December 1998 interview with President David M. O'Connell, C.M.

[CUA Office of the President - News]

Q & A: The New York Times

Interview by Karen Arenson, education writer, The New York Times
With the Very Rev. David M. O’Connell
Dec. 23, 1998

The Times: I read The Washington Post piece following your inauguration and found it quite interesting. Were there any errors or misunderstandings in it or is it a reliable jumping off point?

Father O’Connell: Quite frankly, I do not believe that the article was an accurate representation of my lengthy conversation with the author. It quickly became evident to me that the interview would be focused on certain controversies The Catholic University of America confronted in its recent and not-so-recent past. I usually ask another person to sit in with me during interviews and in this particular case I was grateful that I did.

The Times: Is Catholic University unique in America in its relationship to the Vatican? Is it fair to say it is chartered by the Vatican? Does it cover the whole university or only certain departments? Is CUA also chartered by some public governmental body in the United States? And if so, does that ever present conflicts?

Father O’Connell: The Catholic University of America (CUA) is unique insofar as it is the national university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only such institution founded by the U.S. Bishops. Pope Leo XIII formally approved its establishment in 1887, placing the university under the jurisdiction of the Bishops with pontifical status. A certificate of incorporation was registered in the District of Columbia and was amended about 40 years later by the Congress of the United States. In 1964, the Board of Trustees elected to accept the provisions of the District of Columbia Non-profit Corporation Act. These latter documents constitute the civil charter of the University.

Currently, there are three "pontifical" academic units at CUA with ecclesiastical faculties: the School of Philosophy, the Departments of Theology and of Canon Law in the School of Religious Studies. These three units are called "pontifical" because they have been approved by the Holy See to foster and teach Catholic doctrine and disciplines related to it and they grant degrees by virtue of the Holy See as well as the Congress of the United States. They are governed by special "ecclesiastical statutes." 9 other academic units also exist at CUA that are not identified as "pontifical" or "ecclesiastical" and that grant degrees only by virtue of their civil incorporation.

I am not aware of any conflicts that have arisen specifically because of CUA’s dual charter by Church and civil authorities respectively.

The Times: Is your desire to keep CUA as an institution that reflects orthodox Vatican teachings something that grows out of CUA's special role? Would you feel the same way if you were president of Notre Dame, Fordham or Boston College?

Father O’Connell: The phrase "orthodox Vatican teachings" is one of those expressions that immediately occasions a reaction, frequently negative. My expressed desire is to lead a university that is authentically Catholic and distinctively American, that does not apologize for being Catholic while engaging the intellect at the highest levels, that provides a place where faith and reason meet in distinct and yet mutually supportive academic dialogue, that is both academically free and academically responsible in the teaching and research it advances, that is characterized by fidelity to its own name, identity and mission. If I were president of any other institution that claimed a Catholic nature, mission or purpose and character, I would feel no differently. I do, indeed, believe that CUA has a special responsibility to lead and model what it means to be a Catholic university because of its unique place among Catholic institutions of higher learning in this country.

The Times: In your inaugural speech, I think it was, you expressed your hope that others would follow your lead in taking the Oath of Fidelity to the Church, and the Profession of Faith. In fact, that seems to be what Bishop Bevilacqua's subcommittee is proposing, and perhaps what the Vatican is seeking. (I'm a bit confused as to whether the Pope or the Vatican called for all Catholic university officials to take the Oath of Fidelity or the profession of faith.)

Father O’Connell: I made no reference whatsoever to the "oath of fidelity" and "profession of faith" in my inaugural address. I took these actions because they are required by Church law (canon 833.7 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law) for a person assuming the office of rector or president of an ecclesiastical or a Catholic university. And I was happy to do so. Cardinal Bevilaqua’s subcommittee referred to the oath of fidelity and the profession of faith in a footnote following upon the provision that "the university president should be a faithful Catholic." His reference is merely expressing what already exists as Church law, established in 1983 and textually formulated in 1989. The profession of faith that I made is basically the same profession that is recited by millions of Catholics each Sunday. The oath is a further expression of commitment to Church teaching, something appropriate to my role as president but also appropriate to my place within the communion of the Catholic Church. What I profess and what I am should and does influence what I do. I have heard that my actions have occasioned "surprise" in the academic community. That baffles me. The fact that other presidents have not done so or that some academics take exception to my profession means nothing to me whatsoever. In my position, I followed the Church’s law.

The Times: Yet other Catholic university presidents seem to find that offputting. Again, why the difference between you and the ones who say that it interferes with the academic freedom on their campuses? Why is the issue of academic freedom not a concern for you? Do you think there is ever a conflict? And if so, how do you resolve it? Do you think there is any cost to your university in this position? And event though CUA is directed this way, does every Catholic college need to be to be Catholic?

Father O’Connell: Academic freedom is a great concern for me. But, I believe that every freedom has a corresponding responsibility. Academic freedom is no exception. And the responsibility that it includes does influence it. Freedom is not absolute. Freedom is not license to say or do anything one wants. Within the academy, freedom is ordered to the truth and the path that leads to it. Should the rhetoric of hate be allowed to flourish on campuses simply because we believe in "freedom of speech?" Is the content of hatred, truth? Is that freedom absolute? Should disorderly crowds be allowed to jeopardize the safety of citizens on campuses simple because we assert "freedom of assembly?" Is chaos an expression of truth? Is that freedom absolute? It is commonly accepted that every academic discipline has a methodology proper and specific to it; to violate the methodology skews the result, whether the result is anticipated or new knowledge. That is true of philosophy and especially the theological disciplines as well, not only because they are academic disciplines but also because their object includes faith, revelation and reason as part of their proper methodology. Academic freedom and academic responsibility will always exist in tension but a tension that I believe is creative and healthy. An institution that identifies itself as Catholic and that presents a Catholic mission within the diversity that is American higher education must freely and openly embrace a Catholic perspective – or sometimes develop it

– and accept the responsibilities that it entails. If a Catholic institution does not want to do that, it does not want to be Catholic. It should not claim to be what it is not. The Catholic University of America, above all, should be what its name and mission proclaim. And as far as I am concerned, that is exactly what CUA must continue to do.

The Times: Is it possible that it makes sense to have a handful of Catholic universities that are directly linked to the Church and reflective of its teachings, and others that are several steps removed? In other words, there may be some Catholic students and faculty who want to have a strict constructionist Catholic college, while many others might be more interested in being at one where the direct ties to the Church are a bit looser?

Father O’Connell: The institutions that you describe exist already. That is the reason why the Church has begun to address the issue of Catholic identity with such vigor. Papal documents such as Ex Corde Ecclesiae and the conversations that have surrounded it are, in my opinion, an effort by the Church to call its universities and colleges to authenticity, to an integrating vision that places them within the communion of the Church, that identifies them as "belonging" to something greater than a conglomeration of academic subject areas, that frees them to be "a voice in the wilderness" crying out there is a path to the good, to the right, to the true, to God. And here it is. Now walk that path. I see no advantage to ambiguity or mediocrity. Catholic institutions of higher learning, in my opinion, are able to do MORE rather than do, less precisely because they are Catholic.

The Times: What is your age and background?

Father O’Connell: I am 43. I was born on April 21, 1955. I was ordained a priest in 1982 in the Vincentian Community. I was a Catholic high school teacher and administrator, a seminary professor, interim academic Vice President at Niagara University, Dean of Arts and Sciences and Associate VP at St. John’s University in New York. I have a doctorate in canon law and also served several U.S. dioceses as an ecclesiastical judge.

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