Father Hemrick should see what’s truly at issue

In his column, “Obama’s invitation to talk,” (CR, April 16) Father Eugene Hemrick fails to come to grips with what is truly at issue concerning President Obama’s speaking at Notre Dame University.

The USCCB has declared that “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.”

Yet, rather than standing firm in defending and upholding the church’s moral teachings, Notre Dame has succumbed to the temptation of worldly prestige by honoring the most aggressively pro-abortion president in our nation’s history.

Thirty-one bishops, including our own archbishop and many thousands of ordinary Catholics, have voiced their objections to Notre Dame’s actions. But Father Hemrick obfuscates the matter by instead lambasting pro-lifers for failing to be “more effective,” failing to “argue wisely,” and for making “bashing, strident accusations.”
Sad.

Catholic Review

The Catholic Review is the official publication of the Archdiocese of Baltimore.