of their children to Christendom, and their youngest, Therese, was part of this historic graduating class. On Saturday morning, the Class of 2008 processed across campus, led by the triumphant song of the bagpipes, to Crusader Gymnasium where the commencement exercises were held.
Dr. O’Donnell bestowed an Honorary Doctorate on Cardinal O’Malley during graduation. tended Christendom’s graduation, offered the Baccalaureate Mass, and delivered the commencement address. At that time, I was Vice President of Student Affairs and my wife, Cathy, was due with our 5th child. Cathy always delivered her children in our home state of California, and she was already there when Commencement arrived. I figured I would stay on campus for Commencement and then fly out to California in time for the delivery. I was wrong and missed the birth of our daughter, Kathleen Dubh, who, now as a Christendom junior, 20 years later, is looking forward to meeting the ‘reason’ her Daddy missed her birth,” joked O’Donnell. Prior to the conclusion of the evening, O’Donnell awarded the St. Peter Canisius Award for Distinguished Service to the Church through the Teaching of Theology and Doctrine to founding Theology professor Raymund O’Herron. For 30 years, O’Herron has taught Theology 101 and Theology 102 to hundreds of students, and now, even to some of his first students’ children. O’Herron and his wife, Sheila, sent all nine
After the opening blessing by College Chaplain Fr. John Heisler, Dr. O’Donnell introduced Dr. Robert Rice, long-standing English professor, who served as the emcee for the commencement events. O’Donnell acknowledged and thanked Rice for his 26 years of service to the College, most of those as Vice President for Academic Affairs. Salutatorian Jane Finlay of Luray, VA, then welcomed all to the ceremony and spoke of how Christendom has prepared the graduates to face the challenges that await them in the world. “Our future, my fellow graduates, is indeed full of possibilities. Most of us do not yet know what paths Christ is calling us to. We cannot know what the future will bring us. But from this garden of possibilities we may pluck one certainty: the world we go into is a dangerous and even hostile world. It will not praise us. It will not love us. It will neither value nor understand what we have achieved here. Yet this should not make us afraid,” she said.
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Salutatorian Jane Finlay from Virginia.
Finlay concluded, “As we go forth from Christendom to be a light to the nations, we can be happy and confident that...Christ will conquer. Christ has already conquered.” Following Finlay’s address, Cardinal O’Malley received an Honorary Doctorate presented by Dr. O’Donnell. “It’s a great honor to be here,” Cardinal O’Malley said in his remarks. “When you’re a bishop, you get a lot of honorary degrees… but I can not think of any institution from which I am more pleased to receive a degree. This is truly a school born ex corde ecclesiae (out of the heart of the Church) and remains close to Christ’s heart, faithful to His Church, and passionate about the mission we have received: to build a civilization of love and instaurare omnia in Christo (to restore all things in Christ).”
Dubh O’Donnell meets the “reason” her father missed her birth in May of 1988.
Bernard King and Greg Monroe process with the rest of their class into the Baccalaureate Mass.
Dr. Ralph McInerny, the Michael P. Grace professor of medieval studies at Notre Dame
Valedictorian Meredith Wilson from Pennsylvania.
Three of Christendom’s founding five faculty are still active at the College: Dr. William Marshner, Dr. Kristin Burns, and Mr. Raymund O’Herron.