Report from Rome is a publication sent to friends, benefactors and alumni/ae of the Gregorian University, the Biblical Institute and the Oriental Institute. Here are a few highlights from our most recent issue. If you'd like to see highlights from previous issues, please click here.
February 2008: Contents
Pope Creates New Cardinals, Nine from the Gregorian Consortium
Foundation Vice Chairman William R. Grant Passes Away
Former Trustee A. Gregory McCarthy Passes Away
Newly Elected Head of Society of Jesus is Gregorian Alumnus
|
| Foundation Trustee John Halleron (left) introduces the authors, from left to right, Fr. Robert O'Toole, S.J., Fr. Thomas Casey, S.J., Fr. Keith Pecklers, S.J., and Mary Higgins Clark. |
A Word from the President . . .
Pope Benedict XVI Creates New Cardinals, Nine from the Gregorian Consortium
His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI created twenty-three new Cardinals on November 24, 2007, at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Nine are graduates of Gregorian University Consortium institutions:
His Eminence Urbano Navarrete, S.J., is Emeritus Professor, Faculty of Canon Law. He studied Canon Law 1954-1957, was Dean of the Faculty 1974-1980, 1986-1995, and Rector of the University 1980-1986.
Cardinal Leonardo Sandri is Prefect of the Congregation for Oriental Churches. He studied Canon Law 1970-1973 at the Gregorian University.
Cardinal Raffaele Farina is the Archivist and Librarian of the Holy Roman Church. He studied Church History 1958-1962.
Cardinal Oswald Gracias is Archbishop of Bombay (India). He studied Canon Law 1980-1982.
 |
| Cardinal Urbano Navarrete, S.J., at the reception for the newly created cardinals. |
Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega is Archbishop of Monterrey (Mexico). He studied Theology 1976-1978.
Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo is Archbishop of Galveston-Houston (U.S.A.) and studied Theology 1972-1975.
Cardinal Odilio Pedro Scherer is Archbishop of São Paulo (Brazil) and studied Theology 1982-1984.
Cardinal Giovanni Coppa is an emeritus Apostolic Nunzio. He studied Classical Languages 1952-1953.
Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko is the President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity. He studied Social Sciences 1972-1977.
At a reception for the new cardinals to greet friends and wellwishers, Cardinal Navarrete said, "When I was kneeling before the Roman Pontiff the only thing I said to him was, 'Thank you for the trust that you have placed in me.'" The cardinal added, "In my heart there was also the idea that it is not only the trust that has been placed in me personally, but also the confidence that it implies in the institution in which I have worked all my life, which is the Gregorian University."
Foundation Vice Chairman William R. Grant Passes Away
 |
| William R. Grant |
William R. Grant, a tireless champion of the Gregorian University Foundation and its Vice Chairman, was called home to God on April 15, 2007 after a year's illness from metastic melanoma.
"Bill," as he was known, was a member of the Foundation's board for 18 years and became its Vice Chairman. Like his friend and fellow trustee, the late Jim Miscoll, Bill referred to the schools of the Gregorian University Consortium as "the intellectual West Point of the Catholic Church."
In 1952, Bill joined Smith Barney as an analyst, working his way up to Head of Research in the late '50s and continuing his upward climb to President of Smith Barney & Co. in 1971. He later became Vice Chairman of Smith Barney, Harris Upham & Co. and was a frequent guest on Wall Street Week on television.
After a dozen years as the president and/or chairman of MacKay-Shields and New York Life, Bill co-founded Galen Associates with two former colleagues from Smith Barney in 1990. Galen specialized in financing health care companies. Bill retired from Galen in 2006.
He served on the boards of a dozen public companies as well as the boards of the Mary Flagler Cary Trust, Union College, Cold Spring Harbor Research Labs and The New York Botanical Garden. Bill was also a member of the Order of Malta.
To his beloved wife Adele, his three grown children and their families we express our deep sympathy. Bill, may God be as good to you as you were to us.
Former Trustee A. Gregory McCarthy Passes Away
A. Gregory McCarthy, a tireless champion of the Gregorian University Foundation and a trustee on its board from 1994-2004, was called home to God on August 28, 2007. The cause of death was pancreatic cancer.
