Instaurare The C hristendom College M agazine
Wi n ter 2019-20
graduate school celebrates golden anniversary SPO RTS D ONE D I FFERE N T LY | A L U M NU S F I ND S S U C C E S S I N AN D O U T OF T HE MA R IN E S ALU M N I M EN TOR S TU D E NT S | C H R I S T E N D O M I N C E N T R AL E U ROPE
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VOLUME 27 | NUMBER 3 | WINTER 2019-20 Published three times yearly by the Christendom College Marketing Office. Executive Editor: Tom McFadden Managing Editor & Design/Layout: Niall O’Donnell Photos: Johanna Burke, Niall O’Donnell, Bridget Bennett, Maureen Hebert, Marie-Therese O’Reilly, Bryan Zhu Contributors: Johanna Burke, Tom McFadden, Niall O’Donnell, Danielle Dusseault, Vince Criste, Adam Wilson Christendom College 134 Christendom Drive, Front Royal, VA 22630 540.636.2900 | www.christendom.edu Copyright © 2020. Permission to reprint in whole or in part is hereby granted, provided the following credit line is used: “Reprinted by permission from Instaurare, the official magazine of Christendom College (christendom.edu).” SUBSCRIPTION FREE UPON REQUEST.
Instaurare magazine (pronounced “in-sta-rar-ay”) receives its name from the Latin in the college’s motto, “Instaurare Omnia in Christo” or “To Restore All Things in Christ.”
Christendom College does not discriminate against any applicant or student on the basis of sex, race, color, age, national origin, religion, disability, genetic information, marital status, pregnancy or veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable law.
CHRISTENDOM COLLEGE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
ADVISORS TO THE BOARD
Mr. Guy Amisano Sr. Mr. Martin R. Boles Mr. Robert Crnkovich (Treasurer) Mr. Gene D’Agostino (Vice Chairman) Mr. Timothy Halisky ’01 Mr. Julian Heron Mrs. Karla Hester ’99 Mr. Richard Hough Dr. Timothy T. O’Donnell (ex officio) Mr. Stephen O’Keefe ’93 (Chairman) Mr. Gary Schuberg Mr. Mark Swartzberg Mrs. Michele Velasco ’90 Mr. Thomas C. West Jr. Ms. Luanne D. Zurlo (Secretary)
Mrs. Donna Bethell Mrs. Mary Ellen Bork Mrs. Bernadette Casey-Smith Mr. John Cecconi Mr. John De Matteo Dr. Robert P. George Mr. Daniel Gorman Mrs. Joan Janaro Mr. John McNeice Mr. Joseph Melancon Rev. Robert Morey Mr. Robert Mylod The Honorable James Nicholson Mrs. Mary Beth Riordan Rev. George W. Rutler Mr. Mark Ryland The Honorable Rick Santorum Rev. William Saunders Mr. Robert Scrivener ’81 Mr. Owen Smith Mr. George Weigel Mr. Thomas Young Mr. Eugene Zurlo
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THE COLLEGE IS FOR THE FORMATION OF CHARACTER, INTELLECTUAL AND MORAL, FOR THE CULTIVATION OF THE MIND, FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF THE INDIVIDUAL, FOR THE STUDY OF LITERATURE, FOR THE CLASSICS, AND THOSE RUDIMENTAL SCIENCES WHICH STRENGTHEN AND SHARPEN THE INTELLECT.
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- ST. JOHN HENRY NEWMAN
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OR FIND US ON
The college celebrated the canonization of St. John Henry Newman with a four-part lecture series. Read an excerpt from one of the lectures on page 36.
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Inside This Issue 10
Golden Anniversary Graduate School celebrates 50 years of contributing to the renewal of Catholic education, both in the U.S. and across the globe.
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Connecting Christendom Students receive crucial career-related workshops, one-on-one meetings, and alumni mentoring experiences.
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Christendom in Central Europe Political Science Professor Dr. P. Bracy Bersnak shares his experience of speaking at a Hungarian youth conference.
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From the President
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Christ the King Chapel Update
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News in Brief
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Student Prepares for Military Career
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Alumnus Finds Success In and Out of the Marines
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Sports Done Differently
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Photo Album
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A Beautiful Legacy
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In the Classroom: Metaphysics
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Classmates: Alumni News
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Homecoming 2019
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Omnia in Christo: Newman’s Conversion
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FROM THE DESK OF PRESIDENT DR. TIMOTHY O’DONNELL
The Fruit of an Authentic Catholic Education During a recent trip to Ireland
“This education prepares students for their role as faithful, informed, and articulate members of Christ’s Church and society.”
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with our St. Columcille Institute, I encountered three things in Dublin. The first was a slogan on a plaque right next to the home in which Oscar Wilde was born. It read: “Experience Tradition…Embrace Innovation.” The second was a conversation with a young man working in Dublin. I asked him where he was from and he replied, “Wexford.” I said, “Ah, that’s where those brave men in the ’98 uprising took their stand.” He just shrugged and said, “That stuff…that’s all behind us now!” The third experience was talking to a woman about marriage and family and I remarked that marriage was a union between a man and woman and she dismissively responded, “Oh, that’s very old!” Each of these instances involved a rejection of tradition. Part of my joyful task as President is to keep the mission and vision of the college before our eyes. I hope to keep us all focused on this mission, which has a perennial value, and in many ways, has become even more important given our current cultural confusion and its increasingly toxic nature. We are witnessing great advances in science and technology and at the same time horrific moral confusion. The greatest example of this can be seen in the fact that a mother’s womb, the great sanctuary of life and love, has now often become a place of unspeakable violence. We are a deeply wounded society in need of healing. We live in a world which desperately needs study, reflection, profound prayer, and community. How urgently do we need young men and women deeply educated in the truths of Faith and reason to help transform this culture and society which views tradition as nothing more than a legacy of oppression? Many believe that most etiquette and customs are simply forms of patriarchal stereotyping. The notion that men and women are created in the image and likeness of God is seen as an “illusory barrier to an
autonomous self-expression.” The fundamental ends and principles governing society used to be agreed upon and the debate centered upon the means best suited to achieve those ends. Today, the very ends and principles are no longer held in common and are the subject of debate. Psychologists have observed a steep rise in adolescent depression, caused chiefly by divorce and the breakdown of the family. Many adults and children are emotionally scarred as a result. Despite multiple means of communication, loneliness has become increasingly characteristic of our modern society. We are not meant to be alone. We need to return again to Our Blessed Lord Who proclaimed Himself to be “the Way, the Truth and the Life.” He came “that we may have life and have it to the full. For then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” True freedom is the fruit of a Catholic liberal education. Intrinsic to such an education is the formation of moral character and the fostering of the spiritual life. This education prepares students for their role as faithful, informed, and articulate members of Christ’s Church and society. This mission and vision—inspired Dr. Carroll and our founding faculty, and harmonized with the best in our Catholic tradition—was affirmed in Saint John Paul II’s great encyclical Fides et Ratio, Pope Benedict and Pope Francis’ Lumen Fidei, and of course the Apostolic Constitution Ex Corde Ecclesiae. I conclude with the words of Pope Benedict XVI: “The future of the Church, once again, as always, will be reshaped by saints, by men and women whose minds probe deeper than the slogans of the day, who see more than others see because their lives embrace a wider reality.” Thank you so much for making this vital educational apostolate possible. God bless you!
Chris t the Ki n g C ha pel Up date
Concrete is poured for the foundation of the new Christ the King Chapel.
