SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Mary Ann Glendon, former U.S. ambassador to the Vatican, will be honored by the University of Notre Dame with its Laetare Medal.
The school announced Sunday it will present Glendon with the medal — considered the most prestigious honor for American Catholics — during its May 17 commencement, at which President Barack Obama will deliver the commencement address.
Since 1883, the Laetare Medal has been awarded annually to a Catholic “whose genius has ennobled the arts and sciences, illustrated the ideals of the church and enriched the heritage of humanity.”
Mary Ann Glendon is terrific and deserves the honor and will impress all. (And she shouldn’t be relegated to a sidestory in a mess of a story.) I suspect administrators at Notre Dame hope this makes up for the Obama invitation. It doesn’t.