By Carrie Gress
ROME, MARCH 7, 2008 (Zenit.org).- American Catholic universities have a vital role to play in the renewal of the faith, says Christendom College president, Timothy O'Donnell.
O'Donnell lead a delegation of 50 Christendom students, administrators, faculty, clergy and board members to Rome this week for a pilgrimage in honor of the school's 30th anniversary.
The college, based in Front Royal, Virginia, started out with just 26 undergraduates in 1977, and now has over 400 undergraduate and graduate students with additional campuses in Alexandria, Virginia and Rome. It is one of three Catholic colleges in the United States that does not accept any federal funding.
Some of the Christendom delegation met with Benedict XVI during the Wednesday audience where they asked for a unique item to be blessed. "We brought with us a block of marble that will be the new cornerstone for the addition to the college chapel. Since the Pope couldn't come to us, we brought it to him. But it was no small task to get it here," O'Donnell told ZENIT.
Later in the day, former Vatican spokesman Joaquín Navarro-Valls, Cardinal Bernard Law, Cardinal Francis Arinze, Scott Hahn and others attended a reception marking the 30th anniversary of the college's foundation.
About the Virginia-based college, O'Donnell said: "As we celebrate the past 30 years, we are also looking ahead to the next 30 years. Christendom has a vital role to play in the future of Catholic higher education. With much of the old Catholic world of Europe falling apart, the American Catholic university will be a major arena for the renewal of the 'Catholic identity' that 'Ex Corde Ecclesiae' calls for."
"Christendom," he continued, "was a pioneer in this effort and several other schools have joined us. We need to work together as we build a culture of life, educating young people with the truth, and preparing them to go out to the world and restore all things in Christ."
Christendom College will also host a Gala Dinner in Washington, D.C. on April 19 in honor of its 30th Anniversary. Cardinal Arinze and Navarro-Valls will both be in attendance as honorary chairmen for the event.
ZE08030707 - 2008-03-07
Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-21999?l=english
Christendom on Pilgrimage in Rome
U.S. College Marks 30th Anniversary
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