FOUNDATION LAID Construction of the new Christ the King chapel has seen major progress in recent months, with a completion date set for Christmas 2021. Featuring two spires and a 116-foot-tall Gothic tower, the new chapel will be a striking edifice visible for miles. It will seat 760 people, accommodating the needs of the growing Christendom community. In August, the college signed Hoar Construction as the general contractor for the project. This firm has been a leader in the industry for over 75 years, having specialized in building churches before expanding to commercial architecture as well. Ongoing operations began in September, and the construction team has since completed basic groundwork, poured the concrete footings that will support the steel structure of the
chapel, and more. The building’s foundation has been laid, and soon the steel frame of the chapel will begin to be erected. The main work on the exterior of the chapel should be completed by summer 2020. Once the structure of the chapel is watertight, the process of adorning the chapel can begin. The chapel will feature over 100 stained glass windows, a 2,800-pipe organ, breathtaking woodwork and sacred art, four side chapels, a chapel for Our Lady, and an oculus beneath the Gothic tower. Stay up to date with the latest news, pictures, and videos!
c h a p e l.c h r is te n d o m.e d u > WINTER 2019-20
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NEWS
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PROFESSORS ON BREAK Over the fall semester, the college released its six-part video series called Professors on Break. Hosted by alumnus, author, and speechwriter, John Clark ’92, the show follows him as he enjoys a cup of coffee with members of the college’s faculty while cruising around in some very cool (and sometimes not-so-cool) cars. Watch it at christendom.edu/professors-on-break.
HOLLYWOOD COMES TO CHRISTENDOM Over 200 students gathered at the St. John the Evangelist library on October 9 for the semester’s “Outside the Box” event featuring Hollywood actors Paul Rugg (Emmy Award Winner), Tom Wilson (best known as Biff from the Back to the Future), and Matthew Galvan (cast member of Studio C). Drawing from personal experience, the three actors spoke to Christendom students about pursuing careers in the arts, preserving their Catholic faith in Hollywood, and the growing need for Catholic, liberal arts-educated students in the film industry.
SUPPORTING SCHOLARATHLETES The 10th Annual Thomas S. Vander Woude Memorial Golf Tournament was held on October 14 at the Shenandoah Valley Golf Club in Front Royal, Virginia, and raised $16,000 to fund the Thomas S. Vander Woude Scholar Athlete scholarship fund.
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DECADES OF SERVICE Longtime board member Donna Bethell stepped down from her role on the college’s Board of Directors in September. Bethell joined the Christendom Board in 1998 and became Chairman of the Board in 2001, and then Vice Chairman in February of 2019 when Steve O’Keefe ’93 became Chairman. In her 21 years on the board, Bethell has been a trusted advisor to the college, and has shown a great commitment to Christendom’s mission. Bethell has supported the college through promising times and difficult times. Her steadfast years of service to the college are deeply appreciated and show her immense leadership skills.
CELEBRATING A NEW SAINT
REQ U IES CAT I N PAC E
The college commemorated the life and canonization of St. John Henry Cardinal Newman during the month of October with prayers, lectures by members of the faculty, and watching his canonization live as a community. To watch or listen to the lecture series on the life and accomplishments of St. Newman, visit: christendom.edu/newmanlectures
PRAISE FROM ROME Professor Tracey Rowland, St. John Paul II Chair in Theology at the University of Notre Dame (Australia), praised Christendom College as capturing St. John Henry Newman’s vision for a university in a paper that was delivered at The Angelicum, Rome, on October 12 to celebrate the canonization of the saint. “I would argue that most of our universities are what Newman would call factories, mints and treadmills, that is, places where thousands of students, known to the university only by their student numbers, pass exams to qualify for employment in a particular field,” she said. “A residential university college, limited to a couple of hundred students, can thereby be an ‘alma mater’ as Newman understood it.”
ONE-MAN PLAY On September 24, Maximilian: Saint of Auschwitz was performed on campus by actor Leonardo Defilippis. This one-man play depicted the life of Polish Catholic priest St. Maximilian Kolbe, starting with his childhood, moving to his years of ministry as a Franciscan priest, and ending with his heroic martyrdom in Auschwitz.
Dr. Patrick Keats, longtime English professor, producer of the theatrical group the Christendom Players, and former academic dean, passed away peacefully on Friday, July 5, 2019, in the arms of his beloved wife, Lily, after receiving Last Rites and the Apostolic Blessing. Keats, a husband, father, lover of literature, movies, and theater, died after a long battle with cancer. He was 67 years old. Dr. Keats impacted many lives during his time on earth, both in the classroom and outside of it. Read tributes and watch videos from the funeral Mass at christendom.edu/remembering-dr-patrick-keats.
Fr. Cornelius O’Brien, who served the Christendom community as a chaplain for 25 years and was a passionate supporter of the college from its very beginning, passed away on September 7, 2019, at the age of 87 in his home in Ireland.
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Connecting Christendom Alumni Mentor Students to Success Christendom students undertake a broad and rigorous course
of studies over their four years on campus, delving deeply into the most important questions, studying the True, the Good, and the Beautiful. And although studying the liberal arts is intended for its own sake, and not for the practicalities of finding a career, studies have shown that a broad-based liberal arts education does indeed offer its graduates some very practical skills and career-related benefits.
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According to recent surveys commissioned by AAC&U as part of its ongoing Liberal Education and America’s Promise (LEAP) initiative, employers overwhelmingly endorse broad learning and cross-cutting skills as the best preparation for long-term career success. The soft skills they rate as most important for career success are oral communication, critical thinking, ethical judgment, working effectively in teams, written communication, and the real-world application of skills and knowledge—all skills learned through the liberal arts educational experience provided at Christendom. Christendom students are better prepared and more confident than most students from other institutions of higher learning for a number of reasons. First, the rigorous liberal arts academic program, with an emphasis on reading, writing, communication, and critical thinking skills, gives the students a tremendous edge in life, since these are among the most valuable workplace skills. Secondly, through an emphasis on virtue and professionalism, Christendom students are better able to fit into corporate cultures, and act with integrity and dedication. Third, the college requires all students receive career development educational courses (Education for Life) to ensure that they receive crucial career-related information and insights, offering a plethora of workshops, one-on-one meetings, and mentoring experiences along the way. The most popular of these mentoring experiences is called “Life on Tap,” which over the past five years, has brought
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over 70 alumni to campus to serve as mentors to the students and give them insights into life post-Christendom College. Based on findings from multiple surveys and research projects, alumni mentoring is quickly becoming a critical component of a student’s educational experience, and a key to driving long-term success for alumni. Because of this, the college has invited alumni who work in the areas of business, medicine, law, military, event planning, music, media, IT, journalism, entrepreneurship, architecture, construction, sales, real estate, counseling, finance, accounting, marketing, social media, and education to volunteer their time and talents to be of service to the current students as mentors. “I was able to share my experiences and knowledge of the software development industry with the students—who were very respectful and attentive—and it felt good to be able to provide some insight into a career that many of them were probably not considering and barely understood,” says Bennett Ellis ’92, owner of Slice, LLC, a software development company. “I was surprised at the insightful questions the students asked and it seemed that they genuinely learned from and appreciated the content and that for some it opened a door to a career they thought might be more difficult or unattainable.” And students are excited by what they are hearing at these events.
“Going to the ‘Life on Tap’ event on teaching was pivotal for my career development,” says senior Theresa Crnkovich. “I had several questions about life as a teacher and wanted to confirm or change expectations that I had. At the event, I was impressed by the alumnae who gave testimony of their experience as teachers. One moment especially stood out for me when a young alumna looked around at the group of us undergraduate students and said: ‘I want you all to think of that teacher you had who made you love a subject and changed your life.’ After a brief pause she then continued, ‘Now I want you to think of that teacher who made you hate a subject. Don’t be that teacher. Being a teacher is not just something that people fall back upon if they have no other option. Being a teacher is a calling.’ This was the exact encouragement I needed at the time and I have since then held fast to my conviction and desire to teach after school.” In addition to these “Life on Tap” events, the college has published an Alumni Mentor Booklet, and provides it to all current students and prospective students who request it. The booklet contains the names, headshots, emails, college major, and current job title of 60 alumni in the fields of law, architecture, law enforcement, public policy, education, business, sales, military, engineering, software development, medicine, IT, finance, accounting, communications, editorial, fundraising, and more. Career development director Kristin Stephens sees Christendom’s approach to its students as transformative and innovative. “Since joining the college’s team of committed staff in 2018, I have been wonderfully surprised at the high level of attention the students receive here, compared to the previous institutions of higher learning at which I worked,” she remarks. “Last year, among all of the many meetings I had with students, I was able to meet with 85% of the graduating seniors and give them valuable advice and insights to help them launch into their desired careers. It was so nice to be able to give this type of personalized attention to our students at that critical time in their lives.” Through the college’s Education for Life, the alumni mentoring program, and the individualized attention given by Stephens, students have more confidence than ever to enter a myriad of fields and to strive for excellence and achieve greatness as they work to restore all things in Christ.
