Political correctness at colleges: Not Catholic nor courageous

Posted

Amidst all of the American flags and presidential seals, there was something missing when President Barack Obama gave a speech on the economy at Georgetown University last week, namely Jesus.

Apparently the White House asked the Jesuit-run Georgetown to cover a monogram symbolizing Jesus' name in Gaston Hall and so the gold "IHS" monogram inscribed on a pediment in the hall was duly covered over by a piece of black-painted plywood. The covered I H S , a traditional symbol of Jesus, was adopted by St. Ignatius of Loyola for his Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in 1591.

Meanwhile closer to home, at Brown University, it’s goodbye Columbus. This time it’s not the covering of religious symbols but the dropping of Columbus Day in favor of “Fall Weekend.” The measure was overwhelmingly supported by the Ivy League institution’s faculty. Providence City Councilman Nicholas Narducci issued a letter of protest to Brown University President Ruth J. Simmons on Wednesday, calling the move an attempt at "revisionist history." Even the Brown-educated Mayor of Providence, David Cicilline, objected to the university's decision because it diminished the accomplishments of an important historical figure for Italian-Americans. The mayor indicated that it was wrong for the university to "simply erase the celebration of an incredibly significant moment in world history and Italian-American culture for the sake of political correctness."

These recent events highlight the growing intolerance of sacred traditions by the intolerant secularist and increasingly hostile faculties that populate universities and colleges across the nation. In the case of Brown's ridiculous decision to kneel before the altar of political correctness and revise history and insult Italian-Americans it is hardly surprising. However, the case of Georgetown’s decision to eliminate Jesus at the behest of a radically pro-abortion president such as Barack Obama at an institution that touts itself as Catholic is particularly offensive as it smacks of the rigid political correctness so often found in secular universities.

Georgetown’s decision to allow the pro-abortion president a forum was clearly wrong from the onset and should never have been offered. The outrageous demand by White House officials to remove any semblance of religious identity for the speech is highly insulting to Catholics. However, the decision by the cowardly officials of Georgetown who acquiesced to the insult is an outrageous betrayal to St. Ignatius of Loyola and the many Jesuits who have been martyred for the cross over the centuries.

Political correctness run amuck may be a staple in the ivy-covered secular universities but it has no place in a supposedly Catholic institution of higher learning. Georgetown is just the latest Catholic college, which includes the University of Notre Dame, to betray Catholic principles in favor of popularity. When the first American-born Bishop John Carroll envisioned securing the future of American Catholicism through education, he courageously established Georgetown in the midst of anti-Catholic America. Sadly, his successors have sullied his vision with political correctness that can neither be described as Catholic nor courageous.