Senator Clinton to Receive Honorary Doctorate at Catholic College?

(from LifeSiteNews.Com) - Marymount Manhattan College has invited pro-abortion Sen. Hillary Clinton to deliver its commencement address and receive an honorary doctoral degree on May 20, publicly defying New York's Cardinal Edward Egan and the U.S. bishops who forbade such honors in a statement last June.

However, the Cardinal Newman Society (CNS), a national organization dedicated to the renewal of Catholic identity at America's 220 Catholic colleges and universities, is working to stop the scandal. "We are blowing the whistle on this and any other Catholic college that blatantly disrespects the bishops by defying their clear command and teaching," said CNS president Patrick J. Reilly. "After decades of scandal at secularizing colleges, last June the bishops drew a line in the sand. No college that deliberately crosses that line deserves the label 'Catholic' or the support of the faithful-most especially monetary support."

CNS has written Marymount Manhattan president Judson Shaver, urging him to immediately cancel both the honorary degree and Clinton's commencement address "in order to restore fidelity to the College's Catholic mission, obedience to your bishop and public trust in your commitment to not lead astray the College's students, your employees and the general public."

In June 2004 by a near-unanimous vote, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops approved the statement "Catholics in Political Life" including the following mandate:

"The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."

To express your concerns to the college contact college president
Judson R. Shaver, Ph.D.
jshaver@mmm.edu
Marymount Manhattan College, 221 East 71st Street, NY 10021
1-800-MARYMOUNT or 1-212-517-0430