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Fighting the Good Fight

Small Band of Catholics Protests Attacks on the Faith at USD

BY ANNA KRESTYN

The Catholic Crusaders are a group of San Diego Catholics who have made it their mission to protest events at the University of San Diego, which are inimical to the Catholic faith. With a core group of six, the Crusaders first gathered about five years ago. It was started by alumni concerned by their alma mater's decreasingly Catholic identity. Their formal activity consists solely in picketing campus events which promote the homosexual lifestyle. On average they protest six to seven times a year but are planning to increase the number of protests to keep pace with the ever increasing number of anti-Catholic activities that are taking place at the school.

Crusader John Giery says the protests are certainly intended to enlighten the students attending the school about the grave inappropriateness of these activities, but are intended more specifically to inform those who are directly responsible for the institution's financial support. "Parents and donors are the ones paying the bills," says Giery, a Catholic family man from East County.

When asked about the kind of response the Crusaders have received from parents, Giery said that since the group began protesting, large numbers of alumni and other parents have told them that they have decided to pull away from the university and not consider it an option for their children. As for students themselves, Giery was positive on this point. "The response from the students has been at times extraordinarily favorable," he said. "When we protested on graduation day, about eighty percent of those students who registered some sort of response, registered a favorable one."

The Crusaders last gathered forces on October 14 to protest the university's celebration of Coming Out week. The University of San Diego had invited an openly lesbian former employee of the radical feminist pro-abortion group, National Organization of Women, to speak on "diversity" to students, parents, faculty and others.

"This is inappropriate conduct for any Catholic to be promoting," said Giery, "and we're here tonight to let parents know that these are the kinds of speakers that are invited to the campus."

Protesting with Giery that evening was Father John Hritzko of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and St. John the Baptizer, a Ukranian Catholic Church in La Mesa. He is a seasoned soldier of Catholic values, having protested abortion during the 80s with the Human Life Alliance at the College of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. He joined the Crusaders at the request of John Giery. "He knew I would be willing to help," said Father Hritzo.

In addition to picketing, Giery and other Crusaders have sent letters to trustees of the university and president Mary Lyons. In one, Giery wrote, "Dr. Lyons, I do hope you can sense how important our message is and how serious we are in our effort to promote it. Helping to save souls is the greatest act of love and charity any Catholic can perform, while leading a person into error or sin is the greatest evil. Wouldn't you agree? I ask of you Dr. Lyons, promote the Catholic faith at USD and help these young students to learn it and become holy Catholics, so that you too will grow in holiness, as all of us must."

So far, the response from those responsible has been silence. "Various trustees have been alerted by us to some of these activities and have remained silent," said Giery. "I have e-mailed several of them and they have not responded."

Still, this band of fighting Catholics, though small, remains confident in its cause and plans to stay in action as long as needed. "The message is slowly getting out," said Giery.

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