Confidence to Succeed
Christendom students are actually more confident to meet the demands of the work world and to make the transition from college than the average college student, according to a 2019 exit survey. Nearly 70% of Christendom’s Class of 2019 agreed that they were well-prepared to go into their chosen field of work (compared to 40% nationally), while 93% thought that they had the ability to solve complex problems (43% nationally). In regard to job-seeking skills, 89% were confident in their resume writing and interviewing abilities (37% and 35% nationally, respectively).
“The career development offerings at Christendom College are top-notch, and serve as valuable resources for postgrad life,” says Jacob DeVos ’18 who works in the field of marketing and operations. “I found the Education for Life classes particularly helpful and still use the skills I learned to this day. From fine-tuning one’s resume and writing a jobspecific cover letter, to preparing for an interview – these skills assist us in helping employers understand the value of a liberal arts education. After Christendom, I attended business school, which was highly focused on job training and career development. Thanks to Education for Life, I found myself way ahead of the curve when it came to applying for jobs, whether it was for an internship or full-time position. I can say with confidence that the skills I gained through career development at Christendom have helped to further my career, and the careers of many others.”
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TOP (L-R): Msgr. Eugene Kevane, alumna Maribeth Kelly ’17 (MA), Fr. William Saunders BOTTOM (L-R): alumnus Fr. Mathias Njong ’18 (MA), Dr. Kristin Burns, alumnus Matthew Speer ’18 (MA) Artwork by alumna Katy (née Arnold) Scrivener ’15 10
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graduate school celebrates golden anniversary For 50 years, Christendom College’s Graduate School has provided orthodox theological education, helping students to come to a deeper understanding of the Catholic faith. This institution has educated religious and lay people, prepared candidates for the diaconate, and has been an invaluable resource to anyone who wishes to explain and defend the Catholic faith, especially in educational apostolates. In this way, the Christendom Graduate School has greatly contributed to the renewal of Catholic education, both in the U.S. and across the globe.
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From its very founding, the Graduate School has been boldly and proudly committed to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church. Msgr. Eugene Kevane, founder of the institution–originally called the Notre Dame Pontifical Catechetical Institute–established the school in response to the harmful ideas that took root in Catholic higher education during the late 1960s. At this time, especially after the release of Humanae Vitae, the Church’s Magisterium was viewed by some intellectual elites as retrograde and oppressive. Assuming a dichotomy between freedom and fidelity, many religious and lay leaders in Catholic education chose to align themselves with the distorted notion of academic freedom instead of remaining faithful to the Magisterium of the Church. One such leader was Father Charles Curran, who taught at the Catholic University of America (CUA), and insisted on challenging the teachings of the Magisterium in the classroom, especially regarding the Church’s teachings on sexuality. In 1966, when news broke that Curran’s contract would not be renewed at CUA, a protest was staged that shut down CUA and resulted in a turnover of its leadership. Faculty and students demanded the reinstatement and promotion of Curran, and urged that CUA evolve into a more progressive and mainstream institution, aligned with the current values of the secular academy. Concern for Catholic identity and fidelity seemingly was dead. But Msgr. Kevane, who at the time was the Dean of the School of Education at CUA, boldly opposed Curran’s position. Kevane argued that adherence to the Catholic faith is not opposed to
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free-thinking, but rather, fidelity to the teaching of the Church fosters the successful pursuit of truth. Msgr. Kevane was a vocal dissenter to the dissenters, and he ended up paying the price. For Msgr. Kevane, there was no defense of academic freedom. About six months after the university coup, it was not Curran who lost his office, but Msgr. Kevane. Still faithful to his mission, Msgr. Kevane did not give up on Catholic higher education. In the wake of his removal from the deanship at CUA, Msgr. Kevane founded the Notre Dame Pontifical Catechetical Institute (NDI). In collaboration with the Sisters of Notre Dame in Chardon, Ohio, NDI opened its doors in 1969. Msgr. Kevane truly was a trail blazer in reforming Catholic education. Among the new schools committed to the Magisterium and founded in the wake of the dissent crisis in higher education, NDI was the first. Through the years, NDI remained faithful to the Magisterium while vastly growing its scope. Originally located in
Middleburg, Virginia, it moved in 1994 to Arlington, Virginia. Finally, with a shared vision for Catholic higher education, in February 1997, the NDI merged with Christendom College, to become the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College and moved to Alexandria, Virginia, with Fr. William Saunders serving as its dean. Since this merger, the outreach of the Graduate School has grown significantly. Through the years, the Graduate School has had many renowned faculty members, including Jordan Aumann, OP; William Most; Servant of God John Hardon, SJ; Robert Bradley, SJ; William E. May, and Bertrand de Margerie, SJ. In 2006, under the direction of then-dean Dr. Kristin P. Burns, the Graduate School joined with the Institute on Religious Life to host the Vita Consecrata Institute on the college’s Front Royal campus. In 2009, the school launched its online MA program, which has enabled students across the globe to access this transformative education. Further, over the last decade, the
Students participating in the Christendom@Project, which provides for-credit intellectual formation in Catholic thought and culture for students at private or public universities through the Graduate School.
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Through their firsthand contact with Sacred Scripture, magisterial teaching, the Fathers, St. Thomas Aquinas and the best of the Church’s more recent thinkers, graduate students at Christendom are shaped, intellectually and spiritually, by the greatest minds in the history of the Church.
Graduate School has played an integral role in educating the men in the Diocese of Arlington’s permanent diaconate formation program, and has developed a Master Catechist program for the Diocese of Arlington, which certifies those who currently work in or wish to enter an educational ministry. Under the direction of current dean Dr. R.J. Matava, the Graduate School is now engaging in an effort to reach Catholic students who are studying outside the sphere of Catholic higher education. A new initiative called “Christendom@” is for students at public universities who wish to pursue Catholic intellectual formation but cannot take relevant courses at their university. Students take online courses for credit that introduce the Catholic intellectual tradition. The Christendom@ initiative was launched with the inaugural course, Early Christian Literature, with students at the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Student Center, Purdue University in fall 2018. This academic year, a second course called Introduc-
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tion to the Bible is being offered, and additional courses will be added in coming semesters. In the Graduate School’s 50 years, the institution has prepared students to better understand and defend the faith, manifesting the fruits of the education in diverse ways. Graduates of the program have brought their theological wisdom to educational apostolates, back to their religious orders, or out into the world. Alumna Vanessa Cowart converted to Catholicism and decided that attending the Christendom Graduate School would be the perfect way to be immersed in the Catholic intellectual tradition and to come to a deep understanding of the Faith. “I feared I would wash out within a week because of my limited knowledge,” remarks Cowart. “But thanks to the dedicated professors, their patience, their commitment to teaching, their orthodoxy, I graduated a strong orthodox Catholic committed to the Faith of our Fathers.”
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Thanks to the dedicated professors, their patience, their commitment to teaching, their orthodoxy, I graduated a strong orthodox Catholic committed to the Faith of our Fathers.
