THE ISSUES
The fundamental issue
to which Project Sycamore is dedicated is the
preservation of the Catholic identity of Notre
Dame. The importance of Catholicism in the affairs
of the school has been brought into question by
the administration’s approval of events such
as the student productions of "The Vagina
Monologues," a play that, while a fixture
on secular campuses, has gained little traction
among other Catholic institutions because of its
elemental antagonism to Catholic tradition and
teaching. Though the work’s supporters regularly
claim that it is concerned principally with violence
against women, this characterization is a transparent
masking of the play’s overarching theme in
praise of sexual gratification through illicit
sex, mainly lesbian, in many forms: intercourse,
masturbation, seduction of adolescents, and even
the ministrations of for-hire dominatrixes.
When, in addresses to faculty and students, Father
Jenkins said early in 2006 that, because of the
play’s "hostility" to Catholic
teachings and values, it probably should no longer
be sanctioned, it seemed that the four-year run
of the play would be ended. However, in the wake
of strenuous faculty protests, Father Jenkins
reversed course. His approval of the play has
special significance because he characterized
it as a "test" of how he would resolve
future cases of tension between the claims of
academic freedom, on the one hand, and preservation
of Catholic identity, on the other. The broader
importance of the episode, however, lies in what
it suggests about a threatening fault line in
the Catholic character of the University. Several
of the University’s most distinguished faculty
members have attributed the strong and successful
faculty protest to the faculty’s pervasive
secularization. The dramatic shrinking of the
Catholic component of the faculty over recent
decades is compelling evidence of this development.
Catholics now comprise barely a majority of the
faculty and may soon be reduced to a minority.
This phenomenon is of crucial importance. In
his magisterial study of the loss of religious
identity by educational institutions, The Dying
of the Light, former Notre Dame Provost James
Tunstead Burtchaell, C.S.C., identified secularization
of faculty as the driving force. Moreover, he
noted that faculty transformation generally occurs
well in advance of the dilution of the religious
affiliation of the student body or the fading
of liturgical practices and the like. Finally,
he stressed that secularization typically occurs
in small, seemingly inconsequential steps rather
than by way of grand design. For these reasons,
he observed, religious identity is generally already
lost before most begin to worry that it might
be. Thus, Notre Dame alumni cannot safely ignore
the plain warning signs by pointing to the continued
high percentage of Catholic students together
with all the signs of Catholic campus life that
are so widely, and rightly, admired. Nor should
episodes such as the effective faculty championing
of The Vagina Monologues be dismissed on the ground
that they are by themselves of little consequence.
While gravely disappointed by Father Jenkins’s
decision respecting The Vagina Monologues, the
sponsors of Project Sycamore are encouraged by
his stated intention to reverse the downward path
of Catholic faculty membership. Moreover, in recent
correspondence with protesting alumni, Father
Jenkins and his associates have indicated that
his 2006 evaluation will not necessarily govern
with respect to future performances of the play.
Thus, it is in order for alumni both to continue
to express their views respecting the play and
also to support Father Jenkins’ faculty hiring
goals in whatever ways that support may be helpful.
All alumni take pride in the major enhancement
in recent decades in the academic reputation of
the school. Notre Dame is now widely regarded
as the finest Catholic university in the country
and ranks in the top tier of all universities.
Father Jenkins’ stated goal is to move Notre
Dame to the highest level of academic achievement
while insuring that it remains thoroughly Catholic
in character. Praiseworthy though the aim, the
risk of losing the latter in gaining the former
is plainly disclosed by what has happened along
the way so far. Project Sycamore is dedicated
to the prevention of that sacrifice.
If there is sufficient alumni interest, Project
Sycamore will continue to gather and disseminate
information, and when appropriate mobilize opinion
and suggest avenues of support, respecting issues
and projects bearing on the Catholic identity
of Notre Dame as long as that subject calls for
special alumni attention, which suggests an extended
commitment. While independent of the University,
a characteristic essential to our purposes, we
will strive to establish a productive working
relationship with the University, since it is
the University’s interests that we aim to
serve.
For additional discussion and materials, see
The Vagina Monologues on Catholic Campuses
Description of the Vagina Monologues
Academic Freedom
Effectiveness of the Panel Discussions
Notre Dame Voices
Queer Film Festival