Greg was also a former board chairman of Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities (FADICA) from 1992 to 1996. "He was an extraordinary chairman and board member of FADICA and will be remembered not only for his smart leadership and deep faith, but for his kindness to the stranger," said Francis J. Butler, FADICA's president.
Greg was the principal officer of the Loyola Foundation for more than four decades and also worked with the National Conference of Catholic Bishops. Reflecting on his experience with the church as a major donor, Greg remarked at a New York City based conference of FADICA's members in 1995 that "despite the human weakness and structural imperfections we may at times encounter, we do have in the Church, the promise of God's continuing presence, and that is a very hopeful note."
Greg remained a great supporter of the Foundation's work after he left the Board. In a March 11 , 2004 letter he remarked: "From the time that Fr. Dressman first introduced me to the Gregorian, I am most grateful for the wonderful trips to Rome with wonderful people and the great Jesuits I have met through my affiliation with the Foundation.
"I always point out two things to people about this particular charitable work: 1) the commitment, expertise and loyalty of the Foundation's board and its Jesuit officers and 2) the dedication and saintliness of the Jesuits who teach or administer at the three institutes of the Consortium."
Greg is survived by his wife, Jane, his sister Denise (Denny) Hattler and her husband Carl, Greg's son A. Gregory McCarthy IV and his wife Karen, his daughter Ann S. McCarthy Farrell, and several nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews. Greg was also the father of the late Kathleen Patricia McCarthy.
Newly Elected Head of Society of Jesus is Gregorian Alumnus
 |
| Most Reverend Adolfo Nicolás, S.J. |
As we go to press we are pleased to announce the news that the 35th General Congregation of the Society of Jesus has elected the Most Reverend Adolfo Nicolás, S.J. as its 30th Superior General.
He was the President of the Jesuit Conference of East Asia and Oceania and the former Provincial of Japan. He is now Father General to nearly 20,000 Jesuits worldwide, including 2,900 in the United States, and the 29th successor to St. Ignatius Loyola who founded the Jesuits in 1540.
Fr. Nicolás, 71, born near Madrid, has studied and served the Church since he was 24 years old. He is a professional theologian with a broad and deep experience of the Far East.
He received his doctorate in theology from the Gregorian University in 1971.
A full story on him, his life and his vision will be in the next issue of Report From Rome.
The Foundation named four new board members at its December 2007 meeting: Maureen Scannell Bateman, a former trustee of Fordham University; Adele Grant, a trustee of the Convent of the Sacred Heart in New York and wife of the late Bill Grant, former vice-chairman of the Foundation’s board; Robert J. McGinn, a former director of the American Hospital Istanbul; and John J. Murphy, Jr., a former director and chairman of the board of the Jesuit Nativity Mission Center in NewYork. (A full story on these new board members will appear in the next issue of Report From Rome.)
 |
| Mary Higgins Clark, center, with Bob McGinn and his wife Barbara |
On June 14, 2007, Foundation Trustee John Halleron and his wife, Becky, Trustee Peggy Hassett, and Trustee Ellen Shafer and her husband, Bob, hosted an event on behalf of the Gregorian University Foundation at the New York Yacht Club called: "Authors' Night: A Dialogue on Our Church: Present and Future."
Bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark, Honorary Chairman of the Foundation, moderated a discussion with three Jesuit authors from the schools of the Gregorian University Consortium:
Rev. Thomas G. Casey, S.J., author of Music of Pure Love: Where Angels Gladly Tread and professor of philosophy at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He is also the author of Life and Soul: New Light on a Sublime Mystery and Humble and Awake: Coping with our Comatose Culture.
Rev. Keith F. Pecklers, S.J., author of Worship: A Primer in Christian Ritual and Professor of Liturgy at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and Professor of Liturgical History at the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of San Anselmo. His recent books include Dynamic Equivalence: The Living Language of Christian Worship, Worship, and The Unread Vision: The Liturgical Movement in the United States of America 1926-1955.
Rev. Robert F. O'Toole, S.J., author of Luke's Presentation of Jesus - A Christology and the President of the Gregorian University Foundation. Fr. Bob taught at St. Louis University for 17 years and in 1991 moved to the Biblical Faculty at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome, where he was also Superior of the community and then Rector of the Institute. He has published four books and more than 50 articles on biblical topics.
A Word from the President . . .
