My Dear Friends in Christ:
Today, I appeal to you to give generously this weekend to the National Collection for The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. As the only institution of higher education founded by the U.S. bishops and chartered by the Vatican, Catholic University is the national university of the Catholic Church, charged with educating the future leaders of the Church, the nation, and the world.
- Catholic University serves the Church by engaging its students to discover knowledge and truth through excellence in teaching and research. The University continues to expand its academic and research offerings and hire faculty who bring world-class research and teaching talents to the classrooms and laboratories for almost 7,000 students. Through new programs in business and music; classical architecture; intelligence studies; neuroscience; Spanish language and Hispanic ministry; social service; and Catholic clinical bioethics, the University strives to be the voice of our Church in response to the issues facing society today.
- Catholic University trains the leaders of the Church. Through its national seminary, the University provides graduate degrees for seminarians sponsored by numerous Catholic dioceses in the U.S. More than one-third of all the active and emeritus bishops and archbishops in the country are Catholic University alumni, including five of the six sitting cardinal archbishops. The University’s business and theology schools offer a unique Management as Ministry program to provide seminarians and newly ordained priests with a foundational understanding of business best practices, including the essentials of finance, management and accounting centered on virtue and ministry.
- Catholic University is helping to respond to shifts in the country’s Catholic population. The University is assisting the U.S. Bishops with the Fifth National Encuentro aimed to serve Latino families and communities. Your gift will strengthen and broaden the education of those who will lead the future Church.
This National Collection is critically important to the operation of the University and to the growing needs of the Church nationally and locally. If you care about the culture and its influencers, if you care about Catholic higher education, and if you care about the future of the Church in America, I urge you to care about Catholic University. Thank you for your support.
Faithfully yours in Christ,
Most Reverend Dennis J. Sullivan, D.D.
Bishop of Camden