Hand Delivery
(Minnesota), May 27 — Leaders of the St. John's Bible project presented a copy of the St. John's Bible to Pope John Paul II on May 26.
Calligrapher Donald Jackson and Brother Dietrich Rein-hart, president of St. John's University in Collegeville, Minn., presented the work to the Holy Father at his weekly general audience. The project, headed by Jackson, aims to create a Bible copied and illustrated entirely by hand, the St. Cloud Times reported. It is believed to be the first such project in 500 years.
The $4 million project was commissioned by St. John's. Its organizers hope to attract scholars worldwide to the school.
Home on the Range
(Wyoming), May 27 — One of two towns seeking to be the home of a new Catholic liberal arts college in Wyoming thinks it has the per fect location.
The town of Green River has beautiful landscapes, is close to the Green River and possesses diverse wildlife, according to the town newspaper.
The committee exploring sites for the new school is looking for a rural place that could cultivate a sense of community and is close to public lands for nature studies. The site selection committee said it plans to narrow the shor t list of sites by July 1.
College in High School
PR NEWSWIRE, May 27 — “Things can only get better.” So said the leaders of Dayton Early College Academy, housed on the Marianist-run University of Dayton, Ohio, in a statement released after completion of the school's first year.
The academy offers the oppor tunity for students to take college classes at the university and at a nearby community college, according to PR Newswire. Of the academy's 89 ninth-graders, 19 have already successfully taken college classes.
The academy, only one of 19 such schools that opened nationwide last fall, targets first-generation college students from low-income areas who might not other wise consider attending college.
Bless Him, Father
, May 25 — Tim Russert, anchor of NBC's “Meet the Press,” told graduates of Boston College on May 24 to consider their Jesuit education a “special gift,” the Boston daily reported.
During his keynote graduation address, Russer t described an encounter with Pope John Paul II in 1985. When asking the Holy Father to appear on the “Today” show, Russert forgot his concerns about TV ratings and considered the prospect of salvation instead: “You heard this tough, no-nonsense hard-hitting moderator of ‘Meet the Press’ begin by saying, ‘Bless me Father!’”
Coach Dies
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, May 17 — A former football coach at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass., whose firing last fall led to accusations of discrimination by the college — the coach was confined to a wheelchair — has died at age 48.
Dan Allen announced last August that he suffered from multiple chemical sensitivity. The illness prevented his mobility from the neck down, and he coached all of last year from a wheelchair, the Associated Press reported. He was fired after a 1-11 season but remained employed by the college.