Notre Dame Critics Tally $8.2 Million in Denied University Donations Over Obama

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How were these pro-lifers able to turn the other cheek with George W. Bush and his pro-capital punishment stance or is there something else going on here? Where do you draw the line? If you believe in "pro-life" then how do you justify capital punishment. George W. Bush was THE most pro-capital punishment president that we have ever had. Where were these moral pundits back then? Issue for issue, from truly helping the poor to his stance on nuclear proliferation, Obama is actually in line with our Catholic Church more than any president that we have had for a long, long time. Notre Dame did the right thing.

Craig of LA 4:26PM May 17, 2009

The Mary Brennan Millers of the world are either phony posters or lapsed Irish Catholics, bitter about childhood experiences or addicted to sin in adulthood. No decent human being, religious or not, can approve of killing a viable infant, as Obama has done with the Born Alive Act. No Catholic or Christian of any description who has actually read the Bible and "pondered in in her heart" could possibly claim that partial-birth abortion, or abortion at any stage of development, both vigorously defended by Barack Obama, are anything but murder.

What in the world is "just" about killing an infant? All talk of "social justice" is just another word for atheist socialism, which inevitably leads to tyranny and communism. Those who are too ignorant, Christophobic or hard-hearted to understand the absolute political need to protect created life, from conception to natural death, in our laws and society in order to have a free society are trading off the actual rights so hard won by generations of patriots, Christians, abolitionists, soldiers and statesmen -- for what? In many cases, for continued opportunities to sin, or because of a guilty conscience too stubbornly defiant to repent and live in true peace with a clean heart.

Satan, get away from us, and from poor pitiful Mary Brennan Miller.

Albion Wilde of MD 1:06PM May 02, 2009

Thank you Father, for refusing to knuckle under to blackmail.

Notre Dame, with its long heritage of social justice will not let the threat of money withheld to weaken its conscience.

We must pray for these haters who are holier than the pope.

They are "often in error, but never in doubt."

Mary Brennan Miller

Mary Brennan Miller of IN 9:04PM May 01, 2009

Frank,

If you are voting in a "very liberal democratic" way, you're limiting the choice of every american taxpayer and especially those who run businesses. Billions of dollars are taken from Americans to pay for programs they would never freely choose to spend their money on. We are subjects to a majority vote by our representatives. If you support this high taxation, funding of privately unsustainable programs, and redistribution of wealth to those who cannot pay their mortgages or cover their business expenses, you are contradicting your extreme liberal stance.

I tend to think you've exaggerated your position. I doubt you would support the "total freedom" of choice. To take that position to its logical end, you would have no laws barring any freely chosen behavior. This would, by implication, bar all inherent rights given to citizens. My rights, by definition, limit the government's and other citizens' free will. The hope is that we minimally restrict others' freedoms for the sake of a healthy society. If you believe that children in the womb are human beings, with unique identity/DNA, then you must support outlawing abortion in the same way you support outlawing murder. Otherwise, you're claiming that not all unique human identities are created equal, and that some are not valuable enough to protect. That belief is the foundation for a society of tyranny.

Jon of NC 9:28AM April 29, 2009

Father Jenkins' failure to obey his bishop and to support the moral doctrine of his Church as voiced by the Holy Father beings shame upon himself as well as the University of Notre Dame. His stubborn and irrational persistance in maintaining his wrong-minded postion is a dark day for this formerly-considered protector of the Catholic faith and morals. Let us all pray for him.

Lee of IL 10:36PM April 28, 2009

The main tenet of Christianity is to lead a life as was demonstrated and revealed to us by Jesus Christ. It's all about choice, and the rewards or punishment we will receive based on the choices we make. You can't legislate choice, and make those decisions based on your religion the choice as backed by law. I am a very liberal Democratic and attend Church regularly and try my best to live my life based on the teachings of Christ. My fate is in my hands, and I am against abortion, but I can't legislate that choice for others. We live in a country that is based on law and the freedom of choice that our constitution grants us. The Roman Catholic Church for so long mixed and taught tradition as dogma and then when they attempted to fill those empty seats at mass back in the 60's, by easing up on the traditions they loss and confused many Catholics. Where we can make the most change on issues such as abortion is how we as parents instill the proper values in our children. Don't expect the law, schools or legislatures correct bad parenting. I am what I am because my parents raised me to be what they were, good people with love and tolerance mixed with forgiveness for all people. What is the fear, that Obama speaking to ND graduates will erase the values that these adults have embraced. The current morals of society are based on the parenting of the previous generation. Did you do your job to make sure your children make the right choices or do you want the government to make up for your shortcomings?

Frank R of CA 9:14PM April 28, 2009

I can not believe Fr. Jenkins doesn't have a superior who hasn't stopped him!

This is a political hot potato that I would think ND doesn't need!

Uninvite Obama SIMPLE! It's not worth the loss of donations and definitely not worth the loss of RESPECT for a once Highly respected CATHOLIC University

Mrs.T of IA 8:18PM April 28, 2009

Exactly what UNWANTED babies are you talking about??? People are struggling to find babies to adopt and paying huge amounts of money to adopt babies overseas. And ONCE AGAIN people...we who are pro-life ARE doing MORE to help poor women and children then you pro-choicers...who only offer abortion..and to 14 year old girls impregnated by 31 year olds AT THAT. EVERY pro-life person I KNOW volunteers there time to help the poor and needy. I run a volunteer organization provided help and a home to moms in need. WHAT DO YOU DO???? Hypocrisy..hmmm

Pro-Life Proud of WI 8:03PM April 28, 2009

I'm really tired of anti-abortion foes of all stripes grandstanding in defense of poor, helpless babies while doing very little (or certainly not enough) to take care of the unwanted and unneeded babies that are already here with us. On the day that every unwanted, orphaned child is adopted by a loving and nurturing family, I will stop supporting a woman's right to an abortion. Until that day, I refuse to sit by with my head in the sand ignoring the pain and suffering in the US and around the world made worse by men trying to eradicate SIN. The atrocities of overpopulation, exploitation, abject poverty, and starvation that have a severe effect on huge numbers of the world's children is much worse to me than abortion. It's ironic that most of the respondents in this thread so far have been men who can't get pregnant, cannot imagine the struggles pregnant women face, and who (as a gender) have a less than stellar record (after divorce) of supporting the kids they help bring into this world. Notre Dame is a fine institution of higher learning and doesn't deserve this narrow-minded demonstration of attempted censorship.

Tired of Hypocrisy of NC 6:33PM April 28, 2009

As a Notre Dame alum, I was sent divisive propaganda from the StopObamaNotreDame crowd, signed by Randall. Randall did not appear to provide his surname on his ranting literature. It amazes me how these one-note Catholics ignore the full-range of gospel values on use of riches, poverty, peace-making, protection of prisoners. President Obama gets high marks on all of those. It is a disgrace to see these people claim to be representatives of Notre Dame and the Catholic faithful.

I, for one, am writing to Fr. Jenkins to thank him for inviting the President to Notre Dame's commencement.

Mary Ann of CT 4:37PM April 28, 2009

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Dan Gilgoff covers religion for U.S. News & World Report. He is the author of The Jesus Machine: How James Dobson, Focus on the Family, and Evangelical America are Winning the Culture War, and is a former politics editor at beliefnet. E-mail Dan at godandcountry@usnews.com.

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