PDA

View Full Version : Fr. Graham addresses the crowd



coasterville95
01-08-2009, 11:57 PM
At the St. Louis game, in the under 12 timeout in the first half, an announcement was made to direct your attention to the court for a special announcement from Fr. Graham.

The announcement, for those who weren't there, was threefold.

1) He recognized a special group attending the game: a large group (over 100 I think) priests in attendance at the game.
2) That the Atthenaum also had a group there.
3) That our new Bishop was at the game, and then the spotlights shone upon the new bishop who was watching the game from the president's box.

I think its kind of cool that one of his first public appearances is at a sporting event in what will be his diocese Jesuit university. So they introduce him, a nice round of applause, then Fr. Graham mentions that Pilarchyk will be leaving next summer - is it just me or was there a loud ovation at that announcement, even more so than to recognize the new bishop.

Later on they maee another announcement plugging the nations 28 Jesuit schools, and how games like the one tonight help foster a sense of community amongst them.

Juice
01-09-2009, 12:01 AM
So they introduce him, a nice round of applause, then Fr. Graham mentions that Pilarchyk will be leaving next summer - is it just me or was there a loud ovation at that announcement, even more so than to recognize the new bishop.

It wasn't just you. People were a lot louder when they announced his retirement. I personally laughed pretty hard, and so did my dad.

I guess that is what happens when you poorly oversee a priest-sex scandal and piss a lot of people off in the process.

GuyFawkes38
01-09-2009, 12:44 AM
The whole thing seemed slightly awkward and forced.

I'm sure Fr. Graham feels nervous about the change in archbishop and the tensions it might bring. So he opted for this gracious public display (right in front of Majerus who's had his own problems with the catholic hierarchy).

Pablo's Brother
01-09-2009, 07:43 AM
We are a Catholic school and Fr. Graham runs the show. Notice nobody (even the refs) tried to hurry him along when it appeared the time out had expired. I thought it was a class act and well received by the fans. I am also counting it as Sunday mass.

Masterofreality
01-09-2009, 07:50 AM
On CBS College Sports last night, the commentators were talking about that the game was some kind of "Jesuit Classics" game. They made the point about the fact that there were 28 Jesuit colleges playing basketball- 3 in the A-10.

I never really understood what the point was, other than that it was some way to expose the Jesuit connection more. Probably the reason for the priests, Bishop and others being in attendance.

pickledpigsfeet
01-09-2009, 07:54 AM
I knew for sure we were going to win when Fr. Graham announced that there were over 150 priests visiting on our behalf. Meanwhile, St. Louis had Majerus who is a bath in orange paint and some black lines short of being a human basketball.

SM#24
01-09-2009, 07:57 AM
Actually, 4 in the A10 (X, SLU, Fordham, St. Joe's). They mentioned that 90 games will be played between Jesuit schools this year. That number seemed high, I suppose it could be true.

The PBP guy mentioned that 4 Jesuit schools were ranked (I came up with X, Gonzaga, BC and Gtown), however as the PBP guy was casually mentioning BC and Gtown, Greg Anthony chimed in with Notre Dame.

Juice
01-09-2009, 08:38 AM
Your points about the Jesuit schools is correct but the large majority of the priests at the game were not Jesuits. They were just Catholic.

ATL Muskie
01-09-2009, 09:04 AM
I eagerly wait a Fr. Graham announcement concerning the Fr. Hoff Classic, a tournament featuring Jesuit schools to raise money for cancer research.

xeus
01-09-2009, 09:07 AM
I was disappointed Fr Graham felt it necessary to mention Archbishop Pilarczyk's retirement. Surely he anticipated what type of response that would receive, and I thought it was unnecessary. He very easily could have welcomed the new Bishop and left it at that. Say what you will about Pilarczyk and his handling of certain things, but I was embarrassed when so many people applauded his stepping down.

Also, the priests in attendance were diocesan, not Jesuit.

90 games between Jesuit schools does seem like an awful lot. I wonder if that tally mistakenly includes Providence, ND, Villanova and/or Dayton as Jesuit schools.

coasterville95
01-09-2009, 09:34 AM
Xeus - that was my reaction. Sure, its okay to think what you will about the guy - but I thought that decorum dictated you keep such opinions to yourself, or at least not manifest them in such displays of ill will in a public setting. Imagine if the new bishop would have stepped asside revealing our current bishop was also in that box, or even if he wasn't in the box, with 150+ area priests in attandance who is to say he wasn't seated with them in whatever section they had.

ATL Muskie
01-09-2009, 10:05 AM
Phil Martelli will issue a statement later today commending the Cintas Center crowd for not booing the archbishop.

Emp
01-09-2009, 10:38 AM
Im confused about the "ovation" for Pilarczyk. You are interpreting as in effect disapporoval of his tenure, right?

I thought that of all the bishops confronting the pedophelia and sexual abuse issues, he handled it "least offensively", if that is possible. I disagree with the amount of the fund for claimants, but he was way ahead of the curve in responding.

for a personal perspective..........I had a personal experience representing a teacher with four kids who was fired at midyear by a zealot parish priest. The case languished, went up and down on appeal. Eventually Pilarczyk replaced his predecessor. The bishop promptly met with the teacher, no attorneys, asked the teacher how he had been damaged, and had a check written that included his attorney fees. I thought it was remarkable, ethical, and in all the best senses, christian.

Emp
01-09-2009, 10:40 AM
Phil Martelli will issue a statement later today commending the Cintas Center crowd for not booing the archbishop.

great memory on that one ATL. Touche.

Cheesehead
01-09-2009, 11:15 AM
Im confused about the "ovation" for Pilarczyk. You are interpreting as in effect disapporoval of his tenure, right?

I thought that of all the bishops confronting the pedophelia and sexual abuse issues, he handled it "least offensively", if that is possible. I disagree with the amount of the fund for claimants, but he was way ahead of the curve in responding.

for a personal perspective..........I had a personal experience representing a teacher with four kids who was fired at midyear by a zealot parish priest. The case languished, went up and down on appeal. Eventually Pilarczyk replaced his predecessor. The bishop promptly met with the teacher, no attorneys, asked the teacher how he had been damaged, and had a check written that included his attorney fees. I thought it was remarkable, ethical, and in all the best senses, christian.

It was definitely a sarcastic cheer; the crowd was displaying it's displeasure for Pilarcyck. Maybe in slight poor taste, but I found it to be funny. He may be a "man of God" but Pilarcyck is lucky he is not sitting in prison somewhere.

coasterville95
01-09-2009, 12:02 PM
I'm not familiar with the Phil Martelli reference. Care to share the backstory on that one?

And yes, it was definitely a "Thank God he's leaving" cheer, not a "Congrats on your years of service" cheer.

blobfan
01-09-2009, 12:41 PM
I was struck by both the crowds clapping for Pilarczyk's retirement and that the SLU fans didn't shut up until Fr. Graham was almost done talking.

bobbiemcgee
01-09-2009, 02:01 PM
Congrats to ND, the newest jebbie school.