Bill McGurn to talk at ND on Obama and a Notre Dame Witness for Life

From Francis Beckwith:

This lecture is sponsored by the academic unit at Notre Dame in which I hold my visiting appointment, the Notre Dame Center for Ethics & Culture. If you are interested in attending, here are the vitals:

Thursday, April 23 - "A Notre Dame Witness for Life"

William McGurn, Notre Dame alumnus (Class of 1980) and former chief speech writer for George W. Bush (2005-2009), will be lecturing on Thursday night on the topic, “A Notre Dame Witness for Life.” Mr. McGurn, currently a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, will be speaking in Room 155 DeBartolo Hall and there will be a reception following his lecture. The lecture will be open to the public.

In his talk, Mr. McGurn will be exploring the ways in which the University of Notre Dame is of special significance for the pro-life cause globally. Mr. McGurn offered the following comments on what he plans to talk about:

“President Obama's invitation to speak at Notre Dame comes at a moment when the nation's most prominent Catholics -- our Vice President, our Speaker of the House, the nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services -- are all strong and unequivocal advocates for enshrining abortion into the law as a constitutional right. For the prolife community, the issue is not so much opposition to a commencement speaker as what we long to see at Our Lady's university: affirmation for the premier civil rights cause of our day. In a nation wounded by Roe, in a culture that sets mothers against their own children, we know this: Our church, our culture, and our country are poorer without the life witness of Notre Dame."

Meanwhile, LifeSite News has posted an e-mail written by Fr. Peter Jarrett of the Congregation of the Holy Cross; Fr. Jarrett is the religious superior of University of Notre Dame President and Holy Cross priest Fr. John Jenkins. He writes, in part:

My prayer is that the President's visit here will in the end result in some positive engagement on the issues surrounding the sanctity of life. While Commencement itself may not provide much of an opportunity, I hope that a positive experience at Notre Dame will allow us to be heard in the future on this vital issue. I do not think that President Obama was raised in a pro-life tradition, so the opportunity to engage and possibly dialogue with him on these issues in the years to come could be a positive outcome of this event.

Hmmm: "some positive engagement," "may not provide much of an opportunity," "will allow us to be heard in the future," "possibly dialogue," "could be a positive outcome." Now that is some highly qualified language. Forget audacity; this sounds like the gullibility of false hope.

Especially strange to me is the comment about Obama not being "raised in a pro-life tradition." So? Didn't he spend twenty years attending a church that should have been upholding a culture of life? Has he not had an opportunity—as a lawyer, professor, community organizer, senator, candidate—to grapple with the issue of abortion and other life issues? And, if not, is it going to happen because he gives a commencement address and receives an honorary degree at Notre Dame?

And how, exactly, is praising President Obama endlessly for vague and dubious accomplishments (Father Jenkins: "we recognize this remarkable leader and this remarkable person who has accomplished so much") and then hoping there might possibility be a chance of some opportunity of potential dialogue going to communicate to him the need to take seriously those claiming to be the defenders and promoters of a culture of life? Have we forgotten what then-Senator Barack Obama said to the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, less than two years ago, on July 17, 2007?

I have worked on these issues for decades now. I put Roe at the center of my lesson plan on reproductive freedom when I taught Constitutional Law. Not simply as a case about privacy but as part of the broader struggle for women’s equality. Steve and Pam will tell you that we fought together in the Illinois State Senate against restrictive choice legislation—laws just like the federal abortion laws, the federal abortion bans that are cropping up. I’ve stood up for the freedom of choice in the United States Senate and I stand by my votes against the confirmation of Judge Roberts and Samuel Alito [Applause]
 
So, you know where I stand. But this more is than just about standing our ground. It must be about more than protecting the gains of the past. We’re at a crossroads right now in America—and we have to move this country forward. This election is not just about playing defense, it’s also about playing offense. It’s not just about defending what is, it’s about creating what might be in this country. And that’s what we’ve got to work together on.

Obama is playing offense. Notre Dame is playing defense. This game may only be in the third quarter, but right now it's a blowout.