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University Called on to Fire Prof who Pledged to Publicly Desecrate Holy Communion

"That is hate-speech, and he should be fired for it"

MORRIS, Minnesota, July 11, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Following a blog rant by Paul Zachary Myers, a professor at the University of Minnesota Morris, in which he announced his intentions to publicly desecrate the Eucharist, Judie Brown, president of American Life League has called upon university administrators to fire him.

"It's one thing for someone to express an opinion on a matter," said Brown. "But Paul Myers specifically called on his readers to participate in a deliberate and malicious act of violence against the very center of Catholic worship.  That is hate-speech, and he should be fired for it."

Myers was reacting to a recent incident surrounding a University of Central Florida student who walked out of a Catholic Mass with the Holy Eucharist and held it hostage for several days before returning it to a priest. Myers said he was upset that the Catholic League had criticized the student for his actions.

In his July 8th blog post, entitled, "It's a Frackin' Cracker," Myers asked, "Can anyone out there score me some consecrated communion wafers?"

The professor continued, "If any of you would be willing to do what it takes to get me some, or even one, and mail it to me, I'll show you sacrilege, gladly, and with much fanfare. I won't be tempted to hold it hostage…but will instead treat it with profound disrespect and heinous cracker abuse, all photographed and presented here on the web."

"When a caricature of Muhammad or report of a flushed Koran surfaces, there is rioting in the streets and plenty of press coverage," said Brown. "But when someone actually calls for physical violence against the most precious Catholic Sacrament, it is ignored."

According to the university's policy statement, "contents of all electronic pages must be consistent with University of Minnesota policies."

"Under their code of conduct, which is one of the university's policies, 'when dealing with others, faculty ... must be respectful, fair, and civil,'" said Brown. "What Myers posted was profoundly hateful toward the person of Christ, who is truly present in the Eucharist. We fully expect that the University of Minnesota will follow its own policies and take the appropriate action."

Catholic League president Bill Donohue said he was shocked by Myers' comments and is also acting to remedy the situation.

"Accordingly, we are contacting the President and the Board of Regents to see what they are going to do about this matter. Because the university is a state institution, we are also contacting the Minnesota legislature," he said.

"It is hard to think of anything more vile than to intentionally desecrate the Body of Christ. We look to those who have oversight responsibility to act quickly and decisively," concluded Donohue.

To contact University President Robert Bruininks:
Email:    bruin001@umn.edu

To contact Paul Zachary Myers:
Email:    myersp@morris.umn.edu
Office Phone:    (320)-589-6343

For more information:
University of Minnesota Morris: Paul Zachary Myers Blog
http://sci2135d1-pm.morris.umn.edu/

WFTV 9: 'Body of Christ' Snatched from Church, Held Hostage by UCF Student (07.09.2008)
http://www.wftv.com/news/16798008/detail.html

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