spokesperson to be “appalled” and to have written a letter to Father Jenkins, the president of Notre Dame University and the face of the decision to invite President Obama.

“During his presidential campaign,” wrote Melczek, “Barack Obama repeatedly stated his pro-choice positions. Since his inauguration, President Obama, by word and deed, has undermined the culture of life and promoted pro-abortion laws as well as embryonic stem cell research.”

Notre Dame Defied Specific Rules

Bishop Melczek added that he was troubled that Notre Dame, with its image committed to the Catholic Church and its values, had acted “so boldly contrary to the clear instruction of the bishops of the United States,” citing a 2004 directive that Catholic institutions neither honor nor invite speakers acting in defiance of “our fundamental moral principles.”

Other Voices Comment On Obama’s Notre Dame Speech

THE WEEK reported that Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne congratulated President Obama for getting “the better of the anti- abortion Catholic right at Notre Dame,” with civility and fair words as he faced down critics and focused on Catholic issues. Dionne proclaimed the President’s speech victorious over Americans who would try to “keep the nation mired in a culture war without end.”

In contrast, Catholic Weekly’s Michael Sean Winters wrote that the truth was that President Obama played into the hands of those same Americans, stuck in a debate about values rather than using the opportunity to “"set the stage for a rapprochement with the Catholic hierarchy." Winters asserted that the President’s speech confirmed that he doesn't understand Catholics, many of whom helped vote him into office based on his policies regarding social justice.

Finally, Catholic author and columnist Amy Wellborn weighed in, saying that dialogue was good, but not going to happen any time soon. Wellborn opined that those who consider themselves moderates on the issue of abortion refuse to engage pro-lifers regarding strategies for the actual reduction of abortions.

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