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Since graduating, Cowart teaches at a Catholic high school where she is able to incorporate her knowledge of theology into her teaching. She is also now the RCIA Director at St. Cecilia in Kennett, Missouri. In these positions, she is able to provide orthodox faith formation to parishioners and catechumens. Many graduates have also gone on to prestigious PhD programs at the University of Notre Dame, the Angelicum and Lateran Universities in Rome, Australian Catholic University, Catholic University of America, and Oxford University. Beyond those in educational vocations, students have found the experience to be extremely fruitful. Greg Pashley, a police officer in Portland, Oregon, earned his MA from the Graduate School in 2016. “Through the years of study and following, as I continue to try to live out my life as a Christian more deeply, there is no doubt that I have become a better police officer,” says Pashley. “My interactions with the public are totally different. My inter-
actions with co-workers and supervisors are transformed. My approach to police work (and everything else) is based on love of God and love of neighbor. The Graduate School played a huge part in helping my faith take root. The education I received has impacted my life and those around me greatly.” The Christendom Graduate School now has upward of 750 alumni. It would be impossible to measure the impact of these graduates going into the world and serving others with a solid understanding of the faith, but without a doubt, the impact the Graduate School has made on Catholic education is immense. Thanks to the faithful and devoted faculty and dedicated and service-minded students, the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College is accomplishing a great work for the Church.
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Christendom Prepares Student for Military Career Sponsor a Student Program Cultivates Young Catholic Leaders Since Christendom College’s founding,
a core principle has been “to form the whole person for a life spent in the pursuit of truth and wisdom.” Donor-sponsored student Jacob Altmanshofer shares that this principle first inspired him to attend the college and is now preparing him to pursue a career in the Marine Corps upon graduation. “The environment at Christendom, at its foundation, forms you as a person,” reflects Altmanshofer, a junior majoring in Political Science and Economics. “Christendom forms its students in all aspects of life, by creating an environment characterized by rigorous pursuits—in the way we think, act, and live.” Altmanshofer believes Christendom’s unique emphasis on the formation of the whole person and the pursuit of excellence is giving him top-level job preparation, and credits opportunities for leadership at Christendom for helping to cultivate his interest in joining the Marine Corps.
While growing in leadership through campus service and activities, Altmanshofer says that his interest in the Marine Corps was solidified when the college’s career development office hosted a Marine Officer on campus to present to students. This meeting enabled him to take concrete steps toward his desired career path, as he is now enrolled in an officer preparatory program at the Marine recruiting office in Fairfax, Virginia. Christendom’s integrated education is helping Altmanshofer pursue excellence in every aspect of his life, not solely in his career aspirations. He says that Christendom is helping him grow spiritually through the daily sacraments; physically, through athletics and involvement in the campus’s boxing club; and intellectually, through the rigorous and time-tested liberal arts curriculum.
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My fellow students and I are being given the opportunity to grow in holiness, build friendships for life, and learn the time-tested teachings that the Catholic liberal arts have to offer. I am learning leadership and community-building skills that I will rely on for the rest of my life.
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Jacob Altmanshofer
“Christendom is teaching me to view hardship not as an obstacle, but as a motivation to a higher goal,” he says. “As you grow more a part of the community, it becomes easier and easier to see these higher goods and strive for them. My experience here is giving me the tools to be a strong leader and answer the call to bring Christ into the world.” According to Altmanshofer, none of this would have been possible without the generous financial assistance offered to him through the generosity of the college’s faithful donors.
“Through the Sponsor a Student program, my benefactors are giving me the chance to pursue the priceless education and personal development that Christendom College has to offer. My fellow students and I are being given the opportunity to grow in holiness, build friendships for life, and learn the timetested teachings that the Catholic liberal arts have to offer. I am learning leadership and community-building skills that I will rely on for the rest of my life. I am so grateful to my benefactors for making this possible!”
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Jacob Altmanshofer is one of Christendom’s many students benefiting from the Sponsor a Student Program, which has facilitated his education. In part because of Christendom College’s rejection of federal funds, there is an average shortfall of $5,000 per student each year. The college and its students rely on the generosity of its benefactors through the Sponsor a Student program to help bridge this gap so that students like Altmanshofer can attend and thrive at Christendom.
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CHRISTENDOM BY DR. P. BRACY BERSNAK
In the summer of 1989, as the iron curtain
was beginning to come down, a small group of friends came up with the idea of having a summer university to strengthen ties between the young people of Hungary, Romania, and Britain. Thirty years later, the program is organized by the Pro Minoritate Foundation and the Hungarian Youth Council and accommodates 80,000 people. During the daytime, panels discuss urgent questions facing Hungarians and all Europeans: the role of Christianity in society, political relations between the Visegrad-4 nations and western Europe, economic development, and the state of European culture. By night, attendees enjoy classic Hungarian food and drink plus traditional dance and pop music concerts. I was invited to participate in the summer university by Ádám Szesztay, who was then the head of the Strategic Planning Department of the Hungarian Foreign Ministry. Ádám and some colleagues came to visit Christendom College while on a visit to Washington, DC, in the spring of 2018. We became fast friends. My panel was on defending Christian values in Europe and the Western world. The other participants were Hajnalka Juhász, ministerial commissioner for Hungary’s foreign aid; political scientist Miklós Bakk of the Transylvanian Hungarian University; Philip Blond, head of the British conservative think tank Res Publica; and BBC journalist David Campanale, who originally conceived the idea for the summer camp. We were united in the belief that secular liberalism threatens Europe because it cannot understand itself without reference to Christianity. Ádám and Fr. Paveł Cebula, OFM.Conv. took me to visit the most important Hungarian shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary
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CENTRAL EUROPE
Hungarian Parliament building, Budapest
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MANY OF THE PEOPLE I MET REMARKED THAT THEY LOVED THE NAME ‘CHRISTENDOM COLLEGE.’ FOR MY PART, IT WAS INSPIRING TO MEET PEOPLE WORKING TO ‘RESTORE ALL THINGS IN CHRIST’ IN EUROPE.
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L-R: Bersnak participates on a panel on defending Christian values in Europe and the Western world; Bersnak shares a laugh with Viktor Orbán, the Prime Minister of Hungary (center), and conference attendees; Bersnak visiting the most popular Hungarian Marian shrine in Csíksomlyó.
at Csíksomlyó, which is in Romania. Each year at Pentecost, 300,000 people show up to honor the Mother of Christ. Earlier this year, Pope Francis visited the shrine and celebrated Mass there. In nearby Blaj, a center of Romanian Greek-Catholic life, Francis beatified seven Romanian Greek-Catholic bishops who were martyred by the Communists. His visit gave great encouragement to a community that continues to suffer. The Communist regime confiscated the property of the Greek- Catholic Church in Romania and handed it over to the Orthodox Church. Though the post-Communist Romanian constitution provided for the return of property to the Greek-Catholic Church, the land has yet to be returned. I attended a Mass concelebrated by Fr. Paveł and the local bishop for the beatification of Count János Esterházy. The Esterházys are an ancient noble family from Hungary most famous to Americans for being patrons of the composer Franz Josef Haydn. János Esterházy represented the Hungarian minority in interwar Slovakia and was the only member of the Slovakian parliament to vote against the deportation of the Jews to death campus during the Holocaust. After the war, the Soviet Union and Communist Czechoslovakia both convicted him on false charges, but the Czechoslovakians sentenced him to death while the Soviets only sent him to Siberia. By the time he was extradited from the Soviet Union back to Czechoslovakia, his health had deteriorated so badly that the death sentence was commuted to
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life in prison. If he was not already a saint, Esterházy became one during his imprisonment, radiating holiness to fellow prisoners and sneaking them fragments of the Blessed Sacrament after he was visited by a priest. He died in prison in 1957 at age 55. Ádám and Fr. Paveł are involved in an educational foundation organization that promotes cultural relations between Hungary and Poland. The two countries have long been united by a common culture and history. They had the same kings at various points in the middle ages; they were both oppressed by the Soviet Union; they joined NATO on the same day; and they are both members of the Visegrad-4 group of central European nations that tries to counterbalance the liberalism of western European states in the European Union. Orbán is the face of resistance to western European liberalism, but because Hungary has only 10 million citizens, he freely acknowledges that he could not achieve what he has within the EU without the firm support of Poland, which has 38 million. I met many young members of the Polish Law and Justice party who traveled to Romania to meet their counterparts in the Hungarian Fidesz and Christian Democratic parties. They are all trying to preserve their heritages against the multicultural liberalism of the EU. Orbán was an early participant in the summer university, and for several years now he has made an important speech on the final day of the camp. Last year he called for a pan-European effort of populist parties to campaign against European liberals in the
2019 European elections. This year he articulated his philosophy of what he likes to call illiberal Christian democracy. The vision is controversial, as Orbán acknowledges, because of its use of the word “illiberal,” but if one examines the text of his speech it could have been taken from the encyclicals of Pope St. John Paul II. He rejects progressive liberalism—which he identifies with radical individualism and rootless cosmopolitanism—in favor of family, local community, national heritage, and Christianity. I got to meet many members of the government and Mr. Orbán himself after his speech. The Orbán government has also been controversial because of its refusal to open its borders to Muslim refugees from Syria. Orbán recognizes that Europe’s demographic, migration, and religious problems are all interconnected. If Hungarians have more children, they will be able to resist the temptation to import labor from non-Christian, non-Western countries, and not have to struggle to integrate Muslims the way France has. Public officials in Hungary routinely use their powerful influence to encourage young married couples to have children. The government has, in the words of Orbán, taken a bazooka to the problem of declining fertility by offering every financial incentive it can think of to remove economic impediments to families having more children. Newlyweds are eligible for subsidies they can use for a down payment on a home. Hungarian women who have four or more children are exempted from income tax for life.