Dear Friends,
As I looked over the impressive list of benefactors, I praised God for your willingness to be the caring and generous agents of his loving support for the Gregorian Consortium, the Pontifical Gregorian University (the "Greg"), the Pontifical Biblical Institute ("Biblicum") and the Pontifical Oriental Institute ("Orientale"). Your universal view of the Church and its concerns and needs truly benefit our students half of whom come from developing countries to receive the kind of education they need to serve their fellow citizens, especially their fellow Catholics, as Jesus teaches.
Often we have said that the Gregorian Consortium is training leaders for the Church, and you may have wondered whether we, as sometimes happens in fundraising, were exaggerating. However, when you read the first page of this issue of Report from Rome and learned that nine of the twenty-three new cardinals are our graduates, you can appreciate the accuracy of our claim. More Catholics need to know of the excellent academic education and traditionally Roman Catholic formation the Greg, Biblicum and the Oriental provide for their students and so of their noteworthy service of the Church.
All universities have need of fundraising, and this is all the more true of the Gregorian University Consortium. Our alumni have outstanding integrity, but their faithful ministries in the Church will never make them wealthy. Nor do the Gregorian Consortium institutions have large endowments, yet they must keep tuition low to be at the disposition of deserving students.
So, I ask you, our good friends and concerned benefactors, to continue to support us and the very talented students we have the privilege of representing. Please consider putting us in your will; and if you want to learn about planned giving, do get in contact with our Vice President for Development, Mr. Chris Reilly. Alumni could reflect whether their parish might be willing to assist us. Our students definitely need tuition assistance; but our institutions likewise need help with the costs of a student's education which tuition does not cover. The Greg covers 40% of these costs; the Biblicum and the Oriental 60%.
Please accept our most grateful thanks for your generous goodness and for keeping us among your charitable priorities. May God be good to you as you have been and are to us.
 |
| Colloquium guests in the cortile of the Biblicum. |
The Institutions of the Gregorian University Consortium welcomed the Foundation's 2007 Colloquium to Rome from October 21-27. The Colloquium was hosted by Mr. Peter P. Mullen, chairman of the Foundation, and Rev. Robert F. O'Toole, S.J., Foundation President.
The Colloquium guests attended academic programs at the Biblicum, the Gregorian and the Orientale, enjoying lunch with the Jesuit Community at each school.
On Wednesday, the Pope greeted the Colloquium guests at his weekly audience in St. Peter's Square. After the Holy Father's audience, guests toured the excavations below St. Peter's Basilica. The Vatican website says of the excavations, "Due to the need to give careful attention to the conservation of this irreplaceable historical-archaeological site, wherein is preserved the original Grave of St. Peter, only about 200 visitors per day are permitted in the necropolis."
 |
| Her Majesty's Ambassador to the Holy See, Mr. Francis Campbell, and Billie Mullen. |
The young seminarian who guided some of the Colloquium guests was a student at the Gregorian, and the tour took a little longer than normal as he enthusiastically reported on his studies there.
On the social side of the Colloquium calendar, guests attended a choral concert by Il Coro del Lunedì, followed by dinner at Rome's Hunt Club. Other events included a reception at the residence of Her Majesty's Ambassador to the Holy See, Mr. Francis Campbell.
Once again this year, our program ended with a quiet luncheon with students of the institutions, several of whom gave a brief and touching presentation about why they had come to study at the Gregorian.
 |
 |
| Above left, Peter and Arlene Haleas at the Gala Dinner at Palazzo Ferrajoli. Above right, Her Majesty's Ambassador to the Holy See, Mr. Francis Campbell; and John and Helen Horstmann. Right, Margy Reilly with Rev. Robert Geisinger, S.J. Below left, Rev. Keith Pecklers, S.J. and Foundation Trustee Peggy Hassett. Below Right, Bill and Mary Ryan. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Above left, Bill and Christina Staudt. Above right, Anne Eagan, Fr. Pecklers, Becky Halleron, and Foundation Trustee Bill Eagan. Below, from left to right, Rev. Robert O'Toole, S.J., Foundation President with Cardinal William J. Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and Foundation Chairman Peter Mullen. |
|
 |
|
 |
|
| Above, Cardinal Levada, addresses the Colloquium guests and Gregorian Univeristy Consortium faculty at the Gala Dinner at Palazzo Ferrajoli. | |
If you're interested in highlights from our previous issues, please click here.