By Margaret Hawrywk
University students and Long Island community teamed up on Wednesday morning in a peaceful protest against firing of three beloved nuns, including the University’s own, Sister Kathy Riordan.
If Bishop William Murphy had looked outside his office window, he would have seen a hoard of students and other supporters marching along the corner of Sunrise Highway and North Park Avenue. Following behind a woman beating a small drum, the protesters held their banners high and joined together in chanting, “Save Our Sisters!” The demonstration outside the diocese’s office in Rockville Centre was to support the three nuns that were dismissed from their posts as campus ministers at three Long Island colleges.
“We are supporting the sisters because this is not just a job, they have devoted their lives to helping our young people,” said Agnes Kelly, of Massapequa, who read about the nuns’ stories in the news and showed up to support the students’ cause.
The decision to fire the nuns came from Murphy, who is head of the diocese. According to Sean Dolan, a spokesman for the bishop’s office, the nuns contracts will not be renewed in order to clear the way for laypeople in their 20s to take over. The decision came because the Diocese wanted to enliven campus ministry and help Catholic students network between campuses and with each other, said a press release on the Diocese Web site. The Diocese’s solution was to introduce younger people to the ministry. They argued that students would feel more comfortable and be more willing to speak to a person they can relate to.
“We are open to new ideas, ” said Meaghan Baldwin, a senior Environmental Studies majo. “But we also are supporting our sister.”
Riordan, and the two other nuns, Sister Katherine Hickey of New York Institute of Technology and Sister Elizabeth McGarvey of SUNY Farmingdale, are now fighting for reinstatement.
Students and staff members organized the demonstration over spring break because “Sister Kathy is important to the campus,” said Lisa Giunta, an SGA senator and junior history major.
Students from the other universities affected by the decision also attended the protest and took actions to ensure the Sisters are not forced to resign.
Keasha Guerri, a senior interdisciplinary studies major at the NYIT, said many students at her school have sent letters to the Bishop’s office in protest.
“When push comes to shove, young adults are in a much better place to reach out to peers,” said Reverend Robert Schlageter in the release, director of campus ministry and chaplain of Catholic University of America. “We’ve found that young adults listen to young adults.”
As the diocese continues to praise what they call a mission of “new evangelization” students disagree with the actions.
“Change is great,” Giunta said. “But we don’t need to sacrifice our sisters to have change.”
The Diocese’s decision and the subsequent protest caught the attention of the media, said Giunta, as reporters from Channel 12, “Newsday” and “The Daily News” came to cover the protest.
Riordan attended the demonstration, along with the two other sisters, and said she hoped the protest would convince the diocese to allow the three sisters to maintain their positions.
“I’m so touched,” she said, “I am overwhelmed by the generosity of people I’ve never met.”
Although the University community appreciates the ideas that Father Brian Barr has brought to the Parish and will welcome new, young people, said Guinta, they still want Sister Kathy to stay.
“All of his [Barr’s] ideas are great,” she continued, “but we want to show support for Sister Kathy as well.”
Students and members of the community gathered at the diocese in Rockville Centre to protest the dismissal of Sister Kathy Riordan. (Tara Conry/The Chronicle)