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Contents © 1998
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.

LETTERS
FEBRUARY 1998

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NOT IMPRESSED BY RATZINGER

Please do not send this paper to me. I love my Catholic Church. I do not tolerate or support "liberals" or "conservatives" like you tearing it apart. Jesus prayed and still prays for unity.

St. Bozo's parish is nowhere to be found in my diocese or at the parish I serve. I recently returned from a visit to Texas and visited a number of Catholic churches there--Bozo was not there either. Wherever he may be I do not support such.

I do support the documents and teachings of the Second Vatican Council as promulgated by the Catholic Church I was born into and raised in. I'm now 63. Cardinal Ratzinger's personal viewpoints or his hangups (Salt of the Earth) do not interest or impress me. I always believe in and guide my people to follow the teachings of the Church. I hope I die doing so. No liberals or conservatives for me. So please keep your conservative, destructive literature from me.

Msgr. Brian Coghlan
Seal Beach


ST. CLARA'S STRONG JESUIT TRADITION

Your recent story on Santa Clara and St. Mary's Universities [see "Everything Accepted but Orthodoxy", January] was an excellent example of journalism at its worst: a misleading headline; unnamed "sources" who make accusations that are unsubstantiated and who purport to speak for many others when, in fact, they may be a minority of one or very few; important information that is left out of the story; and worst of all, a blatant distortion of the facts.

When you contacted our public relations office, you were told that 7% of our full time faculty are Jesuits, which is far different from your statement that "seven percent of its faculty identifies itself as Catholic."

Your story made no mention of the fact that Santa Clara offers a minor in Catholic Studies. Nor did you describe the work of the Louis I. Bannan Institute on Jesuit Education and Christian Values. Did you bother to inquire about the 10 p.m. Sunday evening liturgy, which is standing room only?

On a personal note, I came to Santa Clara about a year ago because of its strong Catholic Jesuit tradition and because this University has, in its President and Board of Trustees, the leadership that intends to build upon that tradition as we train men and women for competence, conscience and compassion for the next millenium.

The only good thing about your newspaper is your willingness to print letters from readers who differ with you!

James M. Purcell
Vice President for University Relations

Editor's note: I did not ask the Santa Clara public relations department for the number of Jesuits on the faculty, but for the number of Catholics. I was told 7% without the qualification that that number represented only Jesuits. What I printed represents not a "blatant distortion of the facts," but a miscommunication. I have asked for the correct percentage of Catholics on the faculty, but without success. The reason: "I am not able to give you a percentage of the faculty here at Santa Clara who are Catholic because that is not information that we collect and tabulate," writes Mr. Purcell.


VIEW OF ST. MARY'S NEEDS BALANCE

I rarely ever respond to anything I read in newspapers and journals but I am making an exception to your recent article, "Everything Accepted But Orthodoxy," in the January 1998 issue of San Francisco Faith. Some comment is in order to give a better balanced view of St. Mary's College than your article did.

I do not doubt the sincerity of the St. Mary's College professor you quote in your article but my personal experience at that campus is quite different from what he reported. I am personally impressed with the general knowledge of my most recent students about the Catholic tradition and their attachment to it. Whether they adequately represent the general student body I cannot say. But I am convinced that they would give you quite a different, more accurate, picture than the conservative, non-Catholic St. Mary's nursing student whom you quote in your article. Several of my recent non-Catholic students have been very impressed with the Tradition and the manner in which that Tradition is communicated, and I do not believe that I am alone in this experience.

Furthermore, I find the faculty in the Religious Studies Department to be quite committed to the Catholic identity of the College. It would be very difficult for me to believe that any of them would undercut or make light of the Catholic tradition. Shouldn't they be given a more fair hearing?

I am convinced that a more careful, a more thorough investigation of St. Mary's College would give a better balanced and a more accurate understanding of this fine Catholic institution. It would be my personal hope that all interested Catholics, conservative and liberal, would be able to enter into dialogue about our common concerns and learn from one another rather than presume that there is some dogmatic gulf that separates us and which we cannot bridge. I certainly am in favor of such an effort. How could it do anything but lead us to the truth? To begin accusing one another of being unorthodox seems a perilous thing to do and certainly counterproductive.

Rev. John R. Morris, O.P.


CORRECTION

Fr. Jim Schexnayder led a Dignity-connected Mass following the 1992 San Francisco Gay Pride Parade, according to the Faith source's notes. The December Faith incorrectly stated 1996 as the year.

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