{"id":829,"date":"2009-04-07T09:13:00","date_gmt":"2009-04-07T09:13:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/deaconsbench\/2009\/04\/at-notre-dame-we-are-not-okay-with-this.html"},"modified":"2009-04-07T09:13:00","modified_gmt":"2009-04-07T09:13:00","slug":"at-notre-dame-we-are-not-okay-with-this","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2009\/04\/at-notre-dame-we-are-not-okay-with-this.html","title":{"rendered":"At Notre Dame: “We are not okay with this”"},"content":{"rendered":"

With all the other things happening on Palm Sunday, it didn’t get much attention, but there was a sizable protest last weekend at Notre Dame. (If you have to ask what it was about, you haven’t been paying attention.) <\/p>\n

From the Chicago Sun Times<\/a>: <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Hundreds of anti-abortion advocates protested Sunday on the University of Notre Dame campus against the school\u2019s decision to award an honorary degree to President Barack Obama.<\/p>\n

Speakers at the rally outside the school\u2019s Main Building called for the honorary degree to be withdrawn because Obama\u2019s actions on abortion regulations and stem cell research do not agree with Roman Catholic teachings.<\/p>\n

Following the stance of some Catholic bishops, student organizers said they were no longer calling for university President the Rev. John Jenkins to withdraw the invitation for Obama to speak at the May 17 graduation ceremony.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur big goal is to bring awareness that we are not OK with this,\u201d said Emily Toates, a senior who is vice president of Notre Dame Right to Life. \u201cOur big goal is for Father Jenkins to rescind the honorary doctorate of laws degree because (Obama) goes so counter to the principles of the Catholic church.\u201d<\/p>\n

The crowd was a mix of students and others. Tim and Jennifer Mathew, who is executive director of the Right to Life group in northwestern Indiana\u2019s Porter County, brought their three sons, ages 9, 4 and nine months.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe think it\u2019s important that our children see that there are other like-minded people who will stand up for the doctrines of the church, and what this university can and should stand up for,\u201d Tim Mathew said after the rally.<\/p>\n

Jenkins has said the university does not condone all of Obama\u2019s policies but that it\u2019s important to engage in conversation. University officials have said the school does not plan to rescind the invitation to Obama despite the objections it has received.<\/p>\n

The campus protest was organized by ND Response, a coalition of student groups formed in response to the Obama invitation. Organizers distributed white carnations, pamphlets and urged people to write letters to Jenkins.<\/p>\n

ND Response chairman Chris Labadie called the decision honor Obama a \u201cdark day\u201d for the university.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince 1973, a plague has ravished our country,\u201d Labadie said. \u201cIt\u2019s not AIDS, Ebola, or the Black Death it\u2019s something far worse. It kills bodies and unborn souls. Now this plague has reached the gates of Notre Dame. It\u2019s been invited inside by those who shouldn\u2019t have let it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

PHOTO: <\/b> From the Associated Press<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With all the other things happening on Palm Sunday, it didn’t get much attention, but there was a sizable protest last weekend at Notre Dame. (If you have to ask what it was about, you haven’t been paying attention.) From the Chicago Sun Times: Hundreds of anti-abortion advocates protested Sunday on the University of Notre…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":365,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-829","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ripped-from-the-headlines"],"yoast_head":"\nAt Notre Dame: "We are not okay with this" - The Deacon's Bench<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2009\/04\/at-notre-dame-we-are-not-okay-with-this.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"At Notre Dame: "We are not okay with this" - The Deacon's Bench\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"With all the other things happening on Palm Sunday, it didn’t get much attention, but there was a sizable protest last weekend at Notre Dame. 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