The Catholic intellectual life cannot be exercised without the give and take of lively debate and that is what The Rambler intends to provide Christendom. The Rambler is here to give any member of the student body a free forum to convey his ideas.

We are here to promote free discourse and the exchange of ideas, because the ability to assimilate knowledge and truths in no way guarantees intellectual finesse. Our intellectual capability and grasp of Truth grows only stronger through the test of debate, where we must make an argument to show what we believe is true and worthy of belief.

In a sense Christendom lacks the beneficial diversity of larger college campuses where Catholic students are forced to learn how to defend and persuade other of the intellectual merit of their ideas. We do not have this challenge. Almost everyone here is Catholic; we have no radical atheists, committed evangelicals, or cultural liberals challenging our foundational beliefs.

We ought to develop a healthy culture of lively and respectful debate at Christendom.  One fact we should know is that the idea of Catholic culture allows for far more diversity and less homogeneity than we realize. Just take a look at the liturgical diversity of the Church all over the world: Roman, Byzantine, Chaldean, Melkite, Maronite, etc. All these are Catholic, but express the Church’s diversity. In a similar way, we are Catholic, but can hold to different ideas for the sake of pursuing the truth guided by the Catholic faith and defend it with reason.

This ought to mean that we can have disagreements over politics, economics, history, philosophy, theology, liturgy, etc. without coming to blows or calling into question our opponent’s Catholicism. One case in point is last issue’s article by John Connolly on the French Revolution. He contended that Catholic principles were inherent in the beginnings of the Revolution, which deserved the guiding influence of the Catholic Church and not its utter rejection. Sadly some have questioned Connolly’s Catholicism; one even said Connolly was “dangerous to the community.” A case can be made that Connolly’s ideas may be refuted in the Declaration on the Rights of Man, but it is sheer intellectual laziness to doubt the faith of one of the most orthodox Catholics I know or say I should censor his opinions! If they have no merit, then properly refute the points and make him defend or amend his position.

We cannot be intellectuals and at the same time hold that our souls should be in danger by encountering the wrong ideas. God made us men, not turtles. We have a duty to use real rhetoric and demonstrate that Truth is the best product in the marketplace of ideas.

Last week, Christendom College celebrated its 30th anniversary. We had a stirring convocation, honored three great leaders of the revival of Catholic orthodoxy in academia, celebrated the Holy Sacrifice with Archbishop Burke of St. Louis, and concluded the evening with a stirring musical performance by opera singer and alumna Imelda Bogue, ’96, which included works by Dr. Poterack. What a triumphant and  joyous celebration of Christendom, which, when founded 30 years ago, had such an uncertain future!

Did anyone, however, take note of the wings of empty chairs and the gaps in the middle of the audience? Or the 62 empty chairs set up in the Chapel? A subtle undercurrent of sadness—that others could not, or perhaps, would not share in the College’s joy—ran through the celebrations. Regrettable also was the noted absence of certain founding faculty whose presence could have raised to far greater heights the College’s exultation.  

Let us for a moment dwell on what the College intended to accomplish with this convocation. Christendom desired this convocation, not to glorify itself, but to honor these men and thank them for their selfless sacrifices. Fr. Scanlon, Dr. McArthur, and Dr. Carroll all did everything possible to make real a vision to restore orthodox Catholic academia. They gambled their time and energies to give new generations an authentic Catholic education that would assist, and not destroy their Catholic faith.  

Dr. Carroll is loved so much by the College for the hard work he has labored to do for the Church. While pain and old age ask that he rest, he instead continues to work to complete a six volume history of Christendom that he knows he may not have the time to finish.

This College has praised these men because it knows we stand on the shoulders of giants. More colleges now have sprung up thanks to their inspiring faith and example. They dared to take on the intellectual and spiritual rot festering at Catholic universities and give future generations an education that would exceed what was offered at these established universities, teaching young Catholics how to think and how to live a life with Christ. This extraordinary triumvirate built this dream brick by brick over the past 30 years, when everything seemed so antagonistic to success.

