The presidential candidate and US Senator goes to a conservative southern university. What happens? Torches and pitchforks? Naw. An outbreak of civility.
A thought experiment: that some avowedly fringe blog would invite someone from a distance to write. It happened here back in 2008. And the combox behaved. At Liberty Monday night, according to blogger Ashley McKinless:
This is the type of civil discourse our country so desperately needs. Instead of denigrating those of a different faith, Sanders asked them to take that faith seriously. For their part, the students and administration of Liberty University should be commended for welcoming a voice that was sure to challenge their political beliefs.
The blogosphere suffers terribly. There is more interest in swooping in for a ten second barb than a thoughtful and developed essay. The so-called faithful Catholic “citizens” might proclaim their counterculture on the surface. But they are soaked in the style of the times.
There is an unfortunate trend on campuses today to retract invitations from prominent speakers of every ideological stripe.
Well, yes. I worked with college students for seven years. I still recall a few protests when one of our peer ministers stocked the snack bar in the student lounge with Girl Scout cookies. Some campuses are populated with people who have yet to grow up. For twelve-thousand Liberty students, and the committee who invited Senator Sanders, clearly the growth spurt is accomplished.
Catholic Sensibility 