Knowing a thing or two about scholarship and academic freedom as a former
college professor himself, Pope Benedict will likely impart his wisdom
during a meeting with Catholic educators during his visit next month.
That meeting on April 17 at Catholic University will leave a profound impression,
said Dr. Timothy O’Donnell, president of Christendom College in Front Royal.
The pope will deliver a one-hour address on Catholic education to presidents
of U.S. Catholic colleges and universities and Catholic school superintendents
from every U.S. diocese and archdiocese. The address is scheduled to be broadcast
on television.
Although he will likely not have a personal meeting with the pontiff during his
April visit, O’Donnell said, “It will be great to be in the same
room with the Vicar of Christ and hear what he thinks we should be doing.”
Calling the apostolic visit “a great historic moment,” O’Donnell
said he believes the pope’s presence and meeting with professors of Catholic
higher education will renew Catholic identity during a time when many Catholic
schools are giving in to the contemporary trends of secularization and have “watered
down” their Catholic identity.
While diversity among colleges and universities is important, a true Catholic
identity has an important role to play. Diversity is weakened when the true Catholic
voice does not speak out, O’Donnell said. “With gentleness and clarity,
(Pope Benedict) will challenge the presidents of Catholic universities and colleges
to a greater fidelity to maintain a Catholic identity as the focal point and
mission.”
O’Donnell, said he is looking forward to a deepening sense of renewal and
commitment to the mission of Catholic education that will come from the papal
visit.
Calling the pontiff a “man of refined intellect,” O’Donnell
said he hopes to hear the pope speak about the importance of genuine freedom
which “cannot be separated from what is true and good.”
There is a false idea of the dichotomy of faith and reason, but in actuality
the two go hand-in-hand, said O’Donnell, noting Pope John Paul II’s
encyclical “Fides et Ratio” (“Faith and Reason.”)
The two are essential and have a proper role within the Catholic universities,
he said.
“The power of faith and the power of reason are to work together. Both
come from God, so there can’t be a conflict,” he said.
The pope likely will reference the document “Ex Corde Ecclesiae,” (“From
the Heart of the Church,”), a guiding document for what a Catholic university
should be, O’Donnell said.
“He will remind (us) of how great and powerful is the Catholic understanding
of learning (and that we must) be faithful to our roots.” The university
began as a Church institution, he noted.
Calling Catholic higher education in the United States “undoubtedly one
of the great successes of modern times,” Dr. James Bundschuh, president
of Marymount University in Arlington said.
The role of Catholic schools “in sustaining and promulgating the Catholic
intellectual tradition is indisputable.
“As a scholar and former professor, Pope Benedict understands firsthand
the invaluable contributions of Catholic higher education to the Church and to
society in general,” said Bundschuh.
O’Donnell said because the United States has such an impact on
world culture, if Catholic colleges are vibrant in their identity, it
will make a “deep and profound impact on the world today.”
Perhaps, the pope’s visit, O’Donnell added, will help renew
the already present “desire to return to a sense of Catholic identity.”
Henrietta Gomes can be reached at hgomes@catholicherald.com.
Meeting with college presidents
Pope Benedict XVI will meet with presidents of Catholic colleges and
universities at Catholic University in Washington April 16 during his
apostolic journey to the United States. For information go to www.papalvisit.org.
