From the Top Down: The Erosion of Faith at Georgetown University
When a Catholic university appoints a president who openly dismisses core Church teachings, it signals more than just a shift in mission — it reflects a deeper erosion of moral and spiritual integrity. This appears to be the case with Georgetown University’s decision to hire Eduardo Peñalver, a leader who has publicly criticized Catholic doctrine on homosexuality and expressed concern over the societal impact of the Dobbs decision, despite its role in protecting unborn life through the overturning of Roe v. Wade. His previous leadership at Seattle University, where Catholic identity was often subordinated to secular priorities, raises serious concerns about the direction Georgetown may now take under his presidency.
The goal of Blatty’s petition had been to revoke Georgetown’s right to call itself Catholic unless it complies with Church teachings. Obviously, it failed.
In an article entitled “Another Gay Teacher Fired by a Catholic School” published on August 7, 2013 in Commonweal, Peñalver responds to the firing of a longtime teacher at the Catholic St. Lucy’s Priory High School in Los Angeles, after photos of his wedding to his same-sex partner appeared in a local newspaper. Peñalver critiques the decision, questioning whether Catholic institutions should — morally or prudentially — enforce such dismissals, even if they technically have the legal right to do so.
Penalver points out a troubling pattern: Catholic schools often target marginalized groups, such as gay teachers, while seemingly ignoring similar violations of Church teaching by divorced and remarried heterosexual teachers. Peñalver challenges the consistency and fairness of these employment decisions and invites readers to consider whether such actions truly reflect Catholic values.
Peñalver of course reminds readers that the views expressed are his own and not those of the Jesuit Seattle University, where he was serving as president at the time but suggests that Catholic institutions should adopt a more inclusive and compassionate approach. Peñalver concluded that he wanted to “separate the question of whether Catholic institutions have the right to do this sort of thing from the question of whether they should, on either moral or prudential grounds,” He challenged readers to consider whether such firings reflect the Church’s values or simply target those who are more easily marginalized.
When the Dobbs decision was handed down in June, 2022 — striking down the pro-abortion Roe v Wade — Peñalver appeared to criticize the pro-life decision by issuing a statement warning that the Dobbs decision would have far-reaching consequences, especially for low-income women, women of color, LGBTQ individuals and society at large. Although he called for “thoughtful and respectful dialogue” he lamented that some in the community are “mourning an erosion of the autonomy of those experiencing unwanted or unsafe pregnancies or those whose rights may be undermined in the coming years by the sweeping scope of the court’s reasoning.”
It should surprise no one who has been paying attention to the erosion of the Catholic identity on many Catholic campuses throughout the country that Georgetown would choose someone like this to lead their school. In 2013, the late William Peter Blatty, author of The Exorcist and one of its most distinguished alums, filed a Canon Law petition with the Vatican in asking that Georgetown University be denied the right to call itself Catholic. Blatty had been making life difficult for Georgetown for more than a decade before filing his petition after he became convinced that the university had abandoned its Catholic mission. In fact, he concluded that his alma mater “takes pride in insulting the Church and offending the faithful.”
Calling Georgetown a “Potemkin Village,” Blatty declared that Georgetown is the leader of a pack of schools that are failing to live up to their Catholic identity.” Blatty was especially critical of what he saw as Georgetown’s hypocrisy: “At alumni dinners, they will make sure there is a Jesuit in a collar at every table, like the floral arrangement.”
Blatty’s 200-page papal petition contained more than 480 footnotes, 99 appendices, and 124 witness statements. It also included a commissioned 120-page institutional audit of Georgetown. According to Manuel A. Miranda, who served as Blatty’s counsel, “We have documented 23 years of scandals and dissidence — more than 100 scandals in the most recent years alone.” The petition asked Pope Francis to require that Georgetown implement Ex Corde Ecclesiae, the 1990 papal document requiring all Catholic colleges to teach “in communion” with the Church. The goal of Blatty’s petition had been to revoke Georgetown’s right to call itself Catholic unless it complies with Church teachings. Obviously, it failed.
Today, Georgetown is one of the most elite universities in the country. Committed to creating political players — most of whom who will remain unencumbered by Catholic teachings — Georgetown has made several missteps in its hiring history. In 2014, when Hunter Biden, the son of former President Joe Biden, was teaching at Georgetown as an adjunct professor, Breitbart reported, “Someone using the name of then-Vice President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden created a profile on the Ashley Madison dating website for extramarital affairs.” Worse, the Hunter Biden profile describing himself as a fan of “Anything Goes” with women was created on the Georgetown University campus during the time Hunter Biden was teaching there.
Following the Biden scandal, Georgetown hired disgraced FBI agent Peter Strzok in 2020 to teach an undergraduate course in “Counterintelligence and National Security” in the Walsh School of Foreign Service. Strzok, who was fired from the FBI in 2018 for “undermining the public confidence in the non-partisanship of the bureau and federal law enforcement,” is most famous for the embarrassing text messages documenting his extramarital affair in 2016 with co-worker Lisa Page and his pivotal role in the alleged coup to remove President Donald Trump from office. It is likely that Georgetown was hoping that the Strzok faculty appointment works out better than the Hunter Biden faculty fiasco.
Georgetown University’s appointment of Eduardo Peñalver as president is emblematic of a broader crisis facing Catholic higher education — a crisis not merely of leadership, but of fidelity to the Church’s mission. Georgetown University — as the first Catholic university in the country — is failing to maintain that mission and appears to have lost its soul.
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