The Uninvited

FORT WAYNE JOURNAL GAZETTE (Indiana), April 28 — Only four days before she was scheduled to give the May 1 commencement speech at the University of St. Francis, Dr. Nancy Snyderman was told she was no longer welcome at the podium.

Information provided to the university by Fort Wayne-South Bend, Ind., Bishop John D'Arcy noted Snyderman's comments in support of abortion on an episode of ABC's “Good Morning America,” on which she serves as medical correspondent, in 1997.

In its statement rescinding the invitation, the university said Snyderman's comments were not in line with Church teaching.

Supreme Students

FRANCISCAN UNIVERSITY, April 27 — Four Franciscan University of Steubenville students are taking their research on forced abortions all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The research forms the appendix to a brief filed by attorney Christopher Sapp, according to a press release from the university. Sapp is presenting Jane Roe II v. Aware Women Center for Choice Inc., a case that involves a woman whose abortionist had her physically restrained and performed the procedure on her after she had changed her mind.

Students Shannon Andriyanova, Shane Haselbarth, Heather McCombs and Ann-Marie Morris researched cases of abortions performed on unwilling women as the main project for their senior seminar on legal studies. The school is located in Steubenville, Ohio.

Mount St. Mary's U?

THE GAZETTE (Maryland), April 29 — The president of Mount St. Mary's College and Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., has a new vision for the school. Naturally, not all of its present students were thrilled with the announcement.

Part of Thomas Powell's plan is to drop the “college and seminary” from the name of the school, replacing it with “university,” and to increase enrollment. Powell shared his vision for the future with students April 23, the newspaper reported.

Most of the complaints came from taking the “college and seminary” out of the name. Powell also said he wanted to increase the number of Catholics at the school. Right now, 67% of enrollment is Catholic; he wants to increase it to 70%.

Curtains for Cabaret?

THE RECORD OF BERGEN COUNTY (New Jersey), April 28 — The musical play “Cabaret” opened at Queen of Peace High School in North Arlington, N.J., April 26 without incident. Protests since then, however, have called the production inappropriate for a Catholic school.

Messages posted to an Internet bulletin board criticized the opening, the paper reported. One message said the play is “180 degrees opposed to the holdings of the Roman Catholic faith.”

Pro-Life Students Injured

LIFENEWS.COM, April 27 — Pro-life students from George Washington University were forcibly removed from a pro-abortion rally led by Sen. John Kerry on April 26 — not by police but by abortion activists.

After pro-abortion supporters began chanting, “What do we want? Choice!” the pro-life students countered with “Life!” LifeNews.com reported.

Women in National Abortions Rights Action League Tshirts surrounded the pro-life students and told them they had to leave. When they refused, the pro-abortion women dragged the students away, injuring one of the students’ feet and causing another to begin choking.

“They had no right to touch me like that,” said student Suanne Edmiston. “So much for ‘my body, my choice.’”