Notre Dame Mourns a Loss

NOTRE DAME UNIVERSITY, Oct. 21-Holy Cross Father Robert Griffin died on Oct 21. He was 74 years old and had been in ill health for some time.

“One of Notre Dame's most affectionate and affectionately regarded characters, the chain-smoking Father Griffin, invariably accompanied by a golden cocker spaniel named Darby O'Gill, was a ubiquitous campus presence for three decades,” said a Notre Dame press release.

U.S. Premiere of Pope's Play at Santa Clara

SANTA CLARA UNIVERSITY, Oct. 8-The American premiere of “Our God's Brother” is coming to Santa Clara University, the school announced in a press release. Karol Wojtyla, now Pope John Paul II, wrote the play in 1947. It debuts on the Nov. 12, under the honorary patronage of Bishop Patrick J. McGrath of San Jose and the direction of Jagienka Zych-Drweski.

The play focuses on the life of Adam Chmielowski, a Polish artist and invalid who loses his leg in a war fighting for Poland's freedom.

After becoming a famous painter, Chmielowski realizes another vocation. With tremendous compassion for the impoverished, he transforms his studio into a shelter to accommodate the many homeless strangers he encounters on the streets.

“Our God's Brother” touches on the fundamental question of individual freedom vs. service to other people. Pope John Paul II has written six plays, three since his pontificate.

Drweski traveled to Rome and received the Pope's blessing to perform the play. Drweski, a Polish native, joined Santa Clara University in 1984.

Back to the Drawing Board

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY, Oct. 18-The university announced that it has formed a committee to revise its mission statement, which was last rewritten in the early '80s. The mission statement is a document with legal ramifications, since it will clarify the school's position on implementing Ex Corde Ecclesiae (From the Heart of the Church), Pope John Paul II's 1990 apostolic constitution on Catholic higher education.

New Law School Offers Millions In Scholarships

AVE MARIA LAW, Oct. 12-In preparation for the start of the class of 2003, Ave Maria Law, located in Ann Arbor, Mich., announced $5.1 million in scholarships over the next three years.

Bernard Dobranski, dean of Ave Maria Law, announced the annual tuition for the first students to be $19,750, placing a full, three-year scholarship at $59,250.

The law school also announced that 75% scholarships would also be available, worth $14,812.50 each year. Both scholarship packages are renewable, if the student maintains a 3.0 grade point average. As well, Ave Maria will not raise a student's tuition once he has entered the school.

Dobranski said that Ave Maria plans to start classes next fall with 40 to 50 students. The school has received more than 500 inquiries from 42 states and the District of Columbia.