Another subsidy helps families obtain seven passenger vehicles. Hungary’s birthrate bottomed out at 1.23 but has risen to 1.47 as a result of these pro-family policies and a growing economy. Studies show that only 8-12% of Hungarians attend weekly religious services, but the prime minister, president, and speaker of parliament are all practicing Christians. Orbán recently said that Hungary has constructed a Christian democratic state. The constitution credits St. Stephen for founding the Hungarian state and integrating the Hungarian people into Christian Europe. His crown is a relic at least twice over, since it was most recently worn by Bl. Karl I of Austria, who reigned as King Karl (Károlyi in Hungarian) IV of Hungary before the dismemberment of the Habsburg empire. The Holy Crown resides in the Hungarian Parliament building and the constitution calls it a symbol of the continuity of the Hungarian state and nation. Many of the people I met remarked that they loved the name Christendom College. For my part, it was inspiring to meet people working to “restore all things in Christ” in Europe.
A graduate of Miami University and the Catholic University of America, Prof. Bracy Bersnak is an associate professor of political science & economics at Christendom College. He specializes in modern European history and modern political thought.
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Service Alumnus Finds Success In and Out of the Marine Corps Alumnus Col. Timothy Parker retired from the
Marine Corps in June after 34 years of service to our nation. During his career, Parker served two deployments in Iraq, graduated from the Marine Corps War College, and rose to the rank of Colonel. But as a young Christendom student in 1984, his extensive and impressive career in the U.S. military was not what Parker expected for his life. When Parker came to Christendom in 1984 he was actually discerning the priesthood. His desire to learn the faith and explore a potential vocation is what drew him to the college in the first place. But God had another vocation in mind for him. One of Parker’s classmates, Joan Brennan, would become Parker’s future wife. “I think if you are truly looking for God’s will, you’ll find it,” remarks Parker, “even if it wasn’t the original path you were following.”
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“
The establishment of a solid moral
compass was the best preparation Christendom gave me for my service in
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the Marine Corps.
Top: Parker fires his last round as an officer in the Marine Corps. Bottom (L-R): Parker with his wife, Joan; Parker outside of Camp Fallujah with SgtMaj Michael Giannecchini.
Parker was inspired to join the Marine Corps after his childhood best friend returned from recruit training. According to Parker, his friend exhibited a maturity, strength, and focus that he admired, and he wanted that for himself. Not long after, Parker enlisted in the Marines and began bootcamp in Parris Island, South Carolinia. After completing recruit training in 1985, and being assigned to Weapons Company, 2d Bn, 25th Marines, he attended Officer Candidate School in 1990 whereupon he received his commission. He was promoted to Captain in 1996, and attended Amphibious Warfare School in Quantico, Virginia. From 1998 to 2001, Parker was stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, where he served as Operations Officer and was promoted to the rank of Major. From 2001 to 2002, he attended the College of Naval Command and Staff in Newport, Rhode Island, and graduated with distinction. Parker was deployed as the Executive Officer of a battalion in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2004-2005. After returning home, he was promoted to Lt. Col, where he assumed command of a battalion in 2006 and then deployed to Iraq in early 2007, executing counterinsurgency operations. In May 2011, he graduated from the Marine Corps War College, was promoted to the rank of Colonel—a rank not given to many in the USMC—and then he assumed command of the Marine Detachment in Fort Still, Oklahoma, in 2016 where he mentored and trained Marines one last time.
Without a doubt, Parker’s long career with the Marines demanded bravery, commitment, and a spirit of sacrifice. Being in the military also required a strong moral formation. “The establishment of a solid moral compass was the best preparation Christendom gave me for my service in the Marine Corps,” says Col. Parker. “Military service to our country and leading young men and women in peace and war will constantly challenge your moral decision making. Some decisions are life and death, most are not, but all of them involve someone’s son, daughter, husband, wife, father, or mother, and the positive or negative impact you have on those you are privileged to lead will last a lifetime.” While Parker leaves the Marines highly decorated and accomplished, his greatest fulfillment has been found in his vocation as a husband and father. Parker and his wife, Joan, have been blessed with 10 children: Katherine, Molly, John, Timothy, Megan, Colleen, Shane, Michael, Kiley, and Kerry. According to Parker, “being at Christendom together helped Joan and me to focus on what marriage truly means very early in our relationship and taught us to welcome children as gifts from God…and God sent us a lot of gifts!” Col. Tim Parker is a prime example of bravery and patriotism. His life of service as a devoted Marine, and most importantly as a husband and a father, is truly an inspiration.
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After defeating Duke University 46-7, and Washington and Lee 30-29, the Christendom rugby team reigned supreme at the Cardinal Conference Tournament for the third year in a row, earning themselves a spot in the NSCRO National playoffs.
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Sports Done
Differently
For the love of the game and the Glory of God.
This is the mantra of the Christendom athletics program. At most colleges, student athletes play a sport to keep their scholarship, or because it’s a hobby. At Christendom, the athletic program has a much higher purpose than mere entertainment. Our students play not just for love of the game, but for the sake of developing virtue, finding meaningful community, and glorifying God. The Catholic identity of our students plays an integral role in how they approach sports. Our athletes know that praying together is essential for success. Simply put, the team that prays together, plays together. Every practice and every game opens and closes with prayer. “When we begin and end every practice and match with a prayer, we focus on giving everything we have to God and thank Him for the ability to use our talents for His honor and glory,” says Nina Francis ’22, a member of the Lady Crusader volleyball team. Prayer unites the teams, helping them focus on higher goals than merely winning. One of those goals is to be an example of Christian sportsmanship to other teams. Crusader teams pray publicly before and after games. The rugby and soccer teams, for example, belt the “Non Nobis, Domine” chant, and then loudly roar the Hail Mary in Latin after every game. This bold act of faith shows great pride in their Catholic identity. By praying at games, all of the teams openly proclaim that they are proudly Catholic. But responsibility comes with this public display of Catholic identity. As former athletic director Coach Tom Vander Woude would always say, “You might be the only Catholic your opponent ever encounters. Act like it.” The way the athletes treat their opponents, teammates, and the referees, and their overall composure during a game, are expected to reflect their Catholic identity. Christendom athletes take this call seriously by maintaining a high standard of sportsmanship and encouraging one another during games. The supportive dynamic makes for dreamwork on the field, court, and pitch. According to varsity soccer player Daniel Duca ’22, one of his teammates truly inspired him during a recent game. It was a tight and hard-fought game, and with less than 10 minutes left on the clock, Duca was exhausted. Senior Ian Heisler was playing center back with Duca and had just managed to stop an opponent from scoring.
