Its not completely new to me, since Gasp! It would be good if Christendoms response was similarly specific. God bless you and keep you. I sympathize with the people who want a man to be expelled based on one womans testimony (such as in the above article), but we have to admit that is at the expense of innocent men getting expelled as well. If Front Royal is a tiny rural town, as these articles say, then a college, even a small one, is a large part of that town. Im a current female student at Christendom, class of 2020, and I feel safe on campus. The curriculum consists of three years of study in Theology, three years in Philosophy, two years in English Language and Literature, two years in Classical or Modern Language, two years in History, one year in Political Science and Economics, one year in Mathematics and Natural Science, and 4 years of Education for Life career preparation coursework. The woman interviewed described what she remembered from the time she was there. The teachers provide a well rounded education of philosophy, history, theology, literature and political science. Rapes happen far more frequently on college campuses where anything goes. Two months later, the school explained what the young man would be charged with: harassing Smith after a prior incident. The charges do not mention rape. Religious Affiliation:Roman CatholicYear Founded:1977Degrees:Associate of Arts (A.A.), Bachelor of Arts (B.A. It only works with Weinstein and Cosby because there were like 30+ allegations. By driving students off campus, the school is making the students, especially women, more vulnerable. Et cetera. I didnt exactly lose my instinct of self-preservation, but I definitely let my guard down at the school and treated it like my home. They explained to her that a prosecutor would take her case, but that the chances of going to trial, much less of the young man being prosecuted, were very low. The faculty at this school is one of the most remarkable aspects of Christendom. They say your views are dangerous, hateful, fearful, or racist . That is all. Should rapists be burned at the stake without incontrovertible evidence? Domino's Pizza founder Tom Monaghan donated 19th Century wooden stations of the cross to the Chapel, and it was dedicated by Cardinal Jan Schotte, Pope John Paul II's Secretary-General to the World Synod of Bishops. That is a philosophical question where I think people can legitimately disagree. These are very serious accusations, and the reporting does not match the seriousness of those charges. Especially, never talk about the training RAs have undergone and all the other things the university has done to improve their support of women in rape cases. We do have a great deal of responsibility. Use your words to express the difficulty of what you are feeling. Christendom College was founded by Warren H. Carroll in 1977 with $50,000. If the intent here is to correct inaccuracies rather than, as it appears to be, an attempt to discredit Simcha as a journalist then it would be appropriate to say what exactly was misleading or inaccurate in the original post(s). I've got one that's somewhat similar. In this period, members of the Christian clergy wield political authority. I dont wish to discredit those who are appalled by the rape epidemic and Adele Smiths case, as it is horrific matter; but there are campuses where this stuff is much more frequent, and its not because they arent Catholic in a nominal sense, nor is it because they endorse rape, but its because theres not always a clear procedure as to how to address it. I have to wonder why people entrust a liberal arts school board to be able to fairly assess rape allegations, when law enforcement werent able to. She had no objection, as they had kissed before. Sure. Tweets. Students live near the Vatican during the fall and spring, taking classes in St. Peter's Square and traveling across Europe during their time abroad. He pushed my arms apart with his hands. The Churchs teaching on this, particularly Pope John Paul II really upholds a woman in her own right and this was taught quite clearly at Christendom. And certainty this is a universal problem, but Christendom was the first place I ever had to sit at a desk and be talked about in terms like less rational,secondary and obedient. The article makes the following claim without proof or attribution, and it has been contended with by several students, But current students and alumni say the school has a boys will be boys attitude which allows the male students to harass and grab at the women. No more specifics are given, but the implication is that men are allowed to grab womens arses, etc., without repercussion even to their reputations. The problems with rape at Christendom are the problems with rape anywhere. The other allegations against him were also by hearsay, and they put those allegations in writing and asked him to defend himself. Could it be because the policy might show the school in a favorable light? Most likely she was in a Trad house and that is why they considered it beneath them to discuss sex at all with their daughter and how to protect herself from seedy guys. The victims always blame themselves.. I havent given it a lot of thought. . I could leave my laptop lying out anywhere on campus, with no password, and be confident I could come back and find it un-stolen. The steps they have taken are a good beginning, but only that. The teacher gave the class a hypothetical example of a young man and woman who were dating and decided to go off campus to Skyline Drive. Basically, Christendom University has set up a parallel court system to try these cases and determine guilt outside of the civil court system. Fedoryka, through his contacts in the Vatican, brought the college into contact with then-Pope John Paul II, who later told Carroll that Christendom "was doing a great work for the Church. Can we PLEASE stop framing this as something between women and men and acknowledge that assault and coercion also happen between men and between women, as well as from women to men? And on the outside, this torture of wanting to stay chaste yet wanting to see that a man loves you and wanting