ND Administration: Who do they follow?

ddjones007
Sat, 02 Jun 2007 23:45:44 +0000

I’m totally with you, kevdude. Monk Malloy was precisely as described above. In my opinion, Fr. Jenkins is destined to be known among the greatest presidents in Notre Dame history–determined to be the best in everything, while proudly embracing Catholic identity. That being said, even though Monk was undoubtedly more of a secularist and it was time for him to move on, he was exactly the man the university needed at the time he came in.

There were a few jokes on campus in the old days… One was that the only adjustment Ted Hesburgh made to co-education was the plumbing system. The other is that the only difference between God and Fr. Ted was that God was everywhere, and Fr. Ted was everywhere but Notre Dame. He did great things to bring Notre Dame to prominence, but was woefully out of touch with student life, at a time when student life–and the culture in general–changed dramatically. Title IX brought women onto the campus, but the university wasn’t really ready for them.

Monk Malloy was rector of Sorin back in 1980. He was known as the one priest on campus who didn’t regard the small number of women on the now-co-ed Notre Dame campus as upstarts or hussies. Sorin masses were always packed, including plenty of women. Afterwards, Monk would host any who wanted to come for after-mass fellowship. The women on campus felt truly welcomed there–Monk listened to them, and treated them as if they had every right to be there (believe me, that was quite rare from priests in those days.) He was also a highly popular theology professor–his classes were known both for being among the most challenging on the campus, as well as the most compelling.

Seeing the campus now, with one a soon-to-be-junior, the other an entering freshman in the fall, Monk’s legacy is evident. It is an infinitely more healthy environment for students–Monk Malloy did wonders for campus life.

Now, it is Fr. Jenkins’ turn to add his own mark–which is restoring the glory not only to the football program, but to the Catholic identity of the university.