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“I was getting up off of the ground after making the play and Ian came over to me and said, ‘Danny, we’re almost there. Let’s offer this up to God and give everything we’ve got,’” Duca recalled. “Him saying that gave me the strength and energy I needed to finish the game strong because it reminded me of why we were playing in the first place: for the glory of God. Needless to say, we won the game.” It is this kind of support that makes Christendom teams great, win or lose. United by the desire to give glory to God through competing to the best of their ability, the teams spur each other toward victory. The rugby team’s unprecedented success bears testament to the power of a supportive team dynamic. From winning the NSCRO 7’s National Championship in 2017, to securing second place last spring at the NSCRO 15’s National Championship, to defeating much larger schools such as Duke University, James Madison, and The Catholic University of America, there is really only one explanation for their statistically inexplicable success: the players’ interaction on the pitch. Even a bystander attend-
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Through my experience I have found that athletics at Christendom encourage and foster not only one’s athletic progress, but academic and spiritual growth as well.
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ing a Crusader rugby game can see that these players interact differently than other rugby teams. In a rough and tumble game, it is not uncommon to see opposing teams fighting with each other and becoming visibly frustrated and indignant when the going gets tough. Christendom rugby players, on the other hand, communicate better. When tensions rise, the players remind each other to “behave like gentlemen.” It is this type of dynamic that makes winning possible, even against the odds.
Fall 20 1 9 Cr u sa ders & Hig h l ig h ts f ro m th e Se as o n
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2019 Crusader Soccer
2019 Lady Crusader Soccer
2019 Crusader Rugby
2019 Lady Crusader Volleyball
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It is only when a team is united by common values and a desire for virtue that a they can truly thrive. At Christendom, sports are not played for their own sake, but rather, are seen as an opportunity to develop virtue. Through studying human nature and ethics in the classroom, students understand that the pursuit of physical excellence can translate into moral excellence. Strengthening the body, and enduring the difficulties of training, can inculcate courage, endurance, fortitude, and even temperance. The experience of being on a team helps athletes to practice charity, responsibility, and humility. In summary, Crusader athletes play not just because they enjoy their respective sports, but as an opportunity to bring what they have learned about human nature in the classroom to the field, court, and pitch, so that they can grow in virtue. With this ultimate end of virtue in mind, Christendom’s athletic program advocates for keeping sports in its proper place. While playing a sport at Christendom is clearly a great opportunity, a Crusader athlete’s primary vocation is as a student. Christendom athletes are tackling the challenge to be both
academically and athletically excellent. Over the summer, the college was awarded the USCAA’s 2019 President’s Cup for Academics. This award is given to the school with the most Academic All-Americans and whose athletes have the highest GPA. During the 2018-2019 school year, the cumulative GPA of Christendom’s student athletes was 3.314. This indicates the success of the athletic program in prioritizing academics. Captain of the Lady Crusaders Volleyball Team Mary Margaret Heisler ’20 was inspired by her captains during her freshman year to prioritize her studies. In addition to praying and attending Mass together, the team captains organized weekly “study halls” to make sure the team was on track academically. The lessons Heisler learned from her captains freshman year now affect how she leads the team as a captain today. “I have realized that athletics become most valuable when used to develop the whole human person,” remarked Heisler. “Through my experience I have found that athletics at Christendom encourage and foster not only one’s athletic progress, but academic and spiritual growth as well.”
2019 Crusader and Lady Crusader Cross Country
Soccer team defeated #1 Ranked Johnson and Wales 1-0.
Christine McLaughlin ’23 named USCAA player of the week.
Michaela Pennefather ’20 breaks school record: 1,000 kills in her career. WINTER 2019-20
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P H OTO A L BU M
{c hristendom.edu/pictures} 1. Students celebrate victory after friendly Oktoberfest competitions. 2. Trip to amusement park, Kings Dominion. 3. Students perform at Senior Benefit Concert during Parents Weekend.
4. Senior Daniel Pearson participates at a ChesterBelloc Debate. 5. Cheering on dodgeball competition during Orientation Weekend. 12
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6. Taking on the mechanical bull at Texas-Western Night. 7. Freshman Ann-Marie Blum and junior Kevin McDermott enjoy a dance at one of the Swing ’n Sundaes events. 8. Junior William Arnold flies downfield during annual Upper vs. Under Flag Football Game. 9. Faculty take Oath of Fidelity to the teachings of the Church before Arlington Bishop Michael Burbidge. 10. Canoeing on the Shenandoah.
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11. Faculty lead a Quodlibet (an open forum on philosophical or theological topic). 12. Dancing at Italian Night. 13. Glasses are raised at the annual Faculty and Senior Class Dinner. 14. Adoration at First Friday Laudamus Te Holy Hour. 15. Semester in Rome: Gazing at the Sistine Chapel.
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PHOTOS UPDATED WEEKLY ON FLICKR
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@christendomcollege WINTER 2019-20
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A Beautiful Faithful Benefactor Remembers Christendom in Her Will Through the Saint John Paul II Legacy
Society, Christendom College recognizes those who help restore Christian culture through a legacy gift, of any amount, to the college. Many generous men and women have left a lasting legacy through their planned gifts, ensuring that Christendom’s students and community continue to grow in Faith and Truth. Longtime benefactor Ms. Ann Cvaniga gave faithfully to the college for 20 years before she passed away on March 3, 2019, at the age of 108. When she died, Cvaniga generously left Christendom 20% of her estate, a legacy which will impact the lives of Christendom students for years to come. Cvaniga was born to Slovenian immigrants in Trinidad, Colorado, in 1910. Her father, a coal miner, died after growing ill from his work when she was young. When she was about 14 years old, her mother remarried and the family moved to Indiana. Following her high school graduation, Cvaniga worked as a secretary at a company in Chicago that manufactured military parts during World War II, while also taking college classes. She was a shareholder of the company by the time she was 26 years old and, by 30, she was a co-owner. In addition to these achievements, she also invented and patented products to facilitate the manufacture of her company’s products. Eventually selling her part of the company and returning to Colorado, Cvaniga attended the University of Denver and earned a bachelor’s degree in Spanish, followed by a master’s degree in Spanish Literature. She then taught Spanish for four years. Passionate about education, she continued taking classes at the University of Denver into her early 100s.
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Cvaniga’s brother, Fr. Stephen Cvaniga, first told her about Christendom College, inspiring her involvement. Over the years, she wrote to college president Dr. Timothy O’Donnell, thanking Christendom for defending the faith in decadent times through its excellent education and formation of students. John Ciskanik, executive director of planned giving, served as Christendom’s ambassador to Cvaniga for 16 years, enjoying her life stories and deepening her love of Christendom’s mission. “Ann was a real go-getter and a passionate advocate for Catholic education,” reflects Ciskanik. “She had such a positive and inspiring impact on Christendom during her lifetime, and I know the legacy she leaves behind will continue to enrich the Christendom community and transform the lives of our students.”
Ms. Ann Cvaniga
In the Classroom HIGHLIGHTING A COURSE FROM OUR RICH CURRICULUM PHILOSOPHY 202: METAPHYSICS | WHY METAPHYSICS? BY DOUGLAS FLIPPEN, PhD
As Aristotle remarked long ago, human
beings have a natural desire to know; not to know an endless number of facts about an endless number of things, but to make sense of things in the most general of ways. Natural philosophy, or physics, in an older sense of the word, studies beings as changeable. Metaphysics, which literally means “beyond physics,� studies beings, not just as changeable, but simply as beings. The most basic question we can ask on the metaphysical level which expresses our desire to make sense of things is simply: why is there something rather than nothing? This question has been asked in a variety of ways over the years, yet many persons never think to ask it. One reason many never question the existence of things is because we have been surrounded by a world of existing things since we were born. Being creatures of habit, it does not occur to us to question the very being of things. Yet the fact that change dominates reality, and the fact that things come into and go out of being constantly, should awaken us to the fact that everything we know of could just as easily not exist as exist. If all the things we know just happen to have being, but could just as easily not have being,
then there must be some explanation for the very existence of things. Something must exist of its very nature and be able to communicate being to things which merely have being. In this way, the metaphysical analysis of the common type of being, i.e., that which is a being because it has being, leads us to the existence of the first cause of beings regarded as beings, namely to God. Besides providing an explanation for why beings in the common sense exist, Metaphysics also analyzes the different types of common being. The 10 categories of Aristotle and St. Thomas Aquinas are the 10 ways in which things can have being. The categories are: substance, quantity, quality, acting, being acted on, relation, where a thing is, position, when a thing exists, and condition. While the 10 categories are the mutually exclusive ways in which things may have being, the transcendentals are aspects of being that belong to every way of having being. The transcendental aspects of being, which are mutually shared by all ways of having being, are: thing, one, something, true, good and beautiful. In this way, by regarding things merely as beings, we can gain a unified, though very abstract, understanding of the whole of reality.
