Steubenville

Steubenville has come up several times recently in my reading - that is the Franciscan University of Steubenville.  This school has been sort of the epicenter of the evangelical / charismatic Catholic movement.

• I read a post by Sam Rocha (a graduate of Franciscan University of Steubenville) the other day responding to a Salon author who wrote about the horrible rape case in the city of Steubenville.  He criticized the author, who attended Franciscan University of Steubenville teen conferences, for mixing the city and the University conferences together in what he considered a cheap way.  His post was good, and I find myself a bit envious of those who attended strongly Catholic colleges and Universities since I did not.  Yes, I have seen criticisms of various types of Franciscan U by some grads who seem reliable, but overall I think it does a good job of helping Catholics become better Catholics, or even just staying Catholic, where most Catholic colleges do the exact opposite. 

• I also read that Franciscan University has a new president - Fr. Sean Sheridan:

"Before he entered the Franciscan Third Order Regular, he graduated in 1985 with a bachelor of science in pharmacy from the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy, working as a pharmacy training manager from 1984-1990. In 1990, he earned his juris doctor from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and spent the next 10 years as a practicing attorney in Sacramento and Pittsburgh, focusing on healthcare litigation, primarily with the representation of hospitals and physicians.


The Cresson, Pennsylvania, native entered the Franciscan Third Order Regular in 2000 and made his solemn profession of vows in 2005. He was ordained to the priesthood in December 2006. "

• I then received an email from the Dietrich Von Hildebrand Legacy Project detailing their new partnership with Franciscan University of Steubenville.

"In partnership with Franciscan University, the Legacy Project is developing programs uniquely oriented to the intellectual mission of a university community.


As the leading American institution for the study of Dietrich von Hildebrand and personalism in the spirit of John Henry Newman, Max Scheler, Karol Wojtyla, Romano Guardini, and other philosophical champions of human dignity, Franciscan University is the natural setting for the Legacy Project’s first academic center.


Two of the Legacy Project’s flagship programs have come to Franciscan University:

• Graduate Fellowship: During the academic year and summer, the Legacy Project gives financial awards to MA level students supporting their study of von Hildebrand and their collaboration with the Legacy Project.

• Summer Seminar: Our annual Summer Seminar will be held July 15-19, 2013 on the campus of Franciscan University, which provides accommodations to participants, and makes available its facilities and considerable resources, among which is one of only three complete copies of Dietrich von Hildebrand’s papers."


See the Legacy Project website for more info about this great man-

 "Founded in 2004 by Franciscan University alumnus John Henry Crosby, the Legacy Project seeks to preserve and promote the thought and witness of Dietrich von Hildebrand (1889-1977), seminal philosopher, ardent Christian, fierce foe of Nazism, and fervent champion of beauty. Von Hildebrand developed and enriched the Western philosophical tradition through many original insights. His conversion to Catholicism at the age of 24 opened new vistas and enabled him to write many profound works unfolding Catholic faith and morals."