MOJ Statement on Ave Maria Law School
Over at MOJ, a group of law professors (including me) have signed a joint statement regarding the evolving crisis/scandal at Ave Maria Law School. Here’s a taste (click the link to read the rest):
We applaud the effort to build a law school that consciously draws upon
and engages the rich intellectual, liturgical, moral, ecclesial, and
social justice traditions of the Catholic Church, integrating them into
the daily life of the law school community. AMSL had this vision in
mind when it opened its doors in 2000, but it is now clear that the
Catholic nature vital to its founding and sustenance has been derailed
as evidenced by the administration’s treatment of the faculty member
subject to tenure revocation and the suspensions of those denied tenure.
Eduardo:
This is very good. I must confess, however, to being unfamiliar with the ways a statement like this is meant to be used. Who are its intended recipients? Will it be published in a respected law journal? In the local newspapers where AMSL operates? Or is it intended only for AMSL? Or perhaps it will be sent to the local ordinaries of Ann Arbor and Naples?
I ask because I suspect that AMSL won’t do much in response to your statement. They’ve always had a sort of renegade vibe about them–Monaghan’s and Fessio’s “More Catholic than the Pope” sensibility. (In that regard, your appeal to Ex Corde Ecclesiae is apt.) But I could be wrong. I’m just curious what results you are expecting.