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Send your submissions to classmates@c hristendom.edu.
CLASSMATES YO U R PA P E R & I N K A L U M N I S O C I A L N E T WO R K
1990s Since April 2018, Fr. Kevin Peek ’92 has been with the Georgia National Guard and has coordinated and led training for the Republic of Georgia army chaplains, most (if not all) of whom are Orthodox. Recently, he served as Chaplain for the State Senate of Georgia (USA). He is preparing for a nine-month deployment to the Middle East in March of 2020—which means he will be missing the entire Atlanta Braves season, and most of the Atlanta Falcons season, for whom he has been the Catholic chaplain the past four seasons. He asks that you keep your military and first responders in prayer, as they are daily exposed to
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the complicated and violent edge of civilization and chaos. 1 Marlena (née Larson) Dhaemers ’96 and her husband, Paul, welcomed their daughter, Lucy Margaret-Anne, through the gift of adoption last fall. They live in flyin-only Bethel, Alaska, where Paul teaches first grade and Marlena is a part time librarian with a sewing side business (Sandpiper Stitching). Their bookworm baby is grateful that mom and dad pretty much live for read-alouds. 2 Anthony ’97 Raes and wife, Darcia, live in Manitoba Canada, with their six children: Gavin (17), Caleb (15), Owen (12), Evan (10), Audrey (6), and Sophia (3). 3 Andrew Cole ’98 was appointed by Kentucky Governor, Matt Bevin,
to “The Kentucky Board of Licensure for Fee-Based Pastoral Counselors” on June 17, 2019, for a term expiring September 22, 2022. He will represent citizens at-large on the board, which oversees the conduct and licensing of fee-based pastoral counselors within Kentucky. In his role as the Director of Campus Ministry at Thomas More University, he also continues to serve on Governor Bevin’s “Serve Kentucky” Commission.
2000s Daniel Schneible ’01 and Fr. Alex McCullough ’09 both just finished a trip to the Holy Land with teachers from the Archdiocese of
Cincinnati and a ministry sponsored by the Archdiocese called School of Faith. Danny works for the Archdiocese, and Fr. Alex is a pastor. 4 Niall ’03 and Sherry (née Spring) ’02 O’Donnell welcomed their sixth child, Monica, in June 2019. 5 Leah (née Marsh) ’06 and Joseph ’08 Hichborn moved into a new house in August, and welcomed their son, Isaac Timothy, on September 11, 2019. He joins big sisters Hannah (7) and Bryleigh (6). 6 Bobby and Angela (née Von Ehr) ’07 Murphy are pleased to announce the birth of their first son, Dominic Joseph. Born September 26, 2019, 7lbs. 12 oz. Andrew ’07 and Colleen (née Anderson) Beebe ’14 just celebrated their daughter Caroline’s first birth-
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day. Andrew is currently working on running his online magazine, wondermag.org. Colleen is Customer Service Manager at 5 Stones NFP. 7
2010-15 Shelagh Bolger ’10, Colleen Harmon ’13, Emma Boyle ’09, and Lauren Merz ’10 were reunited on a summer pilgrimage to France. They visited many holy and beautiful sites (including Chartres Cathedral and the ruins of the great Abbey of Cluny, pictured below) that allowed them to reminisce on the days of History 102. It was great to rejoice in Dr. Carroll’s love of the history of medieval Europe and the legacy that brought them there. 9 Anthony Barren ’11 recently received his certification as an ISA Certified Arborist. His company Barren Tree Solutions Incorporated is also the first in the Northern Virginia region to utilize the tree cutting technology: TREEMEK. Chris and Liz (née Sartor) Foeckler ’12 and their three boys 9
are very excited to welcome another little Foeckler to their family this May! They’ve been staying busy as Chris continues to teach and serve as associate dean at Chelsea Academy, alongside coaching soccer at Christendom, while Liz continues to run her business of private music instruction alongside directing the Christendom Players. Nicole Koopman ’13 received her PhD in Medieval European History from Saint Louis University in August. Her dissertation is titled, “The Ecclesiastical Career of Pierre de Tarentaise, Dominican Scholar and Pope (Innocent V, r. 1276).” She is currently teaching in the History Department at the College of Charleston. Josh and Julie (née McMahon) Scotto ’15 welcomed their first daughter, Alaina Monica, in May 2019. Her big brothers, Owen and Emmett, love life with their new sister. 8 Bernadette Sartor ’15 entered a Dominican monastery and is now a novice at the Monastery of Our
Lady of Grace in North Guilford, Connecticut. Her new name is Sr. Marie Bernadette of the Father.
2015+ Catherine Schneider ’16 was just inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing for her academic achievements and advancement of the nursing profession. Catherine is in the final semester of her Accelerated Bachelors of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program at Louisiana College in Pineville, Louisiana. Below, Catherine is pictured (center-right) with the three other members of her ABSN program who were inducted into Sigma. 10 Robert ’16 and Cecilia (née Gallagher) ’18 Johnson are pleased to announce that their first child, Anastasia Elizabeth, was born on September 29, 2019. 11 Xóchitl Ortega ’17 and William Tomlinson ’16 got married on May 25, 2019.
Mary (née Solitario) and Joseph Pennefather ’17 welcomed a son on October 2, 2019. His name is Robert Emilio Pennefather and is the first grand baby on both sides of the family. 12 Elizabeth Raabe ’17, having graduated from Basic Combat Training in March 2019 with honors in the top 10% of her battalion, is currently a combat medic and member of the 82nd Airborne Division of the Army. 13 Peter Tapsak ’17 and Clare McDermott ’18 were married on August 8, 2019, at Christ the King Chapel, Christendom College. 14 Br. Linus Mary (John) Martz, O.P., ’18, made simple profession in the Dominican Province of St. Joseph on August 15, 2019. 15 Melissa Marter ’18 is the Youth and Young Adult Ministry Coordinator at the Apostolate for Family Consecration in Bloomingdale, Ohio. Katherine Williams ’18 and Bill Wiegand ’18 were married on November 9, 2019.
