Rift grows among Omaha Catholics, school By OSKAR GARCIA, Associated Press Writer Wed Aug 29, 10:38 PM ET
OMAHA, Neb. - A growing rift between the Omaha Archdiocese and a Jesuit university here has been inflamed over a best-selling author's invitation to speak at the school even though she supports assisted suicide.
Creighton University officials said they invited Anne Lamott to speak before her book "Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith," came out in March 2007. The book describes her personal experience in helping a friend commit suicide. This week the school canceled her appearance that was scheduled for Sept. 19. "Everybody knew what they were getting so it is hard to understand a last minute disinvitation," said the Rev. Joseph Taphorn, chancellor for the archdiocese. "All you have to do is put the name in Google and you see what she believes."
On Wednesday, the author's booking agent, Steven Barclay, said Lamott's opinions were no secret. He said university officials sent a letter earlier this summer asking Lamott not to speak about assisted suicide and abortion." It's very evident what her work stands for," Barclay said.
Creighton is overseen by the Society of Jesus, a Roman Catholic order. According to the order, part of a Jesuit university's mission is to remain in good standing with the Catholic bishop.
Archdiocese and university officials said the relationship between the two entities remains strong, but an archdiocese official said the flap about the author was part of a pattern with which local Catholics were "losing patience." In June, the archdiocese disassociated itself from the university's Center for Marriage and Family after two researchers urged the church to allow unmarried couples to live together and have sex and children as long as they are engaged. The essay was published in U.S. Catholic magazine. One researcher, Michael Lawler, also co-wrote an article with the chairman of the school's theology department suggesting that some homosexual sex is moral under Catholic doctrine. It was published in the academic Heythrop Journal. "If you're seeing a pattern, you're seeing correctly," said the Rev. Ryan Lewis, vice chancellor of the archdiocese. "And we just appreciate that Catholic Omaha is starting to lose patience with some of this stuff." Patrick Borchers, vice president of academic affairs for the university, said Wednesday that the university has many interests to uphold, including the values of the church and academic freedom. "I think that they (the archdiocese) are respectful of the need for Creighton to maintain the academic freedom of its faculty," Borchers said. "Our faculty certainly has academic freedom, and not everybody on the faculty agrees with all of church teaching." Taphorn said the archdiocese may re-associate with the center if the two researchers were replaced. But if relations deteriorated, the archbishop could declare that Creighton was no longer a Catholic university and ask the school to remove the designation.
Taphorn declined to say Wednesday whether archdiocese officials had discussed that option.
The move wouldn't shut down Creighton, but would rattle the school's identity and make it difficult to raise money from Catholic alumni and donors.
OMAHA, Neb. - A growing rift between the Omaha Archdiocese and a Jesuit university here has been inflamed over a best-selling author's invitation to speak at the school even though she supports assisted suicide.
Creighton University officials said they invited Anne Lamott to speak before her book "Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith," came out in March 2007. The book describes her personal experience in helping a friend commit suicide. This week the school canceled her appearance that was scheduled for Sept. 19. "Everybody knew what they were getting so it is hard to understand a last minute disinvitation," said the Rev. Joseph Taphorn, chancellor for the archdiocese. "All you have to do is put the name in Google and you see what she believes."
On Wednesday, the author's booking agent, Steven Barclay, said Lamott's opinions were no secret. He said university officials sent a letter earlier this summer asking Lamott not to speak about assisted suicide and abortion." It's very evident what her work stands for," Barclay said.
Creighton is overseen by the Society of Jesus, a Roman Catholic order. According to the order, part of a Jesuit university's mission is to remain in good standing with the Catholic bishop.
Archdiocese and university officials said the relationship between the two entities remains strong, but an archdiocese official said the flap about the author was part of a pattern with which local Catholics were "losing patience." In June, the archdiocese disassociated itself from the university's Center for Marriage and Family after two researchers urged the church to allow unmarried couples to live together and have sex and children as long as they are engaged. The essay was published in U.S. Catholic magazine. One researcher, Michael Lawler, also co-wrote an article with the chairman of the school's theology department suggesting that some homosexual sex is moral under Catholic doctrine. It was published in the academic Heythrop Journal. "If you're seeing a pattern, you're seeing correctly," said the Rev. Ryan Lewis, vice chancellor of the archdiocese. "And we just appreciate that Catholic Omaha is starting to lose patience with some of this stuff." Patrick Borchers, vice president of academic affairs for the university, said Wednesday that the university has many interests to uphold, including the values of the church and academic freedom. "I think that they (the archdiocese) are respectful of the need for Creighton to maintain the academic freedom of its faculty," Borchers said. "Our faculty certainly has academic freedom, and not everybody on the faculty agrees with all of church teaching." Taphorn said the archdiocese may re-associate with the center if the two researchers were replaced. But if relations deteriorated, the archbishop could declare that Creighton was no longer a Catholic university and ask the school to remove the designation.
Taphorn declined to say Wednesday whether archdiocese officials had discussed that option.
The move wouldn't shut down Creighton, but would rattle the school's identity and make it difficult to raise money from Catholic alumni and donors.
Original article (here)
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