This has been a troubled year for academic freedom at Catholic universities. On the one hand, some Catholic university presidents have stood up for the notion that there can be a productive dialogue between faith and reason, between doctrine and individual conviction. On the other hand, the actions of some Catholic officials reflect a time when such interchanges were suppressed. Two incidents highlight the latter trend. The Marquette University administration withdrew an offer of a deanship to a faculty member teaching at another Catholic institution—basing the change of mind on her scholarship on gay rights. The decision to withdraw the offer has negative ramifications for academic freedom. Had she already been serving at Marquette and been dismissed for the content of her scholarly publications, the AAUP would have called for a full hearing on the matter. At Seton Hall, the administration has questioned a faculty member’s right to teach a course on the history of marriage because of fears he might advocate gay marriage in the classroom. There too academic freedom is a victim. Seton Hall could well expect the instructor to distinguish between church doctrine and his own beliefs, but an instructor of the history of marriage might well desire to include comment on contemporary debates. The AAUP would support that instructor’s right to express his or her own views, and the right of the students to do so as well. The struggle to let light pass both ways through what has been called “the stained glass ceiling” is an ongoing one. We have a continuing interest in the results.
Cary Nelson
May 11, 2010