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plete was made com Family fun day . ck tru rd sta e cu with a soft serv
Luke and Jane (née Adams) Maschue ’18, welcomed a son, Jude Atticus Maschue, July 25, 2019. Jane and Luke are both continuing their studies at Catholic University and came to Christendom for Life on Tap in September to discuss graduate school. Jane will be delivering a paper on the art of memory in the Golden Legend, a medieval collection of saints’ lives, at the South Eastern Medieval Association in November. 16 16
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Chloe Herrmann ’18 and Garrett Quigley ’18 got engaged September 23, 2019. 18 Matthew and Morgan (née Witt) Trojacek ’18 had their first daughter, Eirlys Mary, on August 30. She is a delightful, precocious baby. 19 Danielle Lemieux ’18 and Trey Dusseault ’19 were married on June 22, 2019, at Christ the King Chapel. 20 Gemma Youngman ’18 and Ian Sheedy ’20 were married on August 31, 2019. 21 Francis McDonough ’19 and Olivia Cerroni ’18 were married on June 15. 22 Bernadette Hibl ’19 and Jacob Wagner ’16 were married on June 15, 2019, at Saint John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church in Front Royal, Virginia. 23
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Hannah (Strayer) Jurkowski ’86 | John Waupotic ’94
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Omnia in Christo Ne wman’s C onversi on
John Henry Newman’s conversion
to Roman Catholicism was driven by a desire to find the authentic home of Catholic Christianity. Although he shaped a Catholic presence in the Church of England, he concluded ultimately that the Church of Rome was the “one fold of the Redeemer.” Born in 1801, Newman professed an Evangelical Calvinism in his youth, but studying the patristic tradition drew him to Catholic theology during his collegiate and early teaching career at the University of Oxford. By the 1830s, Newman and some colleagues—the “Oxford Movement”—were challenging the “Elizabethan Settlement” in the Church of England, which had combined Catholic ecclesiology with Protestant theology since the sixteenth century. In a series of “Tracts for the Times,” these “Tractarian” scholars advocated a new model of the church that would retain its Catholic structure, but would now emphasize Catholic theology, the need for dogma, and the importance of authority. The Tractarians’ conceived this Catholic Anglicanism as a “via media,” a middle way, between the deficiencies of Protestantism, which ignored crucial aspects of Christian tradition, like the church fathers, and the excesses of Roman Catholicism, which had added doctrines illicitly since patristic times, particularly teachings concerning Mary. The Tractarians were also combating the rise of Liberalism, which Newman famously dubbed the “anti-dogmatic principle.” He feared that its individualistic rejection of any external source of meaning bred disregard for authority and tradition, and made naïve promises of overcoming original sin through liberation from the shackles of dogma. Throughout the 1830s, the Oxford Movement attracted an increasing number of adherents, but also excited resistance from much of the Anglican establishment, who wanted to maintain the current blend of Catholic structure and Protestant doctrine. This controversy culminated in 1841 when, in “Tract 90,” Newman advanced a Catholic interpretation of 36
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Taken from the college’s motto “Instaurare Omnia in Christo,” this section features an essay or excerpt from a recent paper or talk by one of Christendom’s distinguished faculty.
BY DR. ADAM SCHWARTZ
the bedrock statement of Anglican orthodoxy, which causes this.” But that necessity was stern the 39 Articles. His claim that the fundamental in Newman’s mind, and on 9 October 1845, principles of Anglicanism could be understood he was received into the Catholic Church, a in Catholic terms brought quick criticism of his day that he would always call “my day.” Yet, theology and depictions of the Tractarians as however satisfied he was intellectually and spiripapist fifth columnists. tually, he did lose friends and faced suspicion In response, Newman began questioning of disloyalty within his new church. whether a Catholic Anglicanism was possible, Only three decades later did Newman declaring that “if it does issue in Protestantism, I start to satisfy these detractors. In 1879, shall think it my duty to leave it.” His continued after defending publicly Vatican I’s definition study of the patristics and early church history of papal infallibility, despite having had initial fed these doubts by revealing a pattern: Roman misgivings about the timeliness of such a defiCatholicism had always retained the apostolic nition, Newman was created cardinal by Leo succession, but every other Christian movement XIII (a rarity for a non-bishop). After his 1890 lacked that authenticating direct connection to death, Newman’s reputation in the Church’s upChrist and His apostles. By 1843, Newman per echelons grew further. Paul VI described perceived this dynamic being repeated in his the Second Vatican Council as “Newman’s hour.” own church: “What the see of Rome was then Benedict XVI beatified Newman personally in such it is now. What the Monophysites were 2010, unique in his papacy. Pope Francis’s then, the Anglican hierarchy is now… If the via canonization of the cardinal in 2019 completed media was heretical then, it is heretical now.” his vindication. His legacy to that Church and to But how could the historically authentic the world was expressed cogently by Benedict church have added on teaching illicitly to the XVI: “The definite service to which John Henry apostolic deposit? To address that apparent Newman was called involved applying his keen contradiction, Newman crafted his idea of the intellect and his prolific pen to many of the most development of doctrine. To Newman, doctrine pressing subjects of the day. His insights into is fixed and complete; but the limited human the relationship between faith and reason, into mind can only absorb its full meaning gradu- the vital place of revealed religion in civilized ally. He concluded that the Catholic Church had society, and into the need for a broadly based been so unveiling doctrines by unfolding their and wide ranging approach to education, were truth historically. What had originally looked not only of profound importance for Victorian like arbitrary additions to Catholic teaching, England, but continue to inspire and enlighten then, Newman now saw as organic outgrowths: many all over the world….What better way to “Roman additions to the primitive creed are express the joy of this moment then by turning developments, arising out of a keen and vivid to our heavenly Father in heartfelt thanksgiving, realizing of the divine deposit of faith.” By praying in the words that John Henry Newman 1843, Newman deemed Roman Catholicism placed on the lips of the choirs of angels in historically and theologically authentic. heaven, ‘Praise to the holiest in the height and Yet he foresaw that converting would de- in the depth, be praise. In all his words, most prive him of Oxford friendships and engender wonderful, most sure in all his ways.’” skepticism among Roman Catholics, whom he had criticized for decades. As he lamented in The above is an excerpt from one lecture in a March, 1845: “What in the world am I doing series delivered by Christendom faculty in honor this for? I have a good name with many. I am of the canonization of St. John Henry Newman. deliberately sacrificing it. I have a bad name Visit christendom.edu/newmanlectures. with more. I am fulfilling all their worst wishes and givAdam Schwartz is an associate professor ing them their most coveted of history and the department chairman, triumph. I am distressing all and is the author of The Third Spring: G.K. that I love, unsettling all I have Chesterton, Graham Greene, Christopher instructed. I am going to those Dawson, and David Jones (The Catholic I do not know and of whom University of America Press, 2005). He I expect very little. Oh, what holds a PhD from Northwestern University. can it be but a stern necessity
A LU M N I I M PA C T I N A C T I O N G I V I N G D AY S U P P O R T S C O L L E G E I M P R O V E M E N T S Thanks to the generosity of more than 900 donors in our Christendom family—alumni, students, parents, and friends—our second annual Giving Day raised over $244,800 for The Carroll Fund. During the calendar year 2019, nearly $260,000 received in cash and pledge payments helped to underwrite improvements and new initiatives in the following areas:
AT H L ET I C S
Improved athletics department with a new maintenance contract for the workout room equipment and the hire of a part-time assistant athletics director further safeguarding the safety of our student body and creating a more effective management of all 10 athletics teams.
FAC U LTY A ND STA FF S A L A R IES
Expanded student services department with the hire of additional academic support staff ensuring that students have the best possible chance to thrive intellectually.
F I NA NC I A L A ID
Increased financial aid through recruitment initiatives like the Padre Pio Scholarship Program to attract the best and brightest students to dare to be great.
CO U NS EL I NG & S PIR IT UA L D EVELO PMENT
Increased support for the Strongholds initiative, the student peer-to-peer leadership and mentoring program encouraging male and female students to be fully alive in Christ.
L EA DE RS H IP & CA R EER D EVELOPMENT
Enhanced leadership and career development office with the addition of two part-time student workers and several key software purchases to improve office efficiency and continue to prepare students for their vocation to renew the temporal order after graduation.
SAVE the DATE
On April 21, 2020, let’s come together and share our love for our Crusader family. Together, we make possible the dream of Dr. Carroll and our founding faculty to offer students an unparalleled Catholic education forming the entire person in Truth.
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YOU CAN HELP RESTORE ALL THINGS IN CHRIST
Your life and legacy can make a significant difference in the lives of faithful young Catholics for generations to come. Through an estate gift to Christendom in your will or through a beneficiary designation of certain assets, you can receive the following benefits: • • • •
complete revocability up until your passing no upfront commitment of cash or other assets potential tax savings for you and your family ability to designate your gift to any area of operations at Christendom
Make sure that your assets are used to support the Christian renovation of the temporal order at Christendom College.
Interested in building a more hopeful future through a legacy gift to Christendom College? Contact: John F. Ciskanik Office of Gift Planning ciskanik@christendom.edu 434.907.3063
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