Last month in Catalyst, we reported on an icon of Mary that was placed in the chapel at Muhlenberg College, accompanied by a statement about Christian reluctance to accept Mary’s Jewishness and an attack on Pope Pius XII. William Donohue wrote a letter to Muhlenberg’s president, Dr. Arthur Taylor, expressing his concerns. The reply he got was more startling than the subject of his criticism.
In Dr. Taylor’s letter to Donohue, he said that for “the Catholic League to try to force your point of view on us violates our freedoms and brings the Catholic Church to a position which it held centuries ago.” (Our emphasis.) He closed by saying, “We will not respond to any further communications in this matter.”
Donohue responded with a news release saying that “I am absolutely astounded that any college president would actually make such a bigoted remark. Had this happened on a radio or TV show, it would have been equally inexcusable, but at least it might have been understandable as a slip of the lip. But to commit oneself in writing to such an anti-Catholic comment is mind-boggling.” The league made sure to contact the local media in Allentown, Pennsylvania, the home of Muhlenberg.
League members who would like to write to Dr. Taylor can do so at the following address: Muhlenberg College, 2400 Chew Street, Allentown, PA 18104. Muhlenberg is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church.
