Princeton's Madison Program.

"Catholicism on Campus" is an interesting article on an important topic. Maurice Timothy Reidy's piece is marred, however, by errors about Princeton's James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions, of which I am a visiting fellow. He contends that the Madison Program fails to offer a balanced presentation of Catholicism at Princeton. This criticism only makes sense if the Madison Program is somehow responsible for presenting Catholicism at all, and so the article creates the impression that the Madison Program is a Catholic undertaking. This is not true. The Madison Program has no religious mission. None of the conferences it sponsors or cosponsors is about Catholicism. Most of the speakers it brings to campus are non-Catholics addressing non-Catholic topics. Most of its visiting fellows are not Catholic and are pursuing research that does not pertain to Catholicism. (Here I am an exception, since I am Catholic and am working on a study of the moral and political thought of John Paul II.) Reidy is entitled, of course, to argue that the Madison Program's activities are unduly colored by the "conservative" Catholicism of its founder and director, Robert George. But fairness to Princeton and George requires that Reidy advance this argument forthrightly and acknowledge the considerable evidence to the contrary.

Reidy also states that the Madison Program is "independent of the university." This is not true. The Madison Program is sponsored by the Department of Politics and is governed by an executive committee of faculty members drawn from the department. Incidentally, there are Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim members, as well as at least one avowed unbeliever. George alone of the eight is Catholic. Finally, Reidy reproduces the Nation's assertion that the Madison Program "functions in many ways as a vehicle for conservative interests," supporting "gatherings of movement activists" and "fellowships for ideologically correct visiting professors." A review of the program's activities--a listing of which is available on Princeton's Web site--would reveal the inaccuracy of this characterization.

CARSON HOLLOWAY

Princeton, N.J.

THE AUTHOR REPLIES:

The subject of Catholic campus ministry is too broad to cover in a single article. I chose to focus on elite secular schools because they have been targeted by conservative Catholic groups such as Opus Dei. Even if 30 percent of Catholic students at Princeton attend Mass regularly, they are only being exposed to part of the Catholic tradition. Students who are encouraged to wrestle with the breadth of Catholic thought are more likely to remain committed to the faith in the long term.

Nowhere in my article did I state that the Madison program is a Catholic undertaking. I noted it "explores questions of constitutional law and the role of religion in public life, among other issues," and that, as director, "[Robert George] has brought in a number of like-minded Catholics to speak." True, the Madison program has no formal obligation to sponsor a broad variety of Catholic speakers, but as an institution at a university that prizes the give-and-take of ideas, it ought to provide a more balanced perspective on the issues it chooses to address.

In his March 13 Nation article, Max Blumenthal describes the Madison Program as "largely autonomous." In the editing process, that characterization was transposed into "independent." I'm grateful for the correction. It should be noted, however, that according to Blumenthal "unlike most other academic centers on campus, the Madison Program accepts no endowment money from Princeton. The school, therefore, pays nothing for the services of Madison fellows." According to Blumenthal, "the Madison Program's refusal to accept a university endowment prevents the school from exercising leverage over it."

MAURICE TIMOTHY REIDY