The Trouble With Jesuits, Part 82

CNA Staff, Jul 30, 2020 / 05:01 pm MT (CNA).- The president of Loyola University Maryland announced Friday that the Flannery O'Connor Residence Hall was being renamed, saying, “some of her personal writings reflected a racist perspective.”

The hall is to be renamed for Sister Thea Bowman, a member of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration and an African-American.

“During recent conversations around racism, one of the issues that caught the attention of our community was the name of Flannery O’Connor Residence Hall,” Fr. Brian Linnane, S.J., wrote July 24 to the university community. The school, which in 2019-20 had a total enrollment of 5,473, is in Baltimore.

“Information coming forward recently about O’Connor, a Catholic American writer of the 20th century, has revealed that some of her personal writings reflected a racist perspective. The building names we use at Loyola should declare to our students—and entire community—what sort of values we esteem and hope to instill in our graduates. A residence hall must be a home and a haven for those who live there, and its name should reflect Loyola’s Jesuit values,” Fr. Linnane wrote.

James Martin, S.J.

I wonder what Father Brian Linnane, S.J. thinks about this:


In 1838, 272 men, women, and children were sold by the Maryland Jesuits; a portion of the proceeds was used to pay the debts of Georgetown College (now Georgetown University), also run by the Jesuits. The slaves had lived on plantations belonging to the Jesuits in Maryland, and they were sold to Henry Johnson and Jesse Batey. The sale price was $115,000, equivalent to $2,761,078 in 2019. Of the $25,000 down-payment, $17,000 was used to pay down building debt that Thomas F. Mulledy, the provincial superior who orchestrated the sale, had accrued as president of Georgetown College.

The slaves sold by the Jesuits were part of the West Oak and Chatham Plantations, in Louisiana, both of which would later change ownership. None of the terms for the sale, directed from the Catholic Church leadership in Rome, was met. These terms included that there be no familial separation, that the proceeds not be used to pay debt or the operating expenses of the college, and that the religious practice of the enslaved people be supported. In 1848, the Jesuit James Van de Velde wrote to Mulledy about his concerns over the lack of religious instruction received by the slaves sold to Henry Johnson, and urged Mulledy to contribute funds for the construction of a chapel.

Glenn Poshard, Call Your Office

Washington D.C., Feb 25, 2019 / 02:47 pm (CNA).- A Canadian priest who apologized last week for plagiarism has resigned from the governing board of a Catholic college affiliated with the University of Toronto.
“As a sign of contrition and acknowledgement of the error, I freely submitted my resignation (Feb. 24) to the Collegium of the University of St. Michael’s College,” Fr. Thomas Rosica told The Catholic Register Feb. 25.
“It has been a privilege for me to serve that excellent university for many years in various capacities. I did not want my errors to cloud over the university governance and offer a bad example to students, educators and staff. We know that plagiarism is wrong, especially when it is practised deliberately. Please note that my actions were never deliberate. Nevertheless they were wrong.”
In a statement Monday, Fr. Don McCleod, CSB said that “Fr. Thomas Rosica, CSB made significant contributions while serving the St. Michael's community as a member of its Collegium,” adding that he had “respectfully accepted his resignation from the Collegium.”
McLeod is the chairman of the Collegium, or governing board, of The University of St. Michael’s College, which was founded by the Congregation of St. Basil, the religious community of which McLeod and Rosica are members. The college has nearly 4,000 students.

 It was sooo bad that even the Jesuits bailed on him!


Rosica was scheduled to be honored in April at the annual Provincial’s Dinner of the Canadian province of the Society of Jesus. The province withdrew its invitation Feb. 25.
“The Jesuits of Canada have followed the recent media reports regarding plagiarism by Father Thomas Rosica, CSB, actions for which he has taken responsibility and offered a full apology. Plagiarism is a grave offense against intellectual honesty and the community of scholarship. At the same time, many of us know Fr. Tom personally, and celebrate his genuine service to the Church in Canada and around the world. It is with great sorrow then that we have written to Father Rosica and withdrawn our invitation to him to receive the Magis Award on April 24, in the context of the Annual Provincial’s Dinner,” the province said.