Flash: Former Laetare Medalist Judge John T. Noonan to deliver address at Notre Dame’s Commencement in lieu of Mary Ann Glendon

From Notre Dame's Office of News & Info:

Judge John T. Noonan Jr., the 1984 recipient of the Laetare Medal, has accepted an invitation to deliver an address in the spirit of the award at Notre Dame’s 164th University Commencement Ceremony on May 17. His speech will be in lieu of awarding the medal this year.

“In thinking about who could bring a compelling voice, a passion for dialogue, great intellectual stature, and a deep commitment to Catholic values to the speaking role of the Laetare Medalist – especially in these unusual circumstances – it quickly became clear that an ideal choice is Judge Noonan,” said Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., president of Notre Dame. “This commencement ceremony, more than anything else, is a celebration of our students and their families. Judge Noonan will join with President Obama and other speakers in that celebration, sending them from our campus and into the world with sound advice and affirmation.

“Since Judge Noonan is a previous winner of the Laetare Medal, we have decided, upon reflection, to not award the medal this year.”

And way down at the bottom, as an "afterthought" conclusion:

"Mary Ann Glendon, Learned Hand Professor of Law at Harvard University and former U.S. ambassador to the Vatican, was selected as the 2009 Laetare Medalist but declined the honor."

My quick take:

• "Especially in these unusual circumstances." I love it when press releases fail to acknowledge, then simultaneously presume the reader to know, what is happening.
• Fr. Jenkins has discovered an inventive way to avoid "re-gifting" the Laetare medal, after he haughtily (and I argued, in a knee-jerk manner) claimed he would give the award to someone else. Hello, Plan C.
• I'll leave it for others to evaluate what we can expect from Noonan. What's his track record? I'm pretty sure he (falsely) believes Catholics are free to disagree with the Church about contraception.
• Fr. Jenkins is not even trying to touch why Mary Ann Glendon would refuse Notre Dame's highest honor. I think he's learned a very painful lesson about putting words in other people's mouths.
• At the same time, note at least two little jabs Jenkins sneaks in: 1} he says Noonan has a "passion for dialogue" ("unlike some people," you can almost hear Jenkins say). 2} Jenkins also claims that commencement is "more than anything else, a celebration of our students and their families" - he is trying to redefine what commencement is (and omitting the honorary degree part entirely) in order to avoid the blow being leveled at him by (now 55) bishops - namely, that Notre Dame is giving a platform to Obama and honoring him. This decision/press release represent a hardening Notre Dame response to criticism.