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U.S. Senator Rick Santorum Wows Graduates at Christendom College

Challenges grads to "be a radical, to be a rebel, to rebel against the popular culture"

FRONT ROYAL, Virginia, May 28, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Republican Senator Rick Santorum received an extended standing ovation after his powerful commencement address May 17 at Christendom College in Front Royal, Virginia.

The College, specializing in a traditional Catholic liberal arts curriculum, was a natural fit for the outspokenly pro-life, pro-family Senator. Santorum has recently been a prime target of the American liberal establishment because of his comments about a Supreme Court case on the Texas sodomy law. (See http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2003/apr/03042405.html)

The Senator extensively referred to the Texas controversy in his address in the context of his actions taken as faithful to the traditional philosophical foundation of natural law.

Santorum eloquently explained that on the Texas case "I tried to articulate the nature of marriage, the good of marriage. In a few short sentences, I tried to summarize the considerations of philosophies working in tradition stretching back to at least Aristotle, the tradition of natural law. The natural law tradition is not a religious tradition, in the sense that it is based on Divine Revelation. Rather, it's a tradition of philosophical reflection, on the nature of human beings, the kind of creatures we are. The natural law represents guideposts which direct us to the pursuits of happiness, for happiness is the end which natural law has in mind for all of us."

He continued that "Yet now, the very act of referring to this tradition, of upholding it, or dare say, making any defense of the moral consensus of every civilization in human history, is often characterized as 'hate speech'". Santorum called modern universities to account for betraying the traditional "pursuit of truth", intolerance to a diversity of ideas and their opposition to the traditional family.

The new graduates were challenged by the unusually principled politician "to be a radical, to be a rebel, to rebel against the popular culture". "Your task will not be an easy one", he emphasized. "You must overcome the temptation of silence; the temptation of silence in the face of frequent hostile common opinion."

Senator Santorum closed his address quoting Brownson, "Ask not what your age wants, but what it needs, not what it will reward, but what, without which, it cannot be saved; and that go and do; and find your reward in the consciousness of having done your duty, and above all in the reflection, that you have been accounted to suffer somewhat for mankind."

Student Paul Jalsevac, familiar to long-time LifeSite readers from the reports of his amazing recovery from severe injuries in a car accident at the college, was one of the day's graduates. Two of the surgeons who originally treated Paul, Dr. Jack Landis of Front Royal's Warren Memorial Hospital and Dr. Ronnie Benoit of Inova Fairfax Hospital near Washington, were present and acknowledged and received a standing ovation.

See the complete text of Senator Santorum's address at:
http://www.christendom.edu/news/ricksantorum.shtml

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