In terms of red.fans, I am so pleased that the two religious holidays, Christmas and Chanukkah, fall on precisely the same day.
St. John's University is among the most welcoming colleges in prompting diversity, of all faiths, races, and ethnicities. As part of the Vincentian mission, unlike most universities, this is not a relatively new tradition, and not just for diversity's sake. Our history of diversity stretches back to our earliest beginnings welcoming Jewish students to not just study here, but to be part of the fabric of our community. Notably the law school and College of Pharmacy has produced thousands of Jewish professionals, most of whom rank as part of an upstanding group that has served Metro NYC for more than a century. Personally, I can think of few men or women of greater faith than RMN, who has been a great friend for more than a decade, supporting me through some of life's challenges, sometimes just to wish me a nice day via a morning text message. Faith in its purest sense is a prayerful devotion to God, and among monotheistic religions I find closeness and strong similarities in the things that matter.
Yesterday I received a text from an LDS (Mormon) close friend that I know for 8 or 9 years now. He is particularly devout - just about the best Christian I know among many. He texted me at about 4 pm to tell me he was attending Catholic Mass with his wife and 4 young kids near his home in Fort Worth. Beautiful.
Merry Christmas and Happy Chanukkah to our great red.fans community. Prayers for Paul and his family and same for Coach Lou, both guiding beacons for us all.
Of particular note is both parish priests at St. Anne's in GC are St. John's Alums. Father Shanley celebrates Sunday mass at St. Joe's. Our bishop of Brooklyn, Bishop Brennan is an SJU Alum with a strong affinity for St. John’s.
We truly are St. John's - all blessed by God and mandated to be a blessing for others. Challenged to be lights in a world where darkness sometimes persists.
Enjoy this special convergence of holidays, guys, with both those you love and thise sometines difficult to love.