That leaves us with a future to lose. Even now two fashionable sentiments run through the student body: the first, a destructive vindictive cynicism; the second, a comfortable complacency that fails to appreciate the sacrifices of the past and does little work to perpetuate the future. With poisonous influence, the cynic injures this student body by carping and criticizing to no end the faculty, the administration, and the quality of the student body, when he could instead dedicate his energies to developing the good of the College and striving valiantly to remedy by constructive efforts what he perceives is lacking. The cynic’s greatest sin is that he has the capability to give so much good, but does nothing about it. And this, too, is the great sin of the complacent.

We must not deceive ourselves with the notion that what good we have today will perpetuate itself in the future without our efforts. The Rambler, The Stream, Legion of Mary, Shield of Roses, indeed, the college itself, all depend on the generosity and enthusiasm of new generations wanting to make Christendom and themselves better. However right now many groups (The Rambler included, if I may now make all of this personal) are drying up without energetic, idealistic, and ambitious freshmen and sophomores willing to step forward to carry the torch. The Rambler cannot hope to continue unless the underclassmen make it their own. In one year, all the seniors writing here will have graduated. What then?

We need underclassmen to step forward, to become leaders, to continue the Christendom legacy, not only in regards to The Rambler, but everything that this college stands for; and we need upperclassmen who are willing to lead the way.

Christendom College now depends on us and our Christian courage to offer our best, to rise above the rocky past,  to not give in to cynicism and complacency, and to strive bravely for a brighter future.

"All good times must come to an end,” the old saying goes. This is a pessimistic phrase, however (I mean, even more pessimistic than it appears at face value). After all, all the truism is really saying is that all things end, including good ones. Presumably, therefore, not only must all good times come to an end, but also all absolutely wretched times. You never hear anyone going around saying, “all absolutely wretched times must come to an end,” though. This thought comes to mind as I announce my retirement as editor-in-chief of The Rambler.

That’s hyperbole of course, and at least in part an outright lie. Editing The Rambler wasn’t always the worst experience of my life, and, further, just because I’m officially stepping down as editor-in-chief doesn’t mean that I’m really going to escape the thing once and for all. The siren song calls, and I’m sure that I will go on working for The Rambler as much as always – albeit in a different capacity – until the very moment I graduate (and probably for a little while beyond that). Nevertheless, there it is. I’m no longer editor-in-chief. The little box on the inside of the cover page says so.  Peter J. Smith is. Poor Peter.

John Jalsevac and Peter Smith

(Alright, alright, I’ll put off the cynicism for a few minutes. It’s hard you know. I have Senioritis.)

I am, though, very pleased and grateful to have Peter to take over as editor. All joking aside, it is difficult to find someone with sufficient qualifications, and enough sheer dog-gone determination to be willing to do something like be editor of The Rambler. Even the finest college journals are often deep-sixed simply by not having the key staff to ensure continuity.

Peter does have the qualifications, and he does have the chutzpah (what a stupid word) necessary to keep The Rambler going; and that is comforting. Anyone who has read The Wanderer in the last year and a bit has seen numerous articles (many of them front page), written by Peter Smith. In fact, in the current issue of The Wanderer, Peter has two articles, one of them front page. All of these, however, were originally written for LifeSiteNews, for which Peter has worked since leaving Christendom. All told, he has written some 300 news articles since leaving Christendom on countless issues, involving hours and hours of interviews. The upshot is, he knows journalism, at least more so than your average college student.

No doubt you have already encountered Peter’s manic grin, as of a crazed Leprechaun, or encountered him in some secluded corner of the campus furiously playing his concertina, smoking his pipe. Peter is more than a journalist; he is an artist through and through, which is simply a nice way of saying that he’s totally loony. My first substantial encounter with our new editor was when we both performed in Hamlet in the spring semester of our freshman year. I was playing Hamlet, and he, Polonius. Peter was brilliant. This performance, however, was no accident; as I observed at the time - and took inspiration from - it was the result of thoughtful craftsmanship, combined with a deep passion for his part, and for the art. The following spring, in the role of Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Peter actually seemed to outdo his work as Polonius. I was the assistant-director for that show, and by the time the show went on stage, I had run out of advice to give him. In my several year friendship with Peter, I have learned that this is how he works – into everything he does he brings a thoughtfulness, combined with a vehement passion, all in an attempt to find perfection.

