George Weigel is Keynote Speaker
at Thomas Aquinas College's 35th Anniversary Gala
(September 30, 2006)
SANTA PAULA, Calif.—On Saturday, September 30, 2006, over
five hundred guests assembled in the Wintergarden ball room of the
Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills for a gala dinner to celebrate
the 35th anniversary of Thomas Aquinas College. Sir Daniel Donohue,
president of the Dan Murphy Foundation and Gentleman in Waiting
to His Holiness the Pope, was the honorary chairman of the event;
Frederick J. Ruopp, chairman and chief executive officer of Chelsea
Management Company, a Los Angeles investment firm, served as dinner
committee chairman.
The Keynote Address was delivered by George Weigel, the official
biographer of Pope John Paul II and a senior fellow of the Ethics
and Public Policy Center where he holds the William E. Simon Chair
in Catholic Studies. Describing Thomas Aquinas College as "one
of the jewels in the crown of higher education in the United States,"
he went on to discuss Pope Benedict XVI's recent talk at Regensburg
that focused on the urgent need for reason to prevail in the world.
Weigel praised Thomas Aquinas College because, in keeping with the
Holy Father's plea, "it is dedicated to the logos, to the truth
of things, to the wisdom of both Athens and Jerusalem. Because of
that commitment it can give us the kind of educated men and women
we need in a world where irrationality is rampant, on the march
and threatening….They all become men and women of reason who
can foster communities of reason where their peers and perhaps even
some of their parents, can come to grips with the fact that human
beings can know the truth of things, including the moral truth of
things…."
President of the college, Dr. Thomas E. Dillon, then told the assembled
friends and benefactors that "The one thing that has characterized
Thomas Aquinas College from the beginning has been its determination
to remain faithful to Christ and the teaching Church and never to
compromise its principles….We are devoted, in season and out
of season, to the twin pillars of faith and reason and to seeking
and speaking the truth, happily making ourselves disciples of that
Master who Himself is the way, the truth and the life."
Earlier in the evening, Richard B. Madden, President of the Western
Association of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, commented
on the growing friendship between the Order of Malta and the college.
He then read from a letter of congratulations from the Grand Master
of the Order who lauded Thomas Aquinas College for earning "an
international reputation for excellence in Catholic higher education
by demonstrating that seeking knowledge under the light of faith
and reason…is possible, desirable, and necessary to form the
truly wise, Catholic person."
During the dinner, the Honorable Michael D. Antonovich, long-time
supervisor for the 5th district of the County of Los Angeles, presented
President Thomas E. Dillon a proclamation from the Los Angeles County
Board of Supervisors and praised the college for 35 years of excellence
in higher education. James Barrett, Vice Chairman of the college's
board of governors and owner of Chateau Montelena Winery in the
Napa Valley, then gave the official toast of the evening, saying,
"This society we live in is a spiritual desert and Thomas Aquinas
College is an oasis…an oasis of truth, beauty, and goodness.
For all of us pilgrims who have been associated with it, it has
changed and enhanced our lives and made us better people."
Maria Grant, a trustee of the Dan Murphy Foundation and the chairman
of the college's board of governors, made the final remarks of the
evening, saying, "I thank all of you here and those not present
who have done so much to help us fulfill and realize the vision
of our founders."
Monsignor Francis J. Weber, archivist for the archdiocese of Los
Angeles and director of the San Fernando Mission, gave the benediction
at the end of the evening. Filled with hope for the future of the
Church because "Thomas Aquinas College is effectively preparing
clergy, religious and lay leaders for the next generation,"
he closed the evening with the prayer of Simeon. Earlier in the
evening, Monsignor Weber offered a Mass of Thanksgiving for attendees
at which graduate Rev. Sebastian Walshe, O.Praem. ('94) was the
homilist; Fr. Walshe is one of Thomas Aquinas College's 42 alumni
priests.
Entertainment was provided by members of the Thomas Aquinas College
Choir who performed scenes from Gilbert and Sullivan's Mikado. Guests
also danced to the music of the Johnny Crawford Dance Orchestra.
Two weeks prior to the gala event, a celebration was held on the
college's campus for students, faculty and staff. Bishop Fabian
Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Nebraska, was the Keynote Speaker for that
event.
About Thomas Aquinas College:
Thomas Aquinas College opened its doors in 1971. It is a four-year
Catholic liberal arts college exclusively devoted to the study of
the Great Books, using only the Socratic method of dialogue in all
of its classes. There are no text books, no lectures and no electives.
Instead, the College offers an entirely integrated curriculum using
only the original texts of the greatest thinkers who have helped
shape Western Civilization. These authors include St. Thomas Aquinas,
St. Augustine, Aristotle, Plato, Shakespeare, Euclid, Dante, Galileo,
Descartes, our American Founding Fathers, Adam Smith, Copernicus,
Kepler, and Newton to name a few.
Thomas Aquinas College graduates consistently excel in the many
world-class institutions where they pursue graduate degrees in such
disciplines professions as law, medicine, business, theology and
education. They have distinguished themselves in these fields serving
as headmasters, business owners, lawyers, priests, journalists,
doctors, military service men and women, educators and college presidents.
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