The University of Notre Dame

Tomorrow marks the beginning of the college football season—for us Spartans at least—a time of great excitement, pageantry, and yes, even life lessons, as Guest Blogger Jack W. pointed out in his piece The Great Metaphor.

I have written in this space about the scandal at Penn State and hoped not to have to write about another low point in college sports. Alas, yesterday’s comments by Allan Pinkett, former All-American at Notre Dame, sadly compel comment.

Now before any of you Golden Domer’s go nuts, I will admit that his comments do not even remotely approach the level of scandal at PSU, so calm down. But I do hope you take a moment to reflect on what his comments say about college football, college athletics, and more importantly, what they say about Notre Dame and what she stands for.

For those who don’t know, Mr. Pinkett was interviewed yesterday on a local sports-talk radio station about ND’s upcoming season. In that interview he made the following statement:

I’ve always felt like, to have a successful team, you have to have a few bad citizens on the team,” Pinkett said. “That’s how Ohio State used to win all the time. They would have two or three guys that were criminals and that just adds to the chemistry of the team. So I think Notre Dame is growing because maybe they have some guys that are doing something worthy of a suspension, which creates edge on the football team.

You can’t have a football team full of choirboys, you know? You get your butt kicked if you have a team full of choirboys. So you have to have a little bit of edge.

He was asked to clarify his comments later in the interview and if he really meant to say “criminals.” His response was:

Oh, I absolutely meant that,” he said. “Chemistry is so important on a football team. And you have to have a couple of bad guys that sort of teeter on the edge to add to the flavor of the guys that are going to always do right. ? You look at the teams that have won in the past … they’ve always had a couple of criminals.

The Chicago Tribune has coverage of the interview here. Read it for yourself.
I don’t feel the need to weigh in on his remarks, they speak for themselves, but I would like to say something about what they say for the University of Notre Dame. Here is an excerpt from ND’s Mission Statement (posted on their website here):

The University of Notre Dame is a Catholic academic community of higher learning, animated from its origins by the Congregation of Holy Cross. The University is dedicated to the pursuit and sharing of truth for its own sake. As a Catholic university, one of its distinctive goals is to provide a forum where, through free inquiry and open discussion, the various lines of Catholic thought may intersect with all the forms of knowledge found in the arts, sciences, professions, and every other area of human scholarship and creativity.

The intellectual interchange essential to a university requires, and is enriched by, the presence and voices of diverse scholars and students. The Catholic identity of the University depends upon, and is nurtured by, the continuing presence of a predominant number of Catholic intellectuals. This ideal has been consistently maintained by the University leadership throughout its history. What the University asks of all its scholars and students, however, is not a particular creedal affiliation, but a respect for the objectives of Notre Dame and a willingness to enter into the conversation that gives it life and character.Therefore, the University insists upon academic freedom that makes open discussion and inquiry possible.

The University prides itself on being an environment of teaching and learning that fosters the development in its students of those disciplined habits of mind, body, and spirit that characterize educated, skilled, and free human beings. In addition, the University seeks to cultivate in its students not only an appreciation for the great achievements of human beings but also a disciplined sensibility to the poverty, injustice and oppression that burden the lives of so many. The aim is to create a sense of human solidarity and concern for the common good that will bear fruit as learning becomes service to justice.

Notre Dame also has a responsibility to advance knowledge in a search for truth through original inquiry and publication. This responsibility engages the faculty and students in all areas of the University, but particularly in graduate and professional education and research. The University is committed to constructive and critical engagement with the whole of human culture.

The University encourages a way of living consonant with a Christian community and manifest in prayer, liturgy and service. Residential life endeavors to develop that sense of community and of responsibility that prepares students for subsequent leadership in building a society that is at once more human and more divine.

Notre Dame’s character as a Catholic academic community presupposes that no genuine search for the truth in the human or the cosmic order is alien to the life of faith. The University welcomes all areas of scholarly activity as consonant with its mission, subject to appropriate critical refinement. There is, however, a special obligation and opportunity, specifically as a Catholic university, to pursue the religious dimensions of all human learning. Only thus can Catholic intellectual life in all disciplines be animated and fostered and a proper community of scholarly religious discourse be established.

In all dimensions of the University, Notre Dame pursues its objectives through the formation of an authentic human community graced by the Spirit of Christ.

[Emphasis mine]

Notre Dame has gotten some heat lately—and rightly so in my opinion—for actions inconsistent with this mission statement and more importantly, the Roman Catholic faith. Unfortunately, ND is not alone among Catholic universities acting in similar ways. When did it become wrong to want to attend a prestigious university, not just for its academic excellence, but also for its unique culture of faith?

In our politically correct society, it is counter-cultural to espouse the Christian faith, let alone the Catholic faith. Silly me, but I thought that these institutions were not just about educating tomorrow’s leaders, but also about doing the necessary work of evangelizing a society, and a world, in desperate need of Christ. Has the University of Notre Dame become nothing more than a wishy-washy hotbed of multiculturalism, worshiping, not the living God, but football? God forbid!

And no, I don’t think this is the case. But Mr. Pinkett has unwittingly given the university, its alumni, and supporters some real cause for reflection. We have seen where a sports-centric culture can lead. We need look no further than State College, Pennsylvania.

My prayer, and I’m sure that of all fellow Catholics, is that Notre Dame will truly reflect its mission statement and shine brightly the light of faith to all who come under her influence. May the Mother of God, for whom the university is named, protect it, and guide it.

Amen.