For those of you who have not heard yet, President Obama will be delivering the commencement address at the University of Notre Dame. This is sparking some controversy in Catholic circles, as Obama’s pro-choice positions put him in conflict with the Catholic Church’s teachings on life. Some critics argue that the visit from the president is “an outrage and a scandal.” This attitude towards Obama caused one Washington Post columnist to say “enough is enough.” And the name of that columnist may surprise you…Michael Gerson.
Yes, Michael Gerson, as in the former George W. Bush speechwriter who wove religious rhetoric into presidential addresses. The pro-life, anti-stem cell research Michael Gerson. He writes:
The office of the president has meaning and importance that transcend the views of its occupant. Though elected by a part of America, the president becomes a symbol of its whole. The respect we accord him does not imply agreement or endorsement. It reflects our appreciation for constitutional processes. So a presidential visit is always an honor. The televised arrival of Air Force One, the motorcade, the playing of “Hail to the Chief,” the audience standing as the president enters — all these express a proper respect for democratic legitimacy.
If you cannot honor the man, then honor the office. If you cannot honor the office, then one more democratic bond has been severed.
Unfortunately, that is as about as far as Gerson is willing to go. He spends the rest of the article disparaging Obama’s policies towards reproductive health issues. Gerson, like many others, is guilty of falling into the trap of assuming that the only issue Catholic voters care about is abortion. But President Obama won a majority of Catholic voters last fall.
The leadership of Notre Dame deserves credit for extending a commencement invitation to someone who has differences with Catholic teachings. It is the only way for Catholics and non-Catholics to find common ground. The alternative is merely “preaching to the choir,” which further polarizes our body politic and turns religion into a divisive, rather than a unifying, social force.
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There are 7 comments
Point taken...Ben Stein was the first example that came to mind.
Semper Fi
Perhaps a better question...If it had been Richard Dawkins or Salman Rushdie or even Bill Maher who caused such a storm of protest, would the coverage have been different?
Ben Stein is a paid shill for the religionists just as David Bore-o-witless is a disingenuous neofascist. Thing is, they don't deserve any more freedom of speech than we do.
Palin/Wurzelbacher 2012!
Corporate freedom. Personal surveillance. And they're really, really stupid.
Ben Stein. Should be Ben Stain, for shit stain.
Those that want to deny science over mysticism are dangerous. Because science is not what is was in 1882, you can't just dismiss an entire branch because they are all so interconnected. It's not just evolution. It's evolution and biology and physiology and botany and paleontology and chemistry and geology and plate tectonics and astronomy and physics and genetics and on and on and on and on.
It's the willful determined ignorance. These are the same people that will kill others because it's what their invisible imaginary God would want.
QuestionWhat are your thoughts on the uproar at the University of Vermont when Ben Stein was chosen to give a commencement speech?
Semper Fi
I am so sorry I wasn't clear. The magical stories themselves and the angels and fairies and magical powers and all that is fun. I like that stuff. Very creative. Very, well, magical.
It's the peddlers in hate. Falwell (may his bloated carcass rest in the bellies of worms) and Hagee and Parsley and the Ayatollah and Bin Laden (make no mistake, this guy is a religious leader among many Muslims), and all those others who put suffering and evil over humanity. They are the ones that deserve to go to an everlasting hellish torment. Too bad there isn't such a place.
By deanrddApril 5, 2009 - 1:40pm Fuck you. I LOVE my fairy tales.
For an omnipotent and omniscient being, God has made some really shitty earthly staffing decisions. - John Cole
I get so tired of the influence of the peddlers of mysticism and the occult. This stuff is ridiculous. Supernatural powers and unseen and unknowable "spirit" beings. Sickening.
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