Spring Break
Jenkins' statements contradictory
Letter to the Editor
Issue date: 5/2/07 Section: Viewpoint
With all due respect to Father John Jenkins, I would like to share some serious concerns that I have with regard to his recent Letter to the Editor ("Proud of strides made by gender-relations committee," May 1). Something by which I am constantly perplexed is how statements from the president's office concerning the production of "Loyal Daughters" never fail to contradict each other.
In his faculty address in January 2006, Father Jenkins considered the title of the proposed play, then "Her Loyal Daughters," to be problematic. He said, "As you may know, in the Catholic tradition Mary is venerated for holiness and fidelity, and is considered a model of chastity. Though I did not doubt that the students involved were sincere in their desire to be loyal daughters of Mary, it seemed that a title like this, if there were material about sexual experiences, abortion, or contraception described in a morally neutral way, would appear intentionally offensive to Catholics who revere Mary." I couldn't agree with this statement more.
Then, as we all remember, in his closing statement he wrote "The student leaders of 'The Vagina Monologues' have proposed producing a play written in their own voices and describing their own experiences, entitled 'Loyal Daughters.' This production will be put on entirely by Notre Dame students in consultation with the faculty advisors they have chosen. I will do all I can to support this effort." What happened? What happened to seeing the proposed play as "intentionally offensive?" What happened to concern that it would represent sexual immorality "in a morally neutral way?"
Well apparently he did have a change of heart, and prior to opening night in November, he retracted his endorsement of the play. According to an article in The Observer ("'Loyal Daughters' debuts at DPAC," Nov. 13, 2006), University spokesman Dennis Brown said Father Jenkins was uncomfortable with the "neutral stance" on sexual behavior like premarital sex, saying it was "in direct opposition to the Church and Father Jenkins' position on issues of sexual morality." OK, phew. That was a close one; I thought there was a contradiction there for a second.
In his faculty address in January 2006, Father Jenkins considered the title of the proposed play, then "Her Loyal Daughters," to be problematic. He said, "As you may know, in the Catholic tradition Mary is venerated for holiness and fidelity, and is considered a model of chastity. Though I did not doubt that the students involved were sincere in their desire to be loyal daughters of Mary, it seemed that a title like this, if there were material about sexual experiences, abortion, or contraception described in a morally neutral way, would appear intentionally offensive to Catholics who revere Mary." I couldn't agree with this statement more.
Then, as we all remember, in his closing statement he wrote "The student leaders of 'The Vagina Monologues' have proposed producing a play written in their own voices and describing their own experiences, entitled 'Loyal Daughters.' This production will be put on entirely by Notre Dame students in consultation with the faculty advisors they have chosen. I will do all I can to support this effort." What happened? What happened to seeing the proposed play as "intentionally offensive?" What happened to concern that it would represent sexual immorality "in a morally neutral way?"
Well apparently he did have a change of heart, and prior to opening night in November, he retracted his endorsement of the play. According to an article in The Observer ("'Loyal Daughters' debuts at DPAC," Nov. 13, 2006), University spokesman Dennis Brown said Father Jenkins was uncomfortable with the "neutral stance" on sexual behavior like premarital sex, saying it was "in direct opposition to the Church and Father Jenkins' position on issues of sexual morality." OK, phew. That was a close one; I thought there was a contradiction there for a second.