While Peter still has much to learn (as we all do), and will probably make a few mistakes here or there along the way (as I did) I am confident that he will make a fine editor-in-chief. As he takes on this challenging role, do offer him your support, and most certainly give him your suggestions. And even more certainly, give him your articles and letters.

Before I begin my first column as editor-in-chief, I should dispel certain rumors that have cropped up concerning my year-long absence from Christendom. A story has arisen that I took a year off from school to diagnose, treat, and recover from a debilitating sickness purported to be Lyme disease. Well, that’s a nice little tale, but here’s a better one, and one as trustworthy as the lead stories of the New York Times: for political reasons I fled Christendom to join a rough and wild band of freedom fighting Canadians (read “insurgents”) determined to restore truth, freedom, and justice to the oppressed masses of North America, after which I sojourned to the snowy heights of Mt. Kilimanjaro. There in earnest I completed my training under Jedi Masters before returning to Christendom to join The Rambler and rule the college as editor-in-chief.

Now you may believe whichever tale you like, but I must warn you that reading The Rambler will deprive you of that thrill felt reading mainstream publications – like the Times – when you ask yourself: “Have I  enough grains of truth in today’s story to bake a loaf of bread?” Well, truth is stranger than fiction, and I promised John Jalsevac, The Rambler’s outgoing editor-in-chief, that I would hold the publication to that policy. For the disconsolate, I will look into the matter of getting The Rambler a crossword puzzle.

We at The Rambler plot to “make a difference” in our world. We can and will, simply because we have perhaps one of the most powerful tools of modern civilization at our disposal: the Press. As such, we devise our machinations every other Monday in the Commons, and sip Jalsevac’s cognac amidst the hazy smoke of Cuban cigars.

The Rambler’s Catholic and cognac sipping, cigar smoking journalists are indeed a merry “band of brothers,” but unlike those journalists fascinated with aimlessly “making a difference”, we dare to joust bravely for truth, beauty, and goodness, and defend them like Roland’s band protecting the army of Charlemagne at the fatal pass of Roncesvalles – that’s how we make our “difference.”

In fact, the Church needs us Catholic journalists to fight in the field of communications media. The most powerful forces in the world have made it a battleground for culture and the Church calls for reinforcements as too few of the valiant stand to hold back the overrun of civilization. At other universities, conservative publications must struggle with leftist ideologue fanatics bent on stifling truth and free expression. Here at Christendom, The Rambler strives to stir up students to elucidate ideas, debate and take action in an environment beset by the dangers of lethargic complacency or self-defeating cynicism.

Three semesters ago, John Jalsevac and I independently concluded that we needed to start a student newspaper for these reasons. Back then I had gathered a news team with plans to start an independent publication, but those plans I set aside after becoming convinced that collaborating, not opposing valuable resources, was in Christendom’s best interest.

The Rambler has grown tremendously since the “Phoenix edition” reinvigorated it a year and a half ago, and we offer a tremendous forum for campus and world news, political opinions, and stimulating debate over ideas regarding Faith and Reason, while every Bohemian heart can take something from the Arts and Culture section. We even have our own website: www.therambleronline.com, and we hope to develop further our experiment in communications media.

I invite the men and women of Christendom College to join our intrepid band and make The Rambler even better than it is today. We want leaders, writers, thinkers, and even self-styled “Bohemians” to join us in our mission to serve Christendom and Christ’s Church. We want to make The Rambler better, but we have nothing unless we have you.

The darker the world becomes, the brighter the flame of Christian witness shines in the pouring murk of night. So whether you enjoy cognac, cigars, or neither, I invite you: join our bold staff, make submissions, take a chance and give something of yourself to your fellow students!