to fully embrace him comes across in very vague and misleading body language. It isnt Christendoms fault this happened they can only learn as fast as the culture encroaches..that young man should have kept his hands to himself period. More concern for an institution than for victims. That comment So goes the other way. The idea is that if you dont have make out places, youll get rape places. Christendom College is fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. You are very brave. She sought psychological help from Dr. Patrick Divietri. Critics claimed that conservative schools, such as Hillsdale College, Grove City College, and Christendom were intentionally left off due to their conservative values. Your opening arguments point to the dorm situation on campus as a cause for a students rape. That's no coincidence. If you think about it for half a second, youd realize youre asking more of Christendom than literally any institution could ever do, at least when it comes to prevention. Founded in 1977 in response to the devastating blow inflicted on Catholic higher education by the cultural revolution which swept across America in the 1960s, Christendoms goal is to provide a truly Catholic education in fidelity to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church and thereby to prepare students for their role as lay apostles to restore all things in Christ. Imply that all it involved was inserting a phrase, Do not rape. regina coeli hallBy AgnosticPreachersKid Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0. student centerBy AgnosticPreachersKid Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, churchBy AgnosticPreachersKid (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (, mens dorm By AgnosticPreachersKid (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (, sealBy Niall ODonnell (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (. If Simcha cant openly accuse the guy of rape, how can the school? [13], Since 1992, student enrollment has grown from 144 undergraduates to nearly 550 students, not including graduate school students. . And one of the most glaring incidents you chose to report on didnt even occur on campus, it occurred 30 minutes away. The faculty hold degrees from schools such as Columbia University, Yale University, Catholic University of America, University of Notre Dame, University of Virginia, the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, and The John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family (Rome, Washington DC, and Melbourne sessions). Los Angeles City Councilmember resigns after leaked racist remarks. The men with whom I interact at school have consistently shown me respect whether it be through opening doors for me, saying good morning, supporting my academic pursuits, or courteously taking part in a discussion. Carroll decided not to accept federal funding at the college, choosing instead to rely on generous benefactors. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs. Yet, it is offered without proof of any sort, or even a source willing to go on record. The semester also includes a week's pilgrimage to Assisi and Siena as well as a trip to Florence. The fact that they used a separate situation to impose a restriction on him should give you a sense of how they had to act within their own evidentiary boundaries to avoid being sued. It may be that the whole thing wasnt handled as it should have been, but then, how should it have been handled? And if the woman involved was going to say yes anyway to whatever he suggested in terms of where they were going, as she said in the article, how would this have been any different even if there were different or no PDA rules? At that point, any option is deteriorating in safety. The rape in question occurred because two students of opposite sexes were alone together. Its not just about getting justice for victims or punishing perpetrators, its about HOW the institution responds to allegations and the environment the institution fosters to start with. For the record, my first year of university was spent at a secular institution in mixed accommodation with no regulations on behaviour between the sexes. Going Drinkin with Lincoln before class on Lincolns Birthday and getting buzzed or worse. From its founding, Christendom College has rejected federal funding. Help me fund this site and get access to my and my husbands occasional podcast and other perks. It should do better. . I wasn't really prepared for the amount of raw heresy I was surrounded with. 1) Christendom is very small and a step off campus puts one right back in the non-PDA world. That isnt acceptable, even in secular workplaces, and is a breathtaking accusation. College disciplinary boards, however, can set whatever standards they want, especially a completely independent institution like Christendom. They should be able to express themselves romantically in a public setting, which is a safer setting to learn how to navigate as a couple.. Im no longer Catholic, and I think the disillusionment I developed there is part of why or at least sped up the timeline of me leaving. It wasnt until August of that year that the language was added to the handbook. Ya got me! There is a problem when Hollywood is doing a better job, and that problem deserves a discussion. It wouldnt quite be in keeping with her recent essay about letting go of anger. While this student should have somehow received better care, and more protection from this guy later, and while her story is heartrending, it should not be published in an article whose objective is obviously to smear the college and all the good for which it stands. He responded by calling her a bitch and a prude, and saying, You know you liked it. She blocked his number. But actual campus police on a campus of 400? I think rape should be a clearly defined and promulgated capital crime so there would be fewer instances and false allegations. #1 . document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Consent is not nebulous. Which means, of course, he may very well have done it again. If Christendom University has an ongoing serious problem (and it may for all I know), this article doesnt demonstrate that. If she simply made an error in judgment and regretted the decision, she would be stating she had sex and lost her virginity before she planned to. My objective is to make Christendom more accountable for the safety of its students. It creates an unhealthy culture. 2023 Christendom College. You may think thats not what Simcha is actually advocating for, but her complaint comes across as about as realistic. The student handbook now includes a sexual assault policy. This sexualization makes things particularly difficult for men because on men simply of the way men are wired. [43] The team defeated St. Mary's College of Maryland in overtime to capture the title, earning the school its first National Championship.[44]. After Adele did slap you, you allegedly said, If you slapped me really hard and it really hurt, I wouldnt want to kiss you. It is further alleged that on other occasions you went out of your way to volunteer with groups of friends that Adele had seduced you. Because if there were no chastity policy, people wouldnt be pushed into secret places andcould be openly unchaste. I marched in the March for Life and protested a DC abortion clinic; for anyone whose lives I made worse by pushing anti-abortion propaganda, I am truly sorry. Ive been guessing and guessing whoever it is seems to still have his good reputation intact. If these things are happening, then it is accurate. [3] In 2002, Fr. Protected: Ill See Myself Out, Episode 61: Dont be coming round here with no oranges. You cant tell a Catholic girl to be suspicious of her fellow (male) students because that would make her a man-hating feminazi. What was he going to say? however CC is thriving on a 50s mentality that supports men as always being the bad guys and/ or the immaculate prince and responsible for the assaults and women (not girls) women as meek little things who just go along. CC seems to be a very dangerous place for all. We now have a formal grievance policy students can use to make a complaint against any campus community member who is not covered by the student policy (e.g. Along with converting I made friends with a bunch of conservative catholics (not trads, but your typical intellectual ratzinger fan types). Does the handbook have to repeat the entire criminal code? [37], In 2022, Luckey appeared in court and pled guilty in order to receive a reduced sentence of time served, 24 months supervised probation, and must register as a sex offender. Justice, and not just criminal secular justice, but justice from our institutions, is a part of Catholic moral theology. I did experience the misogyny. If not, then how is the school supposed to levy public punishments that would permittly alter this guys life if the woman would not go forward to authorities? A private institution that is not subject to federal collegiate regulations has such flexibility. Take a second to support simchajfisher on Patreon! What an incredible witness to the faith! During his tenure, the college increased the number of buildings on campus to over 20, including St. Lawrence Commons, St. Francis, St. Benedict, St. Catherine of Siena, and St. Clare Hall, St. Louis the Crusader Gymnasium, and St. John the Evangelist Library. Christendom College | Flickr It was up to me to avoid him, she said. I used to ask my fiance when we were engaged, do you love me a la folie? Trying to live as a chaste couple before marriage, I was constantly struggling with worries over love and acceptancemany times after making out wildly with him but then walking away and saying goodnight. Way to play Blame the Victim! Maybe because I studied theology and philosophy I did not experience this? Is that whats happening right now?'. And I still have some fond memories of the place, even today. And I did end up seeing that friar once for counselling but he activated several gut feelings to stay away, and so I did. Heres my letter that i wrote to Christendom last month. People were mostly really nice, and there was this kind of lovely cocoon of ideological sameness that I'd never experienced before. My sympathies. The fact that their anger is not directed towards say the park police, the legal system, but at a school that issued the ONLY punishment(however minor), is basically proof of this. We dont stand for PDA, we certainly dont allow for men grabbing arses in public. Christendom College admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. Our countrys policies right now generally say yes for potential terrorists, but no for potential rapists. A handbook that is not going to stop a rape. Banning them from living on campus and allowing a professor to shelter them does not protect other students. Respectfully, I must disagree with your recollection . I remember at one point breaking into tears talking to someone because I missed the DHS so much. I didnt feel like the article clearly painted a picture of how she was personally treated poorly. no government financial help??? No does not mean yes. No doesnt mean I still want to. And boy, you are right. [42], In 2017, Christendom's rugby team won the NSCRO 7's Collegiate Rugby National Championship in its first year of contention. That bothers me as well. Today, we remain among the fewer than 1% of Catholic universities in the United States that reject all federal government aid. . Supposedly that sentence should stop this from happening again. Rest assured, I've cast off my own self-imposed shackles; it's much easier to approach the world and the people in it without worrying that they're not living up to Catholicism's impossible standards. Catholics are sinners just like everyone else. I went to a small Catholic school in the 80s and knew all students there did not live up to the standards of the college or the faith. The message delivered was clear, according to Smith. Instaurare Omnia in Christo! And Im sure you also understand our need to be loved an accepted. Christendom College. He may or may not be a rapist, but do you really want institutions denouncing a man as a rapist without a trial. It was usually fairly evident who those people were and if you didnt want trouble, you stayed out of their circle.