Fort Wayne’s careful financial planning has put it in a position for growth and success, according to its chief executive.Abortion-rights opponent Randall Terry staged a small rally Wednesday to encourage Bishop John M. D’Arcy to take further action to prevent President Obama from speaking at the University of Notre Dame’s commencement.
Terry, founder of the abortion-rights opponents group Operation Rescue, said he was grateful for D’Arcy’s statement last month that he would not attend the commencement ceremony. Obama’s support for abortion rights is among his stances that conflict with Catholic beliefs.
Standing outside the chancery office at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception on South Calhoun Street, Terry said he left a letter asking that D’Arcy, as the head of the Fort Wayne-South Bend Catholic Diocese, either remove or threaten to remove Notre Dame from the list of Catholic universities if it does not rescind its invitation for the president.
The letter also wants D’Arcy to force out the Rev. John I. Jenkins, university president. Other suggestions included the bishop leading a reparations Mass to pray for the sins of Notre Dame and the creation of an alternative commencement ceremony for graduating seniors.
D’Arcy said he received a note from Terry on Wednesday but added, "as you know, we have distanced ourselves from him."
Terry and his group planned a similar appearance in South Bend late Wednesday.
Rosa Salter Rodriguez of the Journal Gazette contributed to this story.
