Catholic Fire

Pope Francis welcomed on Thursday a large delegation from the University of Notre Dame, that filled most of the Vatican's Clementine Hall. The group's audience with the Pope marked the inauguration of their new education center in the heart of Rome. REV. JOHN JENKINS President, University of Notre Dame (USA) "We are proud to be a Catholic university, born from the heart of the Church, that strives to be a community of scholars and students devoted to the pursuit of the truth in harmony with faith.” In his prepared remarks, Pope Francis thanked the university for their work in educating young people, according to Catholic teachings. But he went further and tasked the university with becoming an "uncompromising witness” to the Church's moral teachings and its Catholic identity. POPE FRANCIS "This is important. Her own identity, as it was established from the start. Defend it, preserve it, in order to move forward.” Notre Dame is arguably the mos...

South Bend, Ind., Dec 5, 2013 / 12:06 am (CNA).- Lawsuits from the University of Notre Dame and the Fellowship of Catholic University Students are challenging the HHS mandate for forcing them to violate Catholic teaching or face crippling fines. Notre Dame's president Father John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., said the university's lawsuit is about the freedom to “live out a religious mission” with broader significance than a debate about contraception. “For if we concede that the government can decide which religious organizations are sufficiently religious to be awarded the freedom to follow the principles that define their mission, then we have begun to walk down a path that ultimately will undermine those institutions,” Fr. Jenkins said in a Dec. 3 statement. Continue reading.

Catholic Exchange features a wonderful interview with Archbishop Burke conducted by Tom Hoopes.

Read Fr. Frank Pavone's reflections here.

Here are a few of my favorites: The Catholic Thing A House Divided b y Ralph McInerny First Things: For Obama, Talk is Cheap About Mutual Respect on the Life Issues by Wesley J. Smith Jill Stanek: Notre Dame update 5/17, 9:50p EST: At the Grotto Notre Dame's other commencement honoree Adrienne's Catholic Corner: This is nauseating... And Sometimes Tea -- Red Cardigan: A Sad Day for the Church in America American Papist: Blogging before/during Commencement LifeNews.Com: Obama Seeks Abortion Conscience Rights at Notre Dame , But He's Repealing Law Obama Pushes Embryonic Stem Cell Research at Notre Dame , Ignores Adult Cells Pro-Life Advocates Arrested at Notre Dame Protesting Pro-Abortion Obama Visit Inight Scoop: Pres. Obama's ND appearance: Links, commentary, analysis ***UPDATED: Archdiocese of Denver: Archbishop Chaput on Notre Dame and the issues that remain The Curt Jester: 120,000 Babies today and everyday will never get to go to Notre Dame or anywhere ...

On May 17, 2009, thousands of pro-lifers converged on South Bend, IN, to protest Notre Dame's selection of radically pro-abortion Barack Obama as not only commencement speaker but honoree. This video tracks the 2 mile continuous protest route from I80 to the campus's main entrance. Jill Stanek rode in one of the truth trucks from the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform to capture this video. This is just amazing! I have been involved in peaceful, pro-life protests before, but have never seen anything quite like this. How I wish I could have been there! Jill Stanek was at the Notre Dame Grotto this afternoon watching Fr. Frank Pavone speak to pro-life graduates who refused to attend their commencement honoring radical pro-abortion Barack Obama. She has some impressive photos of Fr. Frank Pavone, Fr. Corapi, and members of the Notre Dame graduating class you'll want to see. Norma McCorvey, the original Roe in Roe v. Wade - who renounced her ties to the pro-abortion movement w...

Randall Terry was on Shawn Hannity's show last night discussing the Notre Dame scandal. He appeared in the place of Alan Keyes, who was still in jail when the show was taped. Hannity also announced his show Sunday night will spotlight Obama's appearance there that day. ~ H/T: Jill Stanek

Archbishop Raymond Burke, Prefect of the Vatican’s highest court, the Apostolic Signatura, called on Catholics to “give an uncompromising witness” to the dignity of life and sharply criticized the University of Notre Dame for its planned honor for pro-abortion President Barack Obama during an address this morning to the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, DC. (To read the complete address, go here. The archbishop began his address by noting that he has “the deepest concern for our nation,” and later implored Catholics to be aware of the “godless secularism and relativism” that underlie the Culture of Death. Commenting on the ongoing scandal of Notre Dame’s planned honor for President Obama, Archbishop Burke received a standing ovation from the crowd of more than 1,200 when he called it “rightly the source of the greatest scandal.” He also said that “in a culture marked by widespread and ingrained confusion about the most fundamental teachings of the moral law, our Cath...

A 40 hour devotion and a Eucharistic Procession are scheduled at the University of Notre Dame. On Sunday April 26th, 2009 the University of Notre Dame will hold the Eucharistic Procession. Children of Mary is organizing a 40 Hour Devotion leading up to the Eucharistic Procession. Eucharistic Adoration will be held for 40 hours before the Procession According to an announcement for the procession, the group will pray for the following intentions: A greater respect for and protection of human life, from conception to natural death. An increase in vocations to the priesthood and religious life, especially in the Congregation of Holy Cross. For blessings upon the students, faculty, administration, and staff of Holy Cross College, Saint Mary's College, and the University of Notre Dame. ~ Via http://www.notredameprocession.com/ I will be uniting my prayers with theirs and will also be praying that the Holy Spirit enlighten Fr. Jenkins and guide him in following God's will, and ble...

H/T: Leticia

by Judie Brown In attempting to put a proper face on the ugly situation developing on the campus of Notre Dame University, home of the recent announcement that President Barack Obama would give the commencement address and receive an honorary degree, I fell upon an incredibly wise insight just uttered by Archbishop Charles Chaput. Speaking at the Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, the archbishop said,We need to stop over-counting our numbers, our influence, our institutions and our resources, because they're not real. We can't talk about following St. Paul and converting our culture until we sober up and get honest about what we've allowed ourselves to become. We need to stop lying to each other, to ourselves and to God by claiming to 'personally oppose' some homicidal evil – but then allowing it to be legal at the same time.When I read those words, it occurred to me that the current president of Notre Dame should have been at that speech, taking notes! Here we...

From the Notre Dame Observer : Jenkins made it clear in an interview with The Observer Sunday the University does not "foresee circumstances" that would cause Notre Dame to rescind the president's invitation. "We have invited the president and he's honored us by accepting," he said. Jenkins made clear the University is not honoring the president for his stances on these issues, but for his leadership. "The invitation of President Obama to be our Commencement speaker should in no way be taken as condoning or endorsing his positions on specific issues regarding the protection of life, such as abortion and embryonic stem cell research," Jenkins said. These "crucial differences" in positions on the protection of life are not being ignored in extending the invitation to the president, Jenkins said, but rather can be used as a catalyst for dialogue. ( Read the entire article here .) Related Posts on Catholic Fire : TAKE ACTION NOW! OBAMA TO GIV...

Amid controversy over its chosen commencement speaker, it's now emerged that President Obama will share the Notre Dame stage with the "first lady" of American Catholicism. At this hour, as the bells of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart toll in Laetare Sunday, the university has announced Mary Ann Glendon -- the Harvard Law star, pro-life force, Vatican A-lister and, until January, former President Bush's ambassador to the Holy See -- as its 2009 recipient of the Stateside church's oldest and most prestigious honor, the Laetare Medal. (See the complete post at Whispers in the Loggia .)

Now, this is a shocker! The nation's premier Catholic institution of higher learning is bestowing an honorary degree, and allowing to give the commencement address , a president who is actively pursuing policies and legislation that threaten Catholic institutions and offend Catholic values: "President Barack Obama will give the commencement address at the University of Notre Dame on May 17, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said this afternoon.The address in South Bend was one of three Gibbs mentioned in a briefing to reporters this afternoon. Obama also plans to speak to graduates at Arizona State University on May 13 and at U.S. Naval Academy on May 22.Obama would be the sixth U.S. president since Dwight Eisenhower to speak at a Notre Dame commencement, according to an article on past commencement speakers on the university's Web site ." ( Chicago Breaking News ) THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE!!! Sign the petition here: http://notredamescandal.com/ Here is the contact infor...

LifeSiteNews.Com -An innovative academic program designed to equip the next generation of pro-life advocates is one of the initiatives in store for the University of Notre Dame's new Human Life Fund, said Dr. David Solomon in an interview with LifeSiteNews.com (LSN) yesterday. Professor Solomon, a deeply pro-life philosopher who has been teaching ethics for over forty years, is the founder and head of the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Culture. He told LSN that pro-life associates at the university had been brainstorming for about a year on how to energize pro-life activity at the most prestigious Catholic school in America, before they arrived at the idea of the Fund and the academic program. "Our big plan, which I think is very exciting - we want to start a two-year volunteer program at Notre Dame, where students can volunteer to do pro-life work in a crisis pregnancy center, or work for a diocese or a Catholic school, and we would give them three summers of training - l...

I have discovered a new blog that looks very appealing and I'm linking to it. Here's the description from NY Mom : The inspiration of the energetic and savvy Fighting Irish Thomas, a Notre Dame alumnus, educator, sports instructor and a freelance writer, Cathlete.net is a welcome alternative to other conservative online news magazines.This attractive site is a collection of political, religious, pro-life and general interest news items in an easily accessed format. An exciting feature is the addition of a wide range of sports news, in keeping with Thomas' own abiding interest in athletic pursuits. Also, links to a variety of useful Catholic websites are conveniently located on either side of the page, including several notices for pregnancy counseling and assistance. The Notre Dame connection is subtly felt throughout, lending a charming Irish Catholic air and a note of nostalgia to the endeavor and particularly warmed the Irish corner of my heart. I may be prejudiced, but...