Pro-life students at Notre Dame are organizing a public protest against the selection of an abortion supporter to lead the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies. The protest is scheduled for Friday evening, beginning at 6 p.m. on the South Quad. The event will feature speeches followed by a candlelight prayer service at the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes. The university administration has affirmed its decision to appoint Susan Ostermann to the position.
7 days ago
Pro-life students at the University of Notre Dame criticized the January 8 appointment of Susan Ostermann as head of the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies.1 2
Ostermann co-authored articles from 2022-2024 advocating legal abortion, labeling pro-life views as tied to white supremacy, and calling crisis pregnancy centers "propaganda."1 2
Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend deemed the appointment a "scandal," urging its rescission as a matter of institutional witness, not academic freedom.1 3
Eighteen U.S. bishops supported him; the university initially defended Ostermann's expertise in Asian studies while affirming her respect for its pro-life stance.1 3
Students organized a February 27 event starting at South Quad, planning speeches and a march to the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes for prayer.1
Sponsors included Notre Dame Right to Life, The Irish Rover, Knights of Columbus, and others; organizers like Luke Woodyard and Gabriel Ortner highlighted a perceived drift from Catholic identity.1 2
Concerns extended beyond Ostermann to administrative alignment with secular elites over Catholic principles.1
Father Wilson Miscamble, a history professor emeritus, planned to speak, praising students' fidelity.1
On February 26, Ostermann withdrew, announced by Keough School Dean Mary Gallagher.2 3
Bishop Rhoades expressed gratitude, reiterating leadership roles demand Catholic consistency.3
Students viewed it as a "victory," crediting pressure from faithful community members, including possibly President Father Robert Dowd.2 3
The university had respected protest rights amid backlash from students, alumni, faculty, and bishops.2
The planned protest transformed into a candlelit thanksgiving vigil with about 100-150 attendees, including students, faculty, priests, and locals.2 3 4
Participants processed to the grotto for Rosary after candle blessing by Father Miscamble, who prayed for university renewal in Catholic mission.3 4
Organizers emphasized gratitude to God, Our Lady, and listening administrators while pledging vigilance.2 3
Maria Madigan of Right to Life stressed love for Notre Dame's mission, shifting focus to positive vision.2 4
Students suspect Provost John McGreevy's role and demand hiring reforms to prevent recurrence.2 3
Woodyard noted root causes persist, urging accountability beyond "academic freedom" claims.3
Ortner praised Dowd and Rhoades but called for full administrative unity in Catholic vision.2 4
Attendees like Max McNiff hoped it sets precedent against elevating those contradicting doctrine.2
Sycamore Trust lauded student courage amid administration disparities on Catholic identity.1
The vigil underscored commitment to pro-life ethos, with calls to hold Notre Dame accountable.3
Investigate Catholic universities’ governance of faculty appointments
Catholic universities govern faculty appointments to safeguard their distinctive Catholic identity, ensuring that teachers and administrators are selected for their scientific qualifications, integrity of doctrine, and probity of life. This responsibility rests primarily with university authorities but is shared across the community and vigilantly overseen by ecclesiastical authorities, such as bishops and episcopal conferences, in line with canon law and apostolic constitutions.
A Catholic university is a community of scholars dedicated to research, teaching, and service, but it must inform all activities with Catholic ideals, principles, and attitudes. Its statutes and public documents, such as mission statements, must explicitly affirm this identity, which influences faculty appointments.
The responsibility for maintaining and strengthening the Catholic identity lies primarily with the university itself, entrusted to authorities like chancellors or boards of trustees. This necessitates recruitment of adequate university personnel, especially teachers and administrators, who are both willing and able to promote that identity. The identity is essentially linked to the quality of its teachers and to respect for Catholic doctrine, with the competent ecclesiastical authority overseeing these needs per canon law.
Episcopal conferences are urged to establish universities or faculties that preserve academic autonomy while studying disciplines in light of Catholic doctrine.
At appointment, all teachers and administrators must be informed about the Catholic identity of the institution, its implications, and their responsibility to promote or at least respect it.
The competent authority according to the statutes—typically university governance bodies—has the duty to appoint teachers who, besides scientific and pedagogical qualifications, are outstanding in integrity of doctrine and probity of life. They must also remove teachers lacking these requirements, following statutory procedures.
For ecclesiastical universities and faculties (which may integrate into Catholic universities), additional canonical missions are required for those teaching faith and morals, granted or revoked by the chancellor per Veritatis Gaudium norms, after a Profession of Faith.
All Catholic teachers must be faithful to Catholic doctrine and morals in research and teaching, adapted to their disciplines. Catholic theologians, fulfilling a Church mandate, must be faithful to the Magisterium as the authentic interpreter of Scripture and Tradition.
Non-Catholic teachers, administrators from other ecclesial communities or religions, those without religious belief, and students must recognize and respect the Catholic identity. Crucially, non-Catholic teachers should not constitute a majority to avoid endangering the institution's Catholic character.
Bishops and episcopal conferences hold the duty and right to vigilantly ensure fidelity to Catholic doctrine principles in these universities.
Theologians enjoy academic freedom but must respect the authority of bishops and assent to doctrine per its authoritative degree, fostering essential dialogue.
These general norms from Ex Corde Ecclesiae develop the Code of Canon Law and complementary legislation, applicable worldwide to Catholic universities approved by the Holy See, episcopal conferences, or bishops. Universities must incorporate them into statutes, approved by competent ecclesiastical authority.
Local episcopal conferences apply norms concretely, issuing "Ordinances" reviewed by the Holy See. Bishops' conferences, linked to the Apostolic See, foster progress, respect scientific autonomy per Vatican II, and ensure an adequate number of faculties attuned to Church needs.
In cases of faculties within Catholic universities, governance must coordinate via statutes to promote the whole university's good while safeguarding canonical exigencies of ecclesiastical faculties.
For affiliations or approvals, bishops' conferences and diocesan bishops consent, ensuring conditions like doctrinal integrity.
Faculty governance aligns with overall university autonomy, balancing academic freedom with truth and the common good. Episcopal oversight ensures teaching and governance ministries converge to build the Church.
In collaborative contexts, any acquired or managed elements must align with Catholic moral teaching. Governance evolves amid modern challenges like state funding and societal demands, emphasizing autonomy while serving the common good.
Catholic universities' governance of faculty appointments prioritizes doctrinal fidelity, moral integrity, and Catholic identity through university-led recruitment, mandatory orientation, limits on non-Catholic majorities, and robust ecclesiastical vigilance. University authorities bear primary responsibility, but bishops and conferences ensure compliance via canon law and apostolic norms, preserving academic freedom within Church truth.