By Bill Press                                                                      Read Spanish Version

It's been 81 years since legendary coach Knute Rockne urged his players to "win one for the Gipper." But no Notre Dame football team ever faced a tougher challenge than President Obama does.

Since he was invited by university president Father John Jenkins to give this year's commencement address, Obama has faced a growing wave of protest. Judging from the howls of some critics, you'd think the devil himself was presiding over this year's graduation.

Notre Dame is one of our great universities, and America's best Catholic university, but a bunch of small-minded, ignorant and intolerant religious zealots are trying to hijack it. At last count, 74 American bishops have refused to attend the ceremonies -- because Obama happens to be pro-choice. For the same reason, over 350,000 people have signed online petitions in opposition. A handful of graduating seniors have vowed to boycott their own party. Alan Keyes, Obama's former Senate opponent in Illinois, and Randall Terry, head of Operation Rescue, have organized campus protests. And a small plane circles over the Notre Dame campus, towing a banner with the picture of an alleged aborted fetus. Happy Graduation!

The controversy is a monumental embarrassment to the university, the Catholic Church and the president of the United States. But it's also an opportunity for the university and the president, by not bowing to critics, to remind the world what a great university is all about.

Obama, of course, is not the first president invited to South Bend. In fact, every president since FDR has either been honored as a commencement speaker or given an honorary degree. In his letter to the graduating class of 2009, Father Jenkins reminded students this has nothing to with politics: "It is the University's expression of respect for the leader of the nation and the Office of the President." As St. Peter himself told us, "We should honor the leader who upholds the secular order" (I Peter 2:17). And Notre Dame has a long tradition of doing so.

Obama's pro-choice, but so are most Catholics. According to a Quinnipiac University poll, released May 14, 50 percent of Catholics believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases; 44 percent disagree. And 60 percent of all Catholics say Obama should remain on Notre Dame's program.

Which raises certain obvious questions: Are prospective Notre Dame students screened for their views on abortion? How about recruits for the football team? If pro-choice, are they banned from campus? If not, why should Obama, a non-Catholic, be held to a different standard?

And, speaking of issues: Yes, the Catholic Church is anti-abortion. But it's also anti-death penalty and anti-unjust war. So why didn't bishops boycott the appearance of President George W. Bush, who championed the death penalty and led this nation into what Pope John Paul II condemned as an unjustifiable war in Iraq? Clearly, the bishops protesting President Obama's appearance are obsessed with one issue only. You could be an axe-murderer and they wouldn't care. As long as you were anti-abortion.

To his credit, Father Jenkins refused to rescind President Obama's invitation. Instead of heeding those 74 single-minded bishops, he listened instead to the great Father Ted Hesburgh, president of Notre Dame for 35 years. A Catholic university, Hesburgh taught, is both a lighthouse and a crossroads. As a lighthouse, it stands apart and illuminates issues with the moral authority of the Catholic tradition. As a crossroads, it serves as a place where people of good will are received openly, are able to speak, be heard, and engage in responsible and reasoned dialogue. No closed doors and no closed minds.

Father Hesburgh will share the stage with Father Jenkins and President Obama -- which will be significant for still another reason. Starting in 1957, Father Hesburgh also served on the United States Civil Rights Commission, fighting to end racial discrimination in America. In fact, he championed the cause of equal opportunity so strongly, making so many waves, that President Nixon fired him.

Imagine Hesburgh's joy at welcoming President Barack Obama to Notre Dame. And imagine his shame that so many leading Catholics, who should know better, chose to boycott the first African-American president of the United States.

In the end, it's a great day for America, a great day for Notre Dame, but a sad day for the Catholic Church.

Bill Press is host of a nationally syndicated radio show and author of a new book, "Train Wreck: The End of the Conservative Revolution (and Not a Moment Too Soon)." You can hear "The Bill Press Show" at his Web site: billpressshow.